Government of Anthony Albanese condemns individuals participating in anti-immigration protests: Labeled as racist
Anti-Immigration Rallies Sweep Across Australia
Anti-immigration rallies took place in cities across Australia on Sunday, attracting tens of thousands of nationalists and sparking controversy over racist rhetoric and the involvement of far-right extremists.
In Sydney, an estimated 15,000 people gathered, with prominent neo-Nazis giving speeches. One speaker spouted a theory about a global agenda to replace people with Anglo-Celtic and European heritage. In Melbourne, footage circulating on social media showed a group of neo-Nazis clashing with Jewish right-wing commentator Avi Yemini.
The rallies were draped in Australian flags and paraphernalia, but the organizers' claims of 1500 migrants entering Australia each day were disputed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, who stated these figures are not a reliable measure of migration or population change.
The Labor government has yet to release its planning levels for its 2025/26 migration program, leading to concerns about the lack of transparency in immigration policies. Former Immigration Department deputy secretary Abul Rizvi stated that successive governments have failed to communicate their immigration plans to the public.
Opposition immigration spokesman Paul Scarr expressed his concern about fringe elements influencing the immigration debate and mentioned a strong speech he gave in the Senate regarding the targeting of the Indian community and expressed distress about some of the material. Federal Multicultural Affairs Minister Anne Aly stated that the protests were targeted at migrants from countries with brown people, not white Western countries.
The ethnic groups targeted by neo-Nazis in connection with the anti-immigration rallies in Australia primarily include Middle Eastern and African communities. Some of the rhetoric at the rallies crossed into racism and xenophobia, with violence erupting between competing rallies in Melbourne, where officers used pepper spray to break up clashes.
In Canberra, far-right firebrand senator Pauline Hanson spoke to hundreds, calling for reduced migration, more Australian pride, and decrying Welcome to Country ceremonies and a 'woke agenda' in schools. More than 100 Canberran counter-protesters chanted slogans such as 'fuck off Nazis, fuck off', 'go home white trash', and 'immigrants are welcome here'.
The government has condemned the rallies as racist and a neo-Nazi con job, with Scarr also expressing his concern about the influence of these extremist groups on the immigration debate. Scarr also mentioned a distressing speech he gave in the Senate regarding the targeting of the Indian community.
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