Palestine

The Hon. A. PICCOLO (Light) (15:36): On 14 May 1948, Israel declared independence, leading to a war with adjoining Arab nations and also leading to an escalation of violence perpetuated on the Palestinian people. Nakba Day, as requested by the United Nations General Assembly, is observed on 15 May each year—tomorrow. Between 1947 and 1949, approximately 15,000 Palestinians were killed in a series of mass atrocities, including dozens of massacres. June the 5^th 1967 was the first day of a six-day war resulting in another wave of displacement occurring, known as the Naksa. An additional 250,000 to 300,000 Palestinians became refugees, some for the second time.

The Nakba anniversary is a reminder of not only those tragic events of 1948 but the ongoing injustice suffered by the Palestinian people. The Nakba had a profound impact on the Palestinian people, who lost their homes, their land and their way of life. As terrible as these statistics are, they do not convey the sheer horror, injustice, pain and grief experienced by the Palestinian people for over 76 years.

In the most recent conflict, which continues today, over 50,000 Palestinian people have been killed. While these figures should haunt every political and community leader in the Western world, it is the lack of empathy shown by some, including some in Australia, that is most disturbing. Such is their moral indifference that their words, for short-term political gain, inflict further pain and hurt on a community already decimated by senseless war. Nakba Day reminds us that the current conflict did not have its origins on 7 October 2023.

I mention this because the events of 7 October 2023, as horrific as they were, do not define the history of this conflict. Those who only reference this event are betraying not only history but humanity itself. Whether it is through ignorance or political expedience matters not. It is when we understand and accept this fact that the Palestine-Israel conflict can be finally resolved.

The occupation of Palestine does not just kill people—it silences voices, erases images and buries the truth. We see many examples where the truth has been buried to the extent that in Palestine numerous journalists have been killed in this latest conflict to ensure that the story does not get out. However, most of the politicians, academics and journalists in the West have deliberately chosen not to notice.

This kind of ignorance is first and foremost the result of the successful Israeli lobbying that thrived in the fertile ground of a European guilt complex, racism, and Islamophobia. In the case of the US, it is also the outcome of many years of an effective and ruthless lobbying machine that very few in academia, media and politics dare to disobey. That is a very important point. Those in this country, for example, who try to put an alternative view about the Israel-Palestine conflict are often torn down and silenced in many ways.

In the name of balance, our media gives credibility to this Israeli propaganda. No-one would think of giving equal treatment to those who deny the Holocaust, neither should we give balanced media coverage to those who deny the enormity of the devastation in Gaza and the West Bank today.

October 7 did not occur in a vacuum. It was the result of a decades-long Israeli occupation, never-ending violence, and the oppression of the Palestinian people. Destroying Hamas will not destroy the Palestinian cause for a homeland and a peaceful and prosperous future, because it is a just cause. One day history will prove them right.