Legal advice warned against banning ‘intifada’ event from council venue

The City of Sydney was warned it likely had no legal grounds to cancel a forum on “why it’s right to say globalise the intifada” from a council-run venue before the lord mayor bowed to community and media pressure and booted the activist group.

Stop the War on Palestine had organised the forum at a council-run venue in Darlington, sparking backlash from members of the Jewish community, many of whom regard the phrase to be a call for violence against Jews, and prompting outrage from the premier and opposition leader.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said on Monday she had decided to ban the event after the vocal campaign against it, saying the council had to ensure the event did not contribute to hostility or fear, and blaming the media campaign for inflaming tensions.

“I have long supported the principles of peaceful assembly, protest and freedom of speech. However, these rights must always be balanced with a responsibility to ensure public safety and respect for all members of our diverse community,” she said.

However, legal advice provided to councillors after a notice of motion from Liberal councillor Lyndon Gannon suggested it was highly likely that the event was constitutionally protected under the implied freedom of political communication.

The advice also noted that a Labor-led inquiry last year recommended banning the phrase specifically when chanted in a public place. As a result, the advice said, a forum to facilitate a political debate about its use would still not have been unlawful even if those reforms had been passed.

Gannon’s motion, which did not receive the backing of other councillors, had called for the lord mayor to write to Premier Chris Minns for an update on the state government’s proposed banning of the phrase. He said that, while unchallenged antisemitism puts democracy at risk, free speech is often the best medicine “for the bigotry disease”.

The event was moved to a park in Darlington on Tuesday evening.

Minns had repeatedly called on Moore to cancel the event, saying it was the last thing Sydney needed.

The Liberals announced on Tuesday that they would introduce amendments to state parliament which would give the state government the power to intervene and cancel any antisemitic events in council venues.

The proposed laws, which do not have Labor support, would specifically target phrases such as “globalise the intifada”.

In the days after the Bondi terrorist attack, Minns vowed to outlaw the phrase, ordering a rapid lower inquiry to examine pathways to banning it.

The Labor-controlled committee held no public hearings and gave experts and legal bodies just three weeks over the Christmas break to make submissions about the constitutionality of such a ban.

Minns said last week he was waiting on the “green light” from Queensland, where similar laws banning pro-Palestinian protest chants are likely to face a constitutional challenge.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.