Bandt Condemns Israeli War Crimes; Galbally Deceives Reality

Galbally, is a name revered throughout Australian legal circles. Sir Francis Galbally was one of Australia’s most decorated criminal lawyers.

There was much to admire about Francis Eugene Jospeh Galbally, CBE. There’s also much to admire but Australian Greens Leader, Adam Bandt. He’s one Australian politician who hasn’t only been strong in his condemnation of Israel’s genocide and war crimes, he refuses to be silenced by the Jewish lobby.

God bless Adam Bandt.

Australian’s should get behind Bandt for his values and leadership - qualities lacking in many of Australia’s politicians as well as politicians globally.

However, as for Francis Galbally Jnr, there’s not much to admire about him as there was with his father.

Galbally Jnr, who followed in his father’s footsteps, is now a former lawyer, having left to turn his talents to business, investment banking, and becoming a contributing columnist for The Australian newspaper.

Well done, Junior. But the praise stops here.

As a contributing columnist for The Australian, Galbally has much to say. It affords him a platform to address many subjects – whether they are worth acknowledging is another matter.

In today’s edition of the paper, Galbally launched a scathing attack on Australian Greens leader Adam Bandt, comparing him to Adolf Hitler and accusing the Greens of harbouring anti-Semitic sentiments.

Today’s piece was noteworthy, not for its quality but for its sheer inanity. Galbally’s comparison is unfounded and dangerously misleading. Not only do his arguments lack credibility, but they seem more focused on vilifying a political opponent than engaging in a constructive discussion about Gaza and the role of the Israeli and US governments in facilitating genocide and war crimes.

Comparing Bandt to Adolf Hitler is an outrageous claim not based on reality. Hitler orchestrated the genocide of six million Jews and millions of others during World War II. And by equating Bandt’s call for ending violence in Gaza with Hitler’s genocidal regime is historically inaccurate and an insult to the victims of the Holocaust.

Bandt should be admired for his advocacy for Palestinian rights and condemnation of the Israeli government's genocidal mania in Gaza. His calling out of Israel’s terrorism is grounded in a desire for justice and human rights, not hatred or bigotry, obviously it seems Galbally is lacking in the art of clear thinking. You’d think his legal training would have afforded him such a skill. Obviously not.

What’s even more concerning about his commentary, is how he conveniently ignores the historical and political context of the Gaza war. The Israeli government, with its US backing, has committed numerous war crimes that international observers and human rights organisations label disproportionate and inhumane.

The blockade on Gaza, military incursions, subjugation, bombings and slaughter, have caused immense suffering for Palestinians. Criticising these crimes is not anti-Semitic; it is a moral imperative to speak out against human rights abuses.

However, labelling Bandt’s actions as genocidal while ignoring the systematic oppression and violence faced by Palestinians distorts reality.

Genocide is defined by the deliberate destruction of a national, racial, ethnic, or religious group. The war crimes being enacted in Gaza, where Palestinians face severe restrictions, displacement, and violence, fits this definition more accurately than Bandt’s calls for peace.

Galbally’s rhetoric obscures this reality and shifts the blame onto those who speak out against injustice.

Furthermore, he also exhibits a failure to understand what anti-Semitism is. Semites are people who speak Semitic languages – Arabs, Jews, Assyrians, and Ethiopians. Zionists aren’t Semites; it’s hard to claim Semitic status when you’re from Eastern Europe and a 19th-century ideology.

Denouncing Israeli government policies that result in human rights abuses isn’t anti-Semitic.

Conflating legitimate criticism with anti-Semitism dilutes the meaning and disrespects those who suffer from actual anti-Jewish bigotry.

Galbally’s lamenting of media coverage of the Greens and Bandt and accusing them of supporting anti-Semitism is insane. It’s clear like many others, Galbally has no understanding of what anti-Semitism really is.

What’s is crucial is for the media to distinguish between legitimate criticism of a government's policies and hate speech.

Silencing voices that call for an end to violence and accountability perpetuates the cycle of violence and oppression. Its critical the media present balanced perspectives and not give a platform to baseless comparisons and fearmongering.

Adam Bandt has shown what other leaders and media fail to do: speak out against atrocities and genocide in Gaza. Silence in the face of such suffering is complicity.

Attempting to silence Bandt and others who criticise Israel’s war crimes, Galbally advocates for a world where human rights abuses go unchallenged. It’s a dangerous precedent that undermines justice and accountability.

Accusing Bandt of being a demagogue and using propaganda to do it, sees Galbally relying on sensationalist comparisons to stoke fear and division. Invoking Hitler and the Nazis, engages in the very tactics he decries, a hypocrisy that must be called out as an attempt to deflect criticism from a powerful government and silence dissenting voices.

Geopolitically, the world is in a mess. Rather than vilify Bandt or others who call for peace and justice, Galbally should focus on holding all parties accountable for their inaction and allowing the slaughter of innocents.