Legendary Olympic swimmer Dawn Fraser has demanded Prime Minister Anthony Albanese properly address the rising tide of antisemitism in Australia, claiming he is ‘too scared’ to speak up.
Fraser on Sunday gave a teary speech at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, where she slammed the government by saying it had let the country, and its Jewish community, down.
Fraser joined more than 60 other sporting greats who have signed a petition calling for Albanese to announce a royal commission into antisemitism in Australia – in particular the Bondi Beach massacre on December 14, and the events which led to it.
Other sports stars to speak up include Olympic canoeist Jess Fox, swimming legend Ian Thorpe, tennis champion Lleyton Hewitt, former AFL player Sam Newman, Sydney Swans’ Isaac Heeney and retired Hockeyroo player Nova Peris.
In her speech, Fraser told Albanese, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke and Foreign Minister Penny Wong to ‘come down off their high horse’ and added that ‘this is not about the spineless and weak; it’s about doing the right thing’.
Albanese has been accused of ignoring the pleas of Bondi victims’ families after he declared there will not be a royal commission, but instead retired spy boss Dennis Richardson would lead a government review.
Liberal leader Sussan Ley has already accused the Prime Minister of repeatedly ‘refusing to listen’ to calls for the independent inquiry into the alleged terrorist attack, in which 15 people died and many more were injured.
The Richardson Review will examine the conduct of federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies prior to the attack, with findings due by April.
Legendary Olympic swimmer Dawn Fraser has called the prime minister ineffective for not supporting a Commonwealth royal commission into the Bondi Beach massacre
Fraser said Anthony Albanese should ‘stop trying to run for cover’ and instead do what is right by the community
Fraser questioned whether the prime minister was trying to protect himself from any negative findings that a royal commission might uncover.
‘I have flown to Sydney to show my support for the Jewish community and say I’m so very sorry for my country and its leaders not protecting each and every one of you and your families… we failed you,’ she said.
‘This is not a gun problem or a one-off problem, this is an anti-semitism problem and it has been building and building and our leaders have sat on their hands too scared to say anything or do anything because heaven forbid they might be called racist.’
Fraser, who has part-Peruvian heritage, has previously been accused of being racist, particularly after a 2015 incident in which she publicly told Nick Kyrgios to go back to his own country.
‘I have been accused many times of being racist, but the people that know me know that is the furthest from the truth. I will speak out every time to protect my country and the people who live here and love this beautiful land.
‘To you Anthony Albanese, Tony Burke and Penny Wong: Come down off your high horse and stop trying to run for cover. If the Jewish community is calling for a royal commissioner then do the right thing by this community and that has suffered enough.’
Burke endorsed Albanese’s calling for an independent review early on while Wong recently apologised for not being more proactive in tackling antisemitism in the country.
Signatories of the open letter, which follows a similar one by business leaders, claimed the issue of rising antisemitism in Australia had gone unchecked for ‘more than two years’.
Opposition leader Sussan Ley has also slammed Albanese for not supporting a royal commission
Fraser’s teary speech was in support of an open letter signed by herself and more than 60 other sports stars calling for the government to call for the royal commission
They demanded the government ‘show decisive national leadership by confronting extremism and terrorism in all its forms, without fear or hesitation’.
‘We must also put an end to the unprecedented harassment, intimidation and violence that has been directed at the Australian Jewish community since October 7, 2023,’ the open letter read.
‘We implore our leaders to act with urgency and moral clarity.’
Former AFL player and signatory Gerard Healy rallied other sports stars to get on board with the letter which he hopes will help bring closure to the Jewish community.
‘I think if you can help in any way, shape or form the Jewish community that have been dealt a shocking hand in this country over the last two years, then I think you should take that opportunity,’ he told the ABC.
Albanese has argued that the Richardson Review will provide swift answers and prevent the politicisation of a moment of national grief.
‘My job as the leader, as the Prime Minister, is to bring the country together – not to divide, not to seek differentiation, but to seek common interest,’ he said last week.
‘We need to go to the heart of what occurred and, importantly, ensure this never happens again.’
Experts also caution that royal commissions, while the highest form of inquiry, often take years and demand precise terms of reference and actionable recommendations.