Deborah Hart: Holocaust Centre of New Zealand Chair on the deadly terror attack on Australia's Bondi Beach

Security has been boosted around Jewish places of worship and gatherings following last night's deadly attack at Bondi Beach.

Two gunmen opened fire on a crowd of about a thousand people celebrating the first day of Hanukkah, killing 15 and injuring 40.

Holocaust Centre of New Zealand Chair Deborah Hart says New Zealand's Jewish community is 'reeling' following the attack, and tributes are flooding in. 

"We hold those directly affected in our hearts, but we know that we have to be resilient and we have to go on. And we've only had the first night of Hanukkah, and Hanukkah is the festival that has carried us through centuries of persecution." 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Billy and Bridge Rich You're on news Talk z eb
It's nine minutes after four. Police have been patrolling outside
Jewish synagogues and events here in New Zealand after what's
happened in Sydney. Same thing happening around the world right now, London,
Berlin and New York. It is, of course the start
of Honkkh. Deborah Hart is the chair of the Holocaust

(00:21):
Center in New Zealand and joins me now, Deborah, good afternoon, Cia.
How are you doing. How is the Jewish community in
New Zealand doing after this?

Speaker 2 (00:30):
Well, we are reeling. Our hearts are truly broken. We
hold those directly affected in our hearts. But we know
that we have to be resilient and we have to
go on. And we you know, we've only had the

(00:51):
first night of Hanekah, and Honakh is the festival that
has carried us through centuries of persecution. The ancient promised
that light and jaws even when we're met with brutal violence.
So it's ironic that this has come at the time
of Huniker.

Speaker 1 (01:11):
It's awful for everyone there, isn't it? And for you here?
So what are people? How do you normally celebrate Hannaker
in New Zealand. Do we have public events.

Speaker 2 (01:20):
Like this, Well, most Jewish people will be celebrating the
eight days of Huneker. Each day we light another candle
for Hunnakah, and Jewish people around the world will be
doing exactly that. We used to hold regular public events

(01:43):
so that everyone could join us and what is a
really joyous festival. But you know, we stopped doing that
because it just wasn't safe here to do it. Indeed,
I used to MC many of the events and Wellington
and I remember the last time I did it, which
was a few years back now, thinking oh, I don't

(02:06):
quite feel safe, but I'm going to do it anyway.

Speaker 1 (02:10):
But we have.

Speaker 2 (02:12):
Mostly taken the event behind closed doors and behind guards
and big fences because it's just not safe to do
it in any other way.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
Debraah, are things getting how much? I mean, we know
things have been getting worse, but how much of you know,
There's always been this awful baseline anti Semitic attitude, and
you know, the neo Nazi stuff like that, and now
you've got after the war and Garza and you know
Netnya who he's made some enemies, and so Jewish people
are copying it. How much worse has it got as

(02:47):
a result of that? And is there anything you know?
Are all of our leaders, all of our politicians, are
they making the situation better or worse?

Speaker 2 (02:56):
Well? The first thing to say is it doesn't matter
what is happening half a world away, anti Semitism here
in New Zealand, is or anywhere is completely unacceptable. It
has become quite rampant. It should alarm every listener that
Jewish children in our own country are being assaulted in school,

(03:20):
They're being threatened, that they have to hide Jewish sites vandalized.
We get threats in broad daylight. We have the government
here in New Zealand has been really good in trying
to safeguard the Jewish community, and the police and the

(03:41):
security services have been really really good as well. I
have to say though, it is saddening when you have
the likes of the co leader of the Green Party,
Chloe Swolbrook, happy to go to pro Palestinian rallies and
side by side with signs reading globalize the into Farder.

(04:05):
That is not a call for peaceful resistance the farder.
Globalizing the into Farder is what we have seen in Sydney.
It is violence on a global scale against Jewish people,
and I think it's time for our leaders to take
pause and think about what it is that they are

(04:28):
standing for in standing with Do you think.

Speaker 1 (04:31):
They people like Chloe actually understand what they're saying.

Speaker 2 (04:36):
I would hope not, but you know, these are intelligent people,
and look, it's time for introspection and to think what
can I do differently and what can I do better?
And am I doing something that endangers other people? And
you know, these kinds of messages are heard by some

(04:59):
people as a call to violence, and that is clearly
what we have seen in Sydney and what we fear
could happen here in New Zealand.

Speaker 1 (05:09):
Debra, I really appreciate you talking to me today. Thank
you for that and all the best for the rest
of your hunekhah. That is Debrah Hart Holocaust Center Chare
in New Zealand. For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive,
listen live to news Talks. It'd be from four pm weekdays,
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