Foreign Minister Removed from Stage by Pro-Palestinian Hecklers
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong was heckled off stage by pro-Palestinian activists as she gave the Plimsoll Address on international relations at the University of Tasmania.
An organised campaign was arranged to purposely interrupt the speech on the evening of Oct. 15.
Promotional posters for the disruption showed an altered photo of Wong holding up dripping, blood-red hands, with the heading “free Palestine, picket Penny Wong.”
The poster leading up to the event accused Wong of being a “war criminal” due to protesters’ calls for Australia to completely cut ties with Israel and to show unconditional support for Gaza.
Despite Wong expressing support for the safety of aid workers in Gaza and her hopes for a two-state solution in her speech, hecklers interrupted her, yelling on multiple occasions and stopping the minister from speaking.
The ABC reported Wong’s 45-minute speech was interrupted around ten times by protesters calling for Australia to sanction Israel.
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Hecklers also criticized the Australian government’s decision to pause funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNWRA) after investigations revealed several UNWRA members were also found to be members of the terrorist organization Hamas, responsible for the Oct. 7 attacks that precipitated the current war between Israel and Gaza.
“I’d say to you, we are a democracy and everyone’s voice matters … but I don’t actually believe, and I have never believed, that we gain anything by shouting each other down,” Wong told the angry crowd.
Attempts by the minister and the university to settle the situation did not seem effective.
“Part of what I’m doing in this speech, to anybody else who wishes to speak but not listen, is actually try to lay out some of what we are doing in relation to what is happening in Gaza and what we are doing in relation to Lebanon,” Wong told the activists.
“So, it’s disappointing that people don’t actually want to hear some of the facts about what the government is seeking to do in this situation.”
Wong ultimately asked the hecklers if they wanted to listen or if all they wanted to do was shout at her, at one point having to leave the stage.
Grassroots Action Network Tasmania, the organization that promoted activism at the event, posted to social media to condemn Australia’s diplomatic relationship with Israel and encourage activists to be as disruptive as possible.
“Bang drums, placards, pots and pans, vuvuzelas and whatever else will help Penny feel that the people in Nipaluna (Hobart) don’t want her,” they wrote on Instagram.
The University of Tasmania and Wong’s office were contacted for comment.
