ECAJ statement on the enactment of the Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2025.

The ECAJ has welcomed the enactment of the Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2025 earlier today. The Act imposes minimum mandatory penalties for certain hate-related crimes, including six years for terrorist offences, three years for financing terrorism and one year for dis­play­ing hate symbols.

“We commended the Federal Oppos­i­tion for putting forward this proposal on January 20, and we also now commend the gov­ern­ment for its decision to accept and implement the proposal”, said ECAJ co-CEO Peter Wertheim.

“The bipar­tis­an­ship on this important issue sends a powerful and much-needed message of zero tolerance to potential per­pet­rat­ors of these offences.”

“We have seen too many examples of such behaviour going unpun­ished, such as the dis­grace­ful antisemitic threats and hatred that featured at the Sydney Opera House steps on 9 October 2023. No one was even charged, let alone convicted.”

“More recently there have been similar instances of such behaviour in Sydney and Perth where per­pet­rat­ors have been convicted and given only a token fine. That is also unac­cept­able because per­pet­rat­ors come to regard such fines as merely the cost of “doing business” and not as a real deterrent. If there is to be any hope of stamping out this hateful behaviour and the appalling antisemitic violence it has spawned in recent times, prison sentences and fines are called for.”

“Between the mandatory minimum sentence and the statutory maximum, there will still be ample room for judges to exercise their dis­cre­tion based on the specific cir­cum­stances of each case. Now, however, that dis­cre­tion will need to be exercised within para­met­ers that reflect community expect­a­tions and standards”