Letter to the editor by co-CEO Peter Wertheim, published in The Australian on 5 August 2025.
I would never criticise anybody who is genuinely motivated by compassion and concern for the suffering of people caught up in conflicts in other parts of the world. I only wonder why such compassion and concern can be so selectively applied. Hours before the Sydney Harbour Bridge march took place on Sunday, Hamas released images of a young Israeli hostage held in one of its tunnels. He showed obvious signs of being emaciated through starvation, and was made by his captors to go through the motions of digging his own grave. It reminded me of World War II images of the walking skeletons of Australian POWs in Changi prison and among the survivors of the Nazi concentration camps.
Yet not a single placard on the Harbour Bridge called for the release of the remaining Israeli hostages whose capture by Hamas on October 7, 2023 sparked the current war in Gaza. It seems that even people who pride themselves on their compassion can be remarkably callous.
The update reflects the important steps taken by the Special Envoy To Combat Antisemitism and how much work remains to address antisemitism in Australia.
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The bonds of decency and trust between citizens which are the glue of democratic societies are under unprecedented attack, spearheaded by a fever of words
Even people priding themselves on compassion can be callous
Even people priding themselves on compassion can be callous
Letter to the editor by co-CEO Peter Wertheim, published in The Australian on 5 August 2025.
I would never criticise anybody who is genuinely motivated by compassion and concern for the suffering of people caught up in conflicts in other parts of the world. I only wonder why such compassion and concern can be so selectively applied. Hours before the Sydney Harbour Bridge march took place on Sunday, Hamas released images of a young Israeli hostage held in one of its tunnels. He showed obvious signs of being emaciated through starvation, and was made by his captors to go through the motions of digging his own grave. It reminded me of World War II images of the walking skeletons of Australian POWs in Changi prison and among the survivors of the Nazi concentration camps.
Yet not a single placard on the Harbour Bridge called for the release of the remaining Israeli hostages whose capture by Hamas on October 7, 2023 sparked the current war in Gaza. It seems that even people who pride themselves on their compassion can be remarkably callous.
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