Lead

Nearly six months after an alleged terror attack on an Invasion Day rally in Perth, First Nations witnesses have told a federal inquiry that the scars remain deep, with accounts of trauma, frustration over a perceived lack of political condemnation, and calls for stronger action against racism and online hate.

The inquiry into racism, hate and violence toward Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people heard evidence in Perth this week, just a few hundred metres from where the attack occurred on 26 January. The alleged device, described by police as a potential "mass-casualty event," was thrown into a crowd of about 2,000 people at Forrest Place.

Coverage comparison

ABC Australia reported that the inquiry was announced in the wake of the alleged terror attack on the Invasion Day rally and a violent neo-Nazi attack on Camp Sovereignty in Melbourne last August. The public broadcaster also noted that the committee's chair, Labor senator Jana Stewart, a Mutthi Mutthi and Wamba Wamba woman, said the evidence heard so far shows that "racism is alive and well" in Australia.

The Guardian — World reported that Western Australia police declared the incident was being investigated as a terror attack nine days after the alleged homemade bomb, filled with ball bearings, screws and other projectiles, was thrown into the crowd. The outlet also noted that Perth man Liam Alexander Hall has been charged with terrorism offences and is in custody, with his lawyers indicating he intends to plead not guilty by way of insanity.

ABC Australia also drew a comparison between the Invasion Day rally attack and the Bondi massacre, noting that a Royal Commission on the other side of the country was investigating the antisemitism which led to 15 people being killed while celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah on Bondi Beach in December. Despite the vastly different outcomes, the inquiry highlighted key similarities between the two attacks on Australian minorities.

Key claims

  • An alleged terror attack occurred on an Invasion Day rally in Perth in January, with a homemade bomb landing at Renae Isaacs-Guthridge's family's feet, as reported by both ABC Australia and The Guardian — World.
  • Police said the bomb was designed to be a "mass casualty event," a claim carried by ABC Australia.
  • Committee chair Jana Stewart said "racism is alive and well" in Australia, as reported by ABC Australia.
  • There has been a rise in overt racism since the 2023 Voice referendum, a claim reported by both ABC Australia and The Guardian — World.
  • Renae Isaacs-Guthridge said the attack didn't receive the public condemnation it should have from all sides of politics, as reported by both outlets.
  • Ken Wyatt said the defeat of the referendum on a constitutional voice to parliament in 2023 normalised racism and online hate, as reported by both ABC Australia and The Guardian — World.
  • There are growing calls for social media platforms to be held responsible for moderating and removing racist comments, as reported by ABC Australia.
  • The Northern Land Council called for racial vilification against Aboriginal people to be criminalised, as reported by ABC Australia.

Perspectives

Witness testimony

Renae Isaacs-Guthridge, a Noongar Yamatji yorga and Curtin University academic, told the inquiry that the alleged bomb landed at her family's feet. "We should be dead because it landed right in front of us," she said, according to both ABC Australia and The Guardian — World. She said many in the community felt ignored and dismissed in the days and weeks after the attack, and that the response was not treated with the same sense of urgency as the Bondi massacre. "I believe because we were an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander crowd, there is an underlying hate against us, and so we're not taken as seriously," she said, as reported by The Guardian — World.

Committee chair

Senator Jana Stewart, who chairs the inquiry, said the evidence shows "racism is alive and well" in Australia, according to ABC Australia. She also said the 2023 Voice referendum had "given licence for people to target some of that hate and violence towards First Nations people," as reported by ABC Australia.

Former politician

Ken Wyatt, a former Indigenous Australians minister, said the defeat of the Voice referendum normalised racism and online hate, according to both ABC Australia and The Guardian — World. He emphasised the need for implementation over rhetoric, as reported by ABC Australia.

Organiser

Fabian Yarran, the Invasion Day rally organiser, also gave evidence, as reported by The Guardian — World, though his specific testimony was not detailed in the provided material.

Legal context

Liam Alexander Hall, 32, has been charged with throwing an improvised explosive device into the crowd and is yet to enter a plea, according to ABC Australia. The Guardian — World reported that his lawyers have indicated he intends to plead not guilty by way of insanity.