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Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has divided Australians with controversial comparisons between the tragic Port Arthur massacre and the pro-Palestine protests.
Speaking at Tom Hughes’ speech in Sydney on Wednesday night, Dutton criticized Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s handling of rising antisemitism in Australia in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel.
The terrorist attack caused civil unrest around the world and sparked protests on the steps of the Opera House on October 9.
“While no one died during the October 9 protests, the events at the Sydney Opera House were similar to a Port Arthur moment in terms of their social significance,” Mr Dutton said.
The opposition leader referred to then-Prime Minister John Howard’s harsh response to the 1996 massacre, in which gunman Martin Bryant murdered 35 people and injured 23 others.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has divided Australians with controversial comparisons between the tragic Port Arthur massacre and the pro-Palestine protests.
Speaking at Tom Hughes’ speech in Sydney on Wednesday night, Dutton criticized Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s handling of rising antisemitism in Australia following the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel.
The opposition leader referred to then Prime Minister John Howard’s harsh response to the 1996 massacre, in which gunman Martin Bryant murdered 35 people and injured 23 others.
«The gun bans he intended to introduce irritated his liberal leanings. “He saw them as a violation of individual freedom,” he stated.
‘But John Howard also understood the broader national and human interest involved. He appreciated the need to appeal to Australians at a tragic time to bring about a profound cultural change in community attitudes.
“That’s exactly what he did to win the hearts and minds of his fellow Australians and political opponents.”
Dutton accused Albanese of failing to rise to the occasion in his efforts to eradicate anti-Semitism.
His comparison has been criticized online, with one critic saying it amounted to a “cruel slap in the face to the Port Arthur victims and their families”.
Another said: “It’s really shocking to me that your mind can compare an act of violence and mass death like Port Arthur to a protest wanting peace.” “It is shameful that someone so opportunistic, callous and divisive should lead one of our main parties.”
His comparison has been criticized online, with critics saying it amounts to a “cruel slap in the face to Port Arthur victims and their families”.
Martin Bryant murdered 35 people and injured 23 others during the 1996 massacre
A third wrote: “Peter Dutton should apologize to the families of the victims of the Port Arthur massacre after attempting to downplay the events in which their relatives were brutally murdered by suggesting that the horrors they endured are comparable to a public outcry against the Israeli invasion of Gaza.
John Howard introduced a gun buyback scheme following the Port Arthur massacre, paying Australians to hand over a total of 650,000 firearms that had been declared illegal as a result of new laws.
Albanese and his government have repeatedly denounced the atrocities of the October 7 attacks on Israel, but have recently expressed support for a two-state solution and an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.
The Coalition has repeatedly attacked Labor for not taking a strong enough stance against Hamas.
Albanese himself was asked about Dutton’s divisive comments on Thursday, noting that “people will draw their own conclusions about it.”
‘I saw those comments and they surprised me a little. And it is up to him to explain it.
‘I am someone who has spent time, including recently in Parliament, with the family of the Port Arthur victims.
“I think sometimes what Peter Dutton does in his comments is think about how hard you could go and how angry you could be, and then take it a step further.”
John Howard introduced a weapons buyback scheme after the Port Arthur massacre. In the photo: about 4,500 firearms delivered
