By Rebel News | Created at 2025-01-15 04:41:24 | Updated at 2025-01-15 08:42:34
5 hours ago
Jewish organisations have criticised the Australian Open for allowing pro-Palestine slogans to appear in the crowd, calling it a breach of tournament rules designed to prohibit political messaging.
Images surfaced this week showing spectators wearing T-shirts featuring pro-Palestine statements at the Melbourne Park event, prompting backlash from groups who argue such displays violate the competition’s guidelines.
Australian Jewish Association (AJA) chief executive Robert Gregory expressed disappointment over what he described as inconsistent enforcement of rules. “The rules should be applied equally to everyone,” Gregory said. “There should not be an exception for Palestinian activists. Australians have been confronted by anti-Israel protests and disruptions to our cities for over a year. The last place Australians want to see this is at the tennis.”
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) January 14, 2025Tournament director Craig Tiley had previously warned that protesters or individuals displaying banned flags would face removal or police intervention. Tennis Australia reiterated its stance in a statement on Tuesday, asserting: “Anyone seeking to disrupt the event – or who is displaying material intended to disrupt, offend, vilify or that is political in nature – will be managed in line with the AO25 ticket terms and conditions. And may be asked to put away the material, or leave.”
The AJA accused Tennis Australia of hypocrisy, referencing its strict handling of a similar incident during the 2022 Australian Open. At the time, fans were initially barred from wearing “Where is Peng Shuai?” T-shirts in support of the Chinese player who had disappeared, though the ban was later reversed following public outcry.
“The Australian Open apparently has a rule, banning political slogans. They even enforced that against fans who were supporting Chinese player, Peng Shuai. Not so when it comes to the ‘Free Palestine’ crowd,” the AJA said in a statement.
In efforts to maintain a neutral and “happy slam” environment, Tennis Australia has prohibited Russian and Belarusian flags, while allowing national emblems, including the Israeli flag, only on days when players from those nations compete. Israeli wheelchair singles player Guy Sasson is set to participate from January 21.
