Hundreds turned out at the “Stand with Mary” event held in support of journalist Mary Kostakidis, against whom the CEO of the Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA), Alon Cassuto, has filed a lawsuit for posts she published on the social media platform “X” (formerly Twitter).
Cassuto claims Kostakidis’ posts on 4 and 13 January that contained excerpts from a speech by the now deceased Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, violated the Racial Discrimination Act as, according to his lawsuit, they were “reasonably likely under the circumstances to offend, demean, humiliate and/or intimidate Jews and/or Israelis in Australia”.
An event was held on Saturday (2 August) at the ATLAS Community & Culture Centre in Marrickville, Sydney, stressing the need to defend freedom of speech with one of the central messages highlighted by a speaker being: “What happens to Mary, happens to the whole of society”.
The event gathered roughly 300 people speakers from the fields of journalism, defence of freedom of speech, as well as representatives of the Jewish, Greek and broader communities, as Billy Cotsis reported.
Among the most well-known speakers were journalists Antoinette Lattouf and Antony Loewenstein, Associate Professor Peter Slezak, Michelle Berkon from the group ‘Jews Against the Occupation’, Robert Barwick of the Australian Citizens Party, CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou, Cyprus activist Andrea Demetriou, journalist Chris Hedges (New York Times), representatives of the trade union movement and others.
Lattouf emphasised that, for some journalists, telling the truth comes with consequences.
“It is the price you pay… I was constantly attacked and traumatized… I still have difficulty being in large gatherings,” she said, referring to her own personal experiences.
Other speakers said that the highest duty of journalism is at stake, emphasising that “journalism is not a crime”.
Barwick stressed that the war in Iraq had highlighted the vital importance of truth in shaping public opinion.
“Public opinion has now changed,” he said, referring to attitudes towards Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem.
Last to speak was Kostakidis herself, who stressed that the powerful are afraid of the people and the community, while expressing her sadness over the loss of more than 200 Palestinian journalists.
She further noted that in 1940 “we would all be Jews.”
She expressed optimism about the outcome of the court case, saying: “I am not intolerant. I do not want there to be anti-Semitism in society”.
Kostakidis has maintained from the beginning that she has meant no hurt through her reporting on the ongoing situation in Gaza, having stated in a previous social media post:
“To the Jews and/or Israelis in Australia who took my posts as an endorsement, I am sorry for their hurt, distress and pain.”
Among the speeches, artistic interventions were offered by Greek-Australians Felicia Harris and Eleni Elefterias, among others, while the appearance of opera singer Ay Go Sha, who recently participated in the first pro-Palestinian musical event at the Sydney Opera House, stood out.
The event also included a greeting as well as a song by an Armenian Jewish artist in Yiddish – the language of the Ashkenazim, the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe.
Legal developments
Meanwhile, in a statement to Neos Kosmos, the ZFA CEO stressed that the case “is not about freedom of speech, but about hatred.”
“I initiated this lawsuit to hold Mary Kostakidis accountable for sharing a call by a banned terrorist organization, Hezbollah, for the ethnic cleansing of Jews and Israelis ‘from the river to the sea.'”
“It is deeply offensive, irresponsible and dangerous when someone with the influence and power of Mary Kostakidis shares this kind of hate speech.”
“This behaviour replicates a war that is happening overseas, in Australia. We have all seen how hatred that begins with words ends in violence.”
“For the good of every Australian, we must stand against racial hatred, regardless of who is the target and who is spreading it.”
“I commenced this action to hold Mary Kostakidis to account for sharing the call of a proscribed terrorist organisation, Hezbollah, for the ethnic cleansing of Jews and Israelis ‘from the river to the sea’.
It is deeply offensive, irresponsible and dangerous when someone with the influence and authority of Mary Kostakidis shares such hate speech.
This conduct reproduces an overseas conflict in Australia. We have all seen how hatred that starts with words, ends in violence.
For the sake of every Australian, we must stand up against racial hatred, no matter who is being targeted, and no matter who is spreading it.”
Mary Kostakidis and her legal team recently filed a formal request to dismiss part of the lawsuit filed against her by the ZFA CEO regarding the “controversial” social media posts, arguing that it falls within the bounds of journalism.
Cassuto initially filed a complaint against the former SBS newsreader to the Australian Human Rights Commission last July, lodging it under section 18C of Racial Discrimination Act 1975, which concerns offensive behaviour “because of race, colour or national or ethnic origin” in Australia.
Following the Australian Human Rights Commission conciliation process having been terminated without any resolution, the Zionist Federation had 60 days to take the matter to the higher authority which they did by filing legal action against Kostakidis with the Federal Court of Australia.
The matter returned to the Federal Court in Adelaide this week, where Kostakidis’s legal team sought to have an amended claim, which forms the basis of the case, struck out.
Neos Kosmos has reached out to Kostakidis’ legal team, which confirmed that it intends to issue a statement regarding the latest developments in the lawsuit case.
Their statements will be published as soon as they are received.
