Australia has announced it will introduce a national ban on Nazi symbols in a bid to crack down on far-right groups.
Public display of swastika or SS symbols is punishable by up to one year in prison. However, the new laws will not cover Nazi salutes.
The government says Nazi symbols are already banned in several states, but that means they won’t be allowed anywhere else.
The move comes amid a resurgence of far-right activities.
In March, a group of neo-Nazis appeared at a rally in Melbourne hosted by Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull – known for her opposition to transgender rights – and performed a Nazi salute on the steps of the Victorian Parliament.
Ms Kane Minshull denied any links to the group, but the event sparked a political backlash with calls for more efforts to tackle displays of Nazi regalia.
“There is no place in Australia for symbols that glorify the horrors of the Holocaust,” Attorney General Mark Dreyfus said in announcing the new legislation.
“We will no longer allow people to benefit from the display and sale of Nazi euphoria,” he added.
Mr Dreyfus said the ban included the trading and public display of flags, armbands, T-shirts, signs and symbols promoting Nazi ideology.
However, the public display of Nazi swastikas and SS symbols for educational, educational, artistic, literary, journalistic or scientific purposes shall be permitted.
The Nazi salute has not been included in the legislation and will instead be left to state authorities to police. Victoria and Queensland already announced bans earlier this year.
The ban was also carefully drafted to exclude the display of the swastika in religious contexts because of its spiritual significance.
The Nazi swastika is derived from an ancient hooked cross motif that remains a sacred symbol in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism.
Australian Anti-Defamation Commission chairman David Abramovich called the move “a profound moment that represents the culmination of a six-year personal campaign”.
Mr Abramovich told JEE News that the recent presence of neo-Nazis on Australia’s streets had taken Holocaust victims “back to their darkest days”.
“It leaves a hole in their heart. I don’t think they ever imagined that in their lifetime, they would see the resurgence of neo-Nazism.”
Mr Abramovich said that while there was no “silver bullet” to tackle “hardliners”, the new laws were a step in the right direction.
“What is needed is a whole-of-society approach, rooting it out,” he added.
Before the recent events in Melbourne, JEE News reported that neo-Nazis had infiltrated anti-lockdown protests during the Covid-19 pandemic to spread their message and recruit members.
And last month, Australia’s security chief warned that the country’s far-right extremists were becoming “emboldened” to take to the streets.
“We’ve seen an increase in people being drawn to this ideology, for reasons we don’t fully understand,” said Mike Burgess, director-general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation.
