‘Double standards’: Sky News host calls out Tony Burke over anti-Israel university protests
Sky News host Chris Kenny has called out the “double standards” from politicians such as Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke for defending anti-Israel protests on university campuses.
Mr Burke, on the ABC’s Q&A last night, said Australia is a country where “we should be able to have peaceful protest, and we should be able to accept that there will be very strong, passionate views that will be different, and on a university campus of all places, that should be ok”.
“Let me start off with something entirely common and predictable, something we’ve come to expect – double standards from politicians,” Mr Kenny said.
“On this occasion, it’s a Labor politician and the subject is public protests.
“You see, even though the pro-Palestinian, or pro-Hamas, and anti-Israel protests at our universities are supporting terrorism, preaching armed insurrection and chanting for the destruction of a liberal democratic nation, and the elimination of its people … the federal Workplace Relations Minister, last night, was defending these protests and warning against any move to disband them.
‘Double standards’: Sky News host calls out Tony Burke over anti-Israel university protests
“Let’s turn our minds back just a few years, when tens of thousands of people protested against lockdowns and vaccine mandates in our major cities, especially in Melbourne … and the ALP didn’t seem to be very tolerant of protests then.
“But back then, Tony Burke wasn’t defending the right to protest, and nor was he criticising the state Labor government’s heavy-handed tactics.”
Mr Burke, at the time, told the ABC that he had no time for protests opposing health measures and went on to say, “No demonstration will change the fact” people need to “get vaccinated as soon as possible”.
He added that he did not support the demonstration and urged people to “get vaccinated” and follow the rules.