The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN) calls on the Australian government to remove Special Envoy for Antisemitism Jillian Segal from her position following revelations that Segal’s family donated to Advance Australia, a far-right group that has promoted racism including conspiracy theories, and anti-Palestinian racism.
Advance also led the campaign against the Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
Segal’s husband, John Roth, donated $50,000 to the highly inflammatory political group in the 2023-24 financial year, via his company Henroth Investments. It was the equal second-largest donation to Advance last year.
Segal’s attempts to distance herself from Advance, by claiming she has had no involvement in the donation, is inadequate and disingenuous.
The issue at hand is not whether she had involvement in the donation, but rather that she occupies a publicly funded position of political influence, that she is wielding in order to shape public definitions of racism, and influence laws, education and funding decisions, all while her immediate family financially supports one of the most egregiously racist organisations in the country.
Public office demands best practice and accountability. Segal’s family’s political donations are a matter of legitimate public concern, particularly when they align with and reinforce her own long-standing record and ideological advocacy.
Segal’s proximity to Advance adds to a long record of her own partisan political alignment. She is the immediate past president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, a group that has consistently defended Israel’s genocide in Gaza and attacked those advocating for Palestine.
In November 2023, Segal co-signed a statement with the Zionist Federation of Australia denouncing the Australian government for expressing concern over Israel’s bombardment of hospitals. She also opposed Australia’s support for a UN resolution calling for a ceasefire.
She sits on the board of the Tel Aviv-based Weizmann Institute, an Israeli research institution with ties to weapons manufacturers and a dubious history related to Israel’s undeclared nuclear weapons program.
These connections further undermine any claim she may have to independence, impartiality, or, indeed, a commitment to human rights.
APAN reiterates its complete opposition to the Antisemitism Envoy’s proposed national plan, and to the elevation of this single form of racism above others.
APAN urges the Australian government to not only revoke Segal’s appointment, but commit itself to a genuinely inclusive, evidence-based approach to anti-racism, as pursued by the Australian Human Rights Commission.
Comments attributed to APAN President Nasser Mashni:
“A government-appointed, publicly funded envoy, charged with leading a national conversation on antisemitism and anti-racism, cannot wash her hands of a $50,000 donation from her household to a far-right, racist organisation that targets First Nations people and migrants.
“The community has questioned, right from the very start, the fairness, credibility and safety of this role, Segal as the government’s appointee, and the work she has been tasked with.
“Segal has shown again and again that she considers even the mildest, barest minimum form of accountability for Israel’s war crimes as unacceptable and is now weaponising her role to intimidate and punish those speaking up for Palestine.
“Her proximity to Advance makes her even less of a neutral figure, and this role even more politically encumbered.
“Segal’s appointment and the antisemitism envoy role have always been profound insults to Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims, anti-Zionist Jews, and First Nations people, and this connection to Advance heightens the problem we are dealing with.
“Segal must be stood down, and this government must seriously reconsider its anti-racism work.”