The Nazi salute and associated hate symbols have been criminalised in Australia.
Legislation banning the salute and the display or sale of symbols associated with terror groups took effect on Monday, as the Australian government responds to a rise in hate and anti-Semitic incidents in recent months, especially amid Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
Legislation banning the salute and the display or sale of symbols associated with terror groups took effect on Monday, as the Australian government responds to a rise in hate and anti-Semitic incidents in recent months, especially amid Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
The legislation criminalises the sale and display of Nazi motifs including the swastika and lightning bolt insignia of the SS (Schutzstaffel), the paramilitary wing of the Nazi party.
“It is now unlawful to perform the Nazi salute in public or to publicly display, or trade in, Nazi hate symbols,” Attorney General Mark Dreyfus said in a statement. “The new laws also ensure that glorifying and praising acts of terrorism are criminal offences.”
The passage of the bill through parliament by a unanimous vote on December 6 sent a clear message that there is “no place in Australia for acts and symbols that glorify the horrors of the Holocaust and terrorist acts”, Dreyfus said.
Initially, a ban on the Nazi salute was not included in the bill, with the federal law planned to leave the issue to the discretion of individual states. However, following several incidents, the bill was amended.
Original from www.aljazeera.com