Jewish groups are rejoicing at plans to ban protests outside places of worship, but detractors fear the sweeping reforms will be anti-democratic and too late to stem a rising tide of anti-Semitism.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan on Tuesday announced proposed laws to rid the state of extremist behaviour at protests, including safe access zones at places of worship.
The zones are already used to protect women entering abortion clinics from harassment by pro-life protesters.
The changes target what Ms Allan called extremism at protests and include a ban on flags of listed terrorist organisations such Hamas, Hezbollah and several white nationalist groups.
"We will also legislate to thwart protests and disturbances at shules, temples, mosques, anywhere in Victoria where Victorians are simply undertaking their fundamental right of religious freedom," Ms Allan said on Tuesday.
The announcement follows a recent rise in anti-Semitic incidents in Australia, including a firebombing attack on Melbourne's Adass Israel synagogue.
Police would be given the power to search, disassemble and destroy ropes, glue, chains, locks and similar devices under the reforms.
It would also be illegal for protesters to glue themselves to roads or wear face coverings such as masks or balaclavas.
Victoria's Police Minister Anthony Carbines said face coverings can embolden bad behaviour at mass gatherings.
"Ski masks are for Mount Buller in the ski season, they’re not for the streets of Melbourne," he said.
Ms Allan said the rise in anti-Semitism over the past year was unacceptable and Victoria would be setting a standard on combating it.
"Anti-Semitism is a cancer and we must leave no stone unturned," she said.
Nonetheless, the premier said people's right to peacefully protest must be protected.
"It would be wrong for me to say that everyone who's attending these protests is anti-Semitic," she said.
Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton welcomed the measures but said they should have been implemented at the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023.
The changes would be an important step to stamping out anti-Semitism in Victoria, Zionist Federation of Australia president Jeremy Leibler said.
"People who want to protest about an issue should do so without their faces covered by a mask," he said.
Jewish Community Council of Victoria chief executive Naomi Levin said it showed the premier was committed to listening.
"We don't want to see a society where places of worship come under attack from terrorists," she said.
The latest reforms come on top of legislation introduced to parliament in November to expand vilification protections to people based on their disability, gender identity, sex and sexual orientation.
They will require further legislation to pass into law and hit the floor of parliament "as soon as practicable".
The Greens dubbed the changes "anti-protest laws" and expressed concern they could silence survivors of child sexual abuse, as well as social and environmental activists.
"These laws risk massive overreach and this kind of policy on the run could lead to perverse outcomes and have a chilling effect on our democracy," the party's justice spokeswoman Katherine Copsey said.
