The announcement follows a spate of Nazi symbols and slogans being spotted across Queensland as the federal election campaign trail heated up, with some candidates having advertising or imagery defaced by the infamous swastika associated with Adolf Hitler’s fascist regime as leader of the Nazi Party.
https://twitter.com/AnnastaciaMP/status/1529537534505627648
The government will introduce the legislation later this year, after further consultation with the legal community, but people found guilty of “displaying symbols promoting hatred and causing fear” would face $22,000 in fines, 12 months imprisonment or both.
“We do not do this lightly or without good reason,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“Late last year police seized a Nazi flag flown near a Brisbane synagogue.
“Only a few months earlier a train carriage in the suburbs was graffitied with swastikas and Nazi slogans.
“Nazism is evil … evil triumphs when good people do nothing.
“These crimes are not harmless and nor is the ideology behind it.”
Outgoing Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg had numerous posters in his Melbourne electorate of Kooyong vandalised with swastikas drawn on his forehead following the announcement.
“Vandalism is a crime, [and] this kind of vandalism is obscene,” he said at the time.
“It doesn’t matter which political group is on the receiving end, it’s just not on.
“Swastikas are a reminder of a dark past and it’s our collective duty to say, ‘never again’.”
https://twitter.com/JoshFrydenberg/status/1510834518369787906
The symbol in question is also used in Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu religious communities, but the use of the swastika by neo-Nazis today is still the most recognised in the Western world.
The swastika is considered a promotion of white supremacy and racism and is prohibited in some countries (including Germany).
