Calls are mounting for a bipartisan “Walk for Harmony” to show solidarity with multicultural communities following recent neo-Nazi rallies and inflammatory remarks singling out Indian migrants. Former ministerial adviser Nitin Gupta has written to Premier Jacinta Allan and Opposition Leader Brad Battin urging the Victorian government to organise such a march, with opposition leaders and former premiers joining in to send a clear message of unity.
“Thanks for all your support to the Australian Indian community when it mattered,” Nitin wrote. “I was wondering if a ‘Walk for Harmony’ could be organised by the Victorian government, along with members of opposition, and former Premiers joining in the march to send the right message to the broader community? Premier Brumby had done the same back in July 2009 – when conditions were tough. And the ‘Walk for Harmony’ had sent the right message to community back then as well.”
The timing is pointed. On 31 August, anti-immigration marches across major cities spilled into controversy, with neo-Nazi figures such as Thomas Sewell attempting to seize the microphone. In Melbourne, Indian Australians were directly singled out, prompting Premier Allan to convene her Anti-Hate Taskforce. Hindu Council of Australia president Makarand Bhagwat told her: “We were very distressed, all the community members were very fearful, even now they are. But thank you for handling this situation, thank you for handling this meeting and having this conversation.”
Nitin’s proposal revives memories of 2009, when then-premier John Brumby led a Walk for Harmony after a spate of violent assaults on international students, many of them Indian. That march through Melbourne’s CBD was designed to project reassurance at a time when Indian media was full of alarm over student safety. It was criticised in some quarters as a public relations exercise, but for many it symbolised a state attempting to face the moment.
The present moment carries similar pressures. Recent weeks have seen not just rallies, but violence. An attack on Camp Sovereignty, a First Nations protest site in King’s Domain, left four injured when men dressed in black stormed the camp, stomping on a sacred fire and Aboriginal flag. Police have since arrested several members of Sewell’s National Socialist Network.
IT professional Jeyashree Nishtala, reflecting on the tension, said a new Harmony March “would send out a positive message to the wider community.”
Politics has been turbulent. Jacinta Nampijinpa Price sparked outrage by claiming on ABC’s Afternoon Briefing that Labor was deliberately bringing Indian migrants to Australia to “stack votes.” She later clarified: “My comments were never intended to be disparaging towards our Indian community… indeed, my own children are of Indian ancestry.” Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has since met with Indian small business owners at Sydney’s Little India, stressing: “Their experiences matter in shaping policies that support enterprise, reward effort, and strengthen every community.”
Kos Samaras of RedBridge argues the Coalition cannot afford to ignore demographic reality. “Australia is more diverse today than at any point since the late 19th century. A third of the population was born overseas, and the electorates that decide elections are now defined by multicultural majorities,” he said. “You cannot win government in modern Australia without winning diverse electorates. The task ahead isn’t about who comes here in the future, it is about speaking credibly to the diverse Australia that is already here.”
Premier Allan, at her Taskforce meeting, reinforced that point. “The Indian community is such a big and important part of what makes our state great and I know as Premier I’m certainly proud that so many from the Indian community are choosing Melbourne, are choosing Victoria as a place to live, work, raise your beautiful families and that’s why we must continue to push back against this hateful behaviour.”
The proposed march would be designed to cut through the heat of daily political combat and show a united front. Back in 2009, Brumby framed his Harmony Walk by saying Victorians “come from different races, follow many faiths and cultures — we are all equal.” Critics said the government was motivated by fears of losing international student revenue, but the sight of leaders walking alongside migrants left a mark.
The test for today’s leaders will be whether they can put aside partisanship to send a similar signal. With another anti-immigration rally already being promoted for later this month, pressure is building for visible gestures that go beyond taskforces and condemnations.
Nitin’s proposal asks the government to look to its own precedent. “Please give this idea a good consideration,” he wrote, stressing that in 2009 the Harmony Walk helped calm tensions and signal respect.
Then Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu had joined the Harmony Walk. Would be interesting to see if current Opposition leader Brad Battin would join in, if such a Harmony Walk is organised by Victorian government.
As one community member put it this week, the symbolism matters: “This is about whether multicultural Australians feel their place in this country is protected. A walk together could remind people that democracy means belonging for everyone.”
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