Victorian Education Minister Ben Carroll has warned state school teachers will be contributing to division and disharmony if they participate in pro-Palestinian advocacy being planned for some inner-Melbourne schools.
But one of the teachers involved in the movement has accused the government of attempting to silence important discussion on the human rights issues at the heart of the Israel-Gaza war.
Mr Carroll said he was aware a small number of unionised teachers were planning to show solidarity with the Palestinian territories as part of a week of advocacy.
Actions flagged include wearing a Palestinian badge or T-shirt and inviting Palestinian advocates to speak to students.
“The government does not support the action that has been put forward by a small subsection of the education union,” Mr Carroll said.
The minister said he was getting further advice on whether teachers would be asked not to wear specific attire such as a pro-Palestinian badge.
He said the overwhelming number of school leaders had been working hard to unify the community during a difficult time.
“I’ve been out to Jewish schools, Islamic schools, state, private, independent schools — they are all doing a very important and difficult job at the moment,” he said.
The teacher accused the government of an overly “hostile” approach conversations related to the Israel-Gaza War and said they were concerned that students were sharing “ill-informed and inaccurate” information as a result.
“Walk through a school ground and listen to the comments coming out of students’ mouths. Walk a neutral line through that schoolyard and I’ll give you a gold medal,” the teacher said.
“We need to find a humane and humanitarian way of finding leadership.”
The Israel-Gaza war has claimed the lives of 14,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, and 1,200 Israelis, according to authorities there.
Multiple aid agencies and the United Nations hold grave concerns over the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza, which has been under siege by Israeli authorities since shortly after Hamas’s deadly October 7 terror attack.
Mr Carroll said he had spoken to AEU Victorian branch president Meredith Peace and she had told him she did not support the planned activity.
A spokesperson for the AEU Victorian branch declined to provide a statement, but said the statewide branch had not endorsed the action.
Last week, hundreds of school students walked out of Melbourne classrooms to march in the CBD, calling for an end to the Israel-Gaza war.
(ABC)
