An open letter penned by a group of eight community members,which has been circulating in Victoria’s Muslim community for the past three days,calls on all “individuals and organisations within the Muslim community to boycott the premier’s iftar for this year” citing the Labor Party’s “apathy,at all levels of government,towards the live-streamed genocide of the Palestinian people”.
“Standing united in boycotting this iftar will provide a clear message to premier Allan as to how unhappy the Muslim community feels due to her and her party’s position regarding the ongoing genocide in Gaza,” the letter reads.
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The iftar dinners have been held by the premier each year since 2015 during the holy month of Ramadan. They are usually attended by high-profile Muslim and non-Muslim community leaders and politicians.
Mohammad Helmy,the lead author of the open letter,said endorsed organisations had already committed to boycotting the event,but a list of those organisations would not be released until later in the week.
“We feel as a community that it’s not right while Gazans are literally starving because of lack of food and water and kids areeating grass from the ground … we cannot stomach sitting and having lavish iftar during Ramadan while this happening,” he said.
“It’s not sensitive,and it’s not right.”