The incident has sparked outrage and accusations of discrimination, leaving attendees and organizers grappling with the fallout.
By Ben Cohen, Algemeiner
A world-renowned Israeli expert on trauma who developed Israel’s national model for addressing mental health emergencies has been axed from a medical conference in Australia after organizers were inundated with threats from pro-Hamas agitators.
Dr. Moshe Farchi — founder and head of Stress, Trauma and Resilience Studies in the department of Social Work at Tel-Hai College, a branch of Tel Aviv University — had been due to speak at the Frontline Mental Health Conference in the Gold Coast which opened on Monday. According to the Australian Jewish Association (AJA), which has been publicizing Farchi’s treatment at the hands of conference organizers, the speaking invitation was extended six months ago. Farchi had already made the trip to Australia when he was informed that his appearance had been canceled along with his hotel accommodation.
“The actions of the organizers are a stain on Australia’s reputation and reminiscent of Nazi boycotts of Jewish academics,” Robert Gregory, AJA’s chief executive, said in a statement. “Dr Farchi said that he has never experienced such antisemitism in his long career in academia. If there is a threat to Jews attending the conference, the organizers should have hired security, not expelled the Jew.”
In an email to Farchi, the Australia and New Zealand Mental Health Association, which is hosting the conference, said that the “influx of communications and protest-related information we’ve received in the past 24 hours has necessitated that we prioritize our duty of care above all else.”
The association told Farchi that it was “unable to accommodate your attendance and have consequently cancelled your registration for the Frontline Mental Health Conference.” The group assured Farchi that his travel expenses would be covered nonetheless.
According to Samantha Collingridge, general manager of AST Management, which is staging the conference, calls protesting Farchi’s presence started coming in last Friday.
“This continued throughout the weekend. Our security expert advised us that, based on the volume and nature of the abuse, there was insufficient time to conduct a thorough risk assessment at the hotel to ensure the safety of the 280-plus conference attendees. Dr Farchi was scheduled to speak at the conference today, March 4,” she said. As a result of AST’s assessement, said Sam Stewart, the association’s CEO, Farchi’s speech was nixed.
“The association has not taken a position on the current conflict between Palestine and Israel,” Stewart added.
A wide range of Jewish groups slammed the decision to remove Farchi, who also serves as Lt. Col. in the IDF and is one of the top mental health experts in the Israeli military.
Farchi’s speech “was cancelled because of the threat of violence of a bigoted few. He was cancelled because conference organizers folded in the face of intimidation,” said Jeremy Liebler, president of the Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA). “The intimidation tactics that led to the cancellation were bred in antisemitism. Those behind this move object to the existence of the world’s only Jewish state.”
Zeddy Lawrence — executive director of Zionism Victoria, which hosted Farchi for two talks in Melbourne last week — told the J-wire news outlet that the “feedback we had from those who attended Dr Farchi’s public address in Melbourne as well as those professionals who took part in his workshop the following day was exceptional.”
Added Lawrence: “What a travesty that Australian and New Zealand mental health professionals have been prevented from hearing from him. What an outrageous and shameful way to treat an internationally renowned doctor who has travelled halfway around the world to address your members.”
Colin Rubenstein, executive director of the Australia Israel and Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC), remarked that the decision to cancel Farchi penalized local mental health professionals most of all.
“The biggest losers in this whole sorry affair were Australian frontline aid and emergency workers, who lost the ability to gain from Dr. Farchi’s unique and invaluable expertise in acute trauma and emergency mental health intervention,” he said. “Forged in Israel’s unique circumstances, this is expertise and experience they are not likely to have access to from any other source.”
In an interview with Sky News Australia, Farchi confessed that he had “not expected this kind of welcome.”
“I was really surprised,” he said. “I have so many good friends in Australia, so many people from my profession who I know quite well.”
One of the groups behind the protests against Farchi, calling itself “Families for Palestine,” on Monday welcomed the news of his cancelation.
The group had earlier launched a change.org petition calling on organizers to “retract Moshe Farchi’s invitation and instead prioritize speakers who align with the values of justice, equity, and solidarity, including voices from Palestine.”