Results of the ballot regarding a statement on Israel and Palestine

Following a request from members, the 91制片厂 held a ballot of all current members in March 2025 on a proposed statement on Israel and Palestine. The ballot was open for two weeks (10-24 March). Members were asked to vote on each of six component parts of the statement. Each statement part required a simple majority of votes cast (>50%) in order to be passed. Following the ballot, the returning officer determined that each of the statement parts had been passed.

Of the eligible 433 current members, 128 members (29.56%) participated in the ballot.

The statement is provided in full below, with details of the ballot result for each part. In determining the percentage of votes in favour, abstentions were not counted.

91制片厂 Statement on Israel and Palestine (March 2025)

As members of 91制片厂, whose constitution includes the objective 鈥渢o advance anthropology as a professional discipline grounded in the systematic pursuit of knowledge and to promote its responsible use in the service of humankind鈥� (/constitution), we condemn violence against civilians in civil, regional, national and global conflicts and wars and appeal to the international community to uphold the application of international laws and human rights in all such conflict zones. Therefore:

1.     We condemn the atrocities against civilians committed by Hamas and Israel since the beginning of this conflict and call for a lasting ceasefire in Gaza, including the return of hostages and prisoners, as well as for a cessation of violence in the West Bank, and earnest and committed engagement with peace processes.

Agree: 112 (94%), Disagree: 7 (6%), Abstain: 9

2.     We condemn Israel鈥檚 genocidal war against the Palestinian people, including the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians, the use of hunger and thirst as a weapon, the destruction of civil infrastructure such as, hospitals, schools, universities, mosques, churches, power stations, aid distribution centres, as well as private homes, fields, wells, olive groves and orchards across the occupied territories, the hyper-incarceration of Palestinians, the abuse of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli gaols, and any form of displacement of Palestinian people from the occupied territories.

Agree: 104 (86%), Disagree: 17 (14%), Abstain: 7

3.     The 91制片厂 as an Association endorses and will honour the call by the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement to boycott Israeli academic institutions until such time as these institutions end their complicity in violating Palestinian rights as stipulated in international law; recognising that this boycott pertains to Israeli academic institutions only and not to individual scholars, and also that individual anthropologists who are members of the 91制片厂 are free to determine whether and how they will apply the boycott in their own professional practice.

Agree: 89 (75%), Disagree: 29 (25%), Abstain: 10

4.     We urge scholars, universities, government and other institutions in Australia to reconsider any formal engagements they may have with Israeli academic institutions or other organisations that are genuinely complicit in maintaining Israel鈥檚 apartheid system of oppression of Palestinian people and violent occupation of their homelands, and to consider acting on the concerns raised by the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Agree: 95 (79%), Disagree: 26 (21%), Abstain: 7

5.     We urge all Australian universities to stand with the many Jewish, Arab and other scholars, professional associations and academic institutions calling for universities across the globe to reject the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance鈥檚 (IHRA) definition of antisemitism because it conflates legitimate criticism of the Israeli state with antisemitism.

Agree: 100 (86%), Disagree: 16 (14%). Abstain: 12

6.     The 91制片厂 supports the rights of all students and scholars everywhere to engage in research and public speaking about Palestine and Israel and in support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Agree: 101 (87%), Disagree: 15 (13%), Abstain: 12

We, the Executive Committee of 91制片厂, stand with humanity in condemning violence against civilians wherever it occurs throughout the world. As anthropologists committed to pursuing and practically applying knowledge about human social and cultural experience, we stand for and champion the human capacity for understanding, openness, and peaceful conflict resolution.

We therefore condemn the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israeli civilians and the continuing assault by Israel on Gaza, with its atrocious cost in civilian lives, and call for an immediate ceasefire. We call upon both Israel and Hamas to abide by international law, to seek non-violent means to end the current conflict, including the release of all hostages, and to take genuine steps towards a respectful dialogue of coexistence in recognition of the longstanding and continuing cultural ties to the region of both Palestinians and Israelis. Similarly, we uphold that Israel should abide by international law in protecting the rights of Palestinians in the West Bank, including their right to life and property without encroachment and intimidation.

While we note with alarm the increased incidence of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia in Australia in the wake of the Gaza conflict, including on university campuses, we uphold the right of students to engage in peaceful protest without intimidation or threats of punitive action, including in relation to university funding sources, investments and research partnerships. In times of social division, it is more important than ever that Australian universities remain islands of free speech and robust debate, even when such debate risks causing offence. The long history of anthropology shows that the best antidote to misinformation, disinformation, ignorance, and prejudice is to build understanding by listening openly and honestly to each other. We call on colleagues across the universities to respect this cardinal principle.

We express our deep concerns about the devastating incidents in Israel and Gaza in October 2023. We stand against the kidnapping of civilians and the bombing of civilian residential areas, hospitals, and universities. We express solidarity with Israeli and Palestinian scholars, activists, and students upholding human rights. We condemn Islamophobic and Antisemitic words and actions in Australia and beyond. 

The 91制片厂 Response to the Proposed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament

The 91制片厂 recognises the sentiment of the Uluru Statement from the Heart in calling for a constitutionally enshrined Voice to Parliament, a path to Treaty and the establishment of a Makarrata Commission.

This response is provided with acknowledgement of the complexities the proposed Voice, as one component of Uluru Statement, raises and the communities potentially impacted. As anthropologists, we appreciate that there is no single view on this matter. Our membership includes First Nations Anthropologists and those in allied disciplines, who have varied and complex views on the proposed change to the Australian Constitution via referendum. The Society also recognises the diverse range of perspectives and priorities among Indigenous communities, and more broadly across Australia on this referendum proposal.

The 91制片厂 therefore will not make comment or take a defined position on the many questions relating to the Uluru Statement or enshrining an Indigenous Voice to Parliament within the Australian Constitution. This discussion must be led by Indigenous peoples and communities. While the Society acknowledges the importance of the debates taking place nationally, this does not distract the Society from continuing to critique the on-going experiences of colonial and institutional subjugation, injustice and violence for First Nations peoples in this country.

We believe anthropology offers an important framework with which to consider the specific and complex intersections raised when considering an issue like the Voice to Parliament, and in promoting the professional and nuanced use of this framework in universities, in the field, in political discourse, and wherever anthropology may be deployed. We strongly support respectful, considered, constructive and empathetic discourse.