As Kill Your Darlings comes back from a short hiatus, it is clear that it can’t be business as usual. We join the call of millions of protesters around the world: Ceasefire.
As a platform for writers and readers, we know the power of a voice. The Australian government’s choice to abstain from casting a vote in the UN resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian truce in Gaza reveals a lack of humane vision. We condemn this decision not to stand against the collective punishment of 2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza. In response to this ongoing moral failure and the continued indiscriminate killing of civilians, we question the narratives that say war is inevitable and the loss of innocent lives anywhere is acceptable.
We acknowledge the mourning and fear experienced by so many in our extended community. The horrific Hamas terrorist events of 7 October perpetrated against Israelis and the ensuing retaliation on Palestinians have sown grief, despair and division. These kidnappings and murders are indefensible. In the face of profound violence, we call for solidarity where it can be found, for compassion, and for a rejection of bigotry in all its forms.
In 2021, our publishing director Rebecca Starford and editor Suzy Garcia independently and voluntarily signed the Open letter from Australian journalists, media workers, writers and commentators to do better on Palestine. This letter asked that the media do not ‘obscure the reality of a violence disproportionately endured by Palestinians’ in an oppressive system that a 2022 Amnesty International report declared as an apartheid state.
It is clear that the Australian media still has a way to go. As we write this, the death toll of Palestinians in Gaza surpasses 11,000. The World Health Organization tells us a child is killed in Gaza every ten minutes. Palestinians continue to be forcibly removed from their land. We reiterate our commitment by not staying silent, and call upon the Australian media to provide fair and accurate reporting.
We also welcome the legal action initiated by human rights groups and supported by the Australian Centre for International Justice for transparency from the Australian government on its arms deals. There is secrecy around Australia’s military exports, and the voting public should know what role we play in human rights abuses around the world. We should know what is being done by our government and in our name.
Every day, more Palestinians lose their lives. Israeli hostages remain unrecovered. Gazans are denied food and water. Hospitals are bombed. Babies are taken off life support. A genocide is unfolding before our eyes.
Enough. Ceasefire.
Ceasefire now.
