Fifty years after the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 3379 declaring Zionism a form of racism, Australia's pivotal role in overturning this controversial determination remains highly relevant to contemporary debates about anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism.
Australia's Leadership in Reversing UN Resolution
In 1991, under Prime Minister Bob Hawke and Foreign Minister Bill Hayden, Australia became the first nation to successfully campaign for the rescinding of the 1975 UN resolution that had equated Zionism with racial discrimination. The Australian Parliament made history as the first legislature worldwide to formally demand the United Nations reverse Resolution 3379, setting in motion a diplomatic effort that would eventually see the United States, United Kingdom, and France follow Canberra's lead.
Hawke characterized the original resolution as 'a misrepresentation of Zionism' that had escalated religious animosity and anti-Semitism. His government directed Australian diplomats to actively lobby internationally, building momentum for what would become UNGA Resolution 46/86 - the measure that finally nullified the 'Zionism is racism' determination.
The Historical Context and Modern Parallels
The original 1975 resolution emerged as a Soviet bloc and Palestine Liberation Organisation initiative following the 1967 and 1973 Middle East conflicts. Critics argued it selectively targeted Jewish self-determination while ignoring other national movements, effectively institutionalizing discrimination against Jewish people under the guise of combating racism.
What makes this history particularly significant today is the striking similarity between the arguments deployed in 1975 and contemporary discourse. Then as now, Israel faces accusations of being a colonial, apartheid state whose very existence is considered illegitimate. The reality within Israel's recognized borders reveals a different picture: Christians, Muslims, Jews, Druze and others participate in the same elections, serve in the same parliament, and hold cabinet positions - a level of pluralism unmatched elsewhere in the Middle East.
Enduring Consequences and Contemporary Challenges
Despite the 1991 reversal, structural bias against Israel within the UN system has intensified. Year after year, the General Assembly passes more resolutions criticizing Israel than all other countries combined. Israel remains the only nation with a permanent, dedicated agenda item at the Human Rights Council.
Modern Australian political discourse increasingly treats 'Zionist' as a pejorative term, while campus protests and slogans calling for a world 'without Zionism' or 'Palestine from the river to the sea' echo the 1975 resolution's underlying logic. The Hawke government demonstrated that it was possible to critique specific Israeli policies while staunchly defending Zionism as the legitimate expression of Jewish self-determination - a distinction that seems increasingly blurred in current debates.
The historical example of Australian leadership in 1991 serves as a powerful reminder that defending Zionism's legitimacy need not come at the expense of Palestinian self-determination. Rather, Jewish self-determination in their ancestral homeland forms the foundation upon which any genuine two-state solution must be built.
