Anti-Defamation Commission chair slams DYCCI for allowing council candidate to speak at community event

Organisers of a meet-the-candidates forum have been slammed for allowing Busselton council candidate Stephen Wells to speak at the event. The Anti-Defamation Commission claims the Dunsborough Yallingup Chamber of Commerce and Industry should not have allowed Mr Wells a platform after reports he had posted homophobic, racist, sexist, and anti-Semitic comments online. Mr Wells was uninvited to speak at a similar event by the Busselton CCI on September 19 following media reports of his comments on the XYZ website — an online publication that shares neo-nazi content. In a statement to the Times, commission chair Dr Dvir Abramovich said the chamber should “apologise for this serious lapse in judgment”. “What in the world was the Dunsborough Yallingup Chamber of Commerce and Industry thinking by putting out the welcome mat platform to an unvarnished anti-Semite and a white supremacist who has called for violence and the building of gas chambers to exterminate Jews, has degraded women, dehumanised the LGBTIQ+ community and vilified Asian-Australians,” he said. “Hate must have consequences since this kind of rhetoric is dangerous and has real-world consequences. “Allowing Stephen Wells to participate in this event would send the wrong signal about the morals of this organisation and accords him unwarranted legitimacy, it violates the core values of tolerance, diversity and respect we all cherish. “ Both the Dunsborough Yallingup CCI and Mr Wells have defended the decision to allow him to speak at the forum on Tuesday, which gave all City of Busselton mayoral and councillor candidates the opportunity to present their views. In a statement, Mr Wells rejected Dr Abramovich’s claims and said that he has never “called for violence against anyone”. “Nor have I called for gas chambers to be built, Mr Abramovich should apologise for his liable against me,” he said.. “The people of this Shire, should be asking themselves why an unelected global lobby group that receives funding from a foreign country is making so much effort to undermine democracy in a local council election. “I find it abhorrent that the ADL(sic) thinks it can save democracy by trying to prevent citizens of this country from participating in it. “ A spokesperson for the Dunsborough Yallingup CCI said their event was organised to provide councillor and mayoral candidates the opportunity to introduce themselves and their campaigns. “Our meet-the-candidate event is designed to provide a neutral platform where all candidates, regardless of their views, can present their positions to the community,” the spokesperson said. “We want to clarify that providing a platform does not equate to endorsing any candidate’s views. “We firmly stand by the core values of tolerance, diversity, and respect and we do not support or condone hate speech, discrimination, or any form of bigotry.”