Childhood Holocaust survivor Eddy Boas says the ABC’s decision to not send journalists to Poland for
commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz was “a disgrace”.
Mr Boas, who turned 85 on Monday, was just four years old when his two-year imprisonment at the Bergen-
Belsen Concentration Camp began alongside his mother, father and brother.
He said the national broadcaster’s failure to commit any on-the-ground resources to its coverage of the
commemoration was particularly disappointing, given the recent spate of antiSemitic attacks in Australia.
“The ABC is a government-owned radio and TV network … and yet they largely ignore the Jewish population
– except those Jewish people on their side, which is only a handful of them,” Mr Boas said. “Absolutely
someone from the ABC should be there (for the commemoration). It’s a worldwide event. Some countries
have sent prime ministers or leaders of their country.
“The fact the ABC hasn’t sent anyone there is a disgrace. I’ve given up on the ABC.”
It’s likely the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz will be the last such commemoration attended by
survivors of the concentration camp, most of whom are in their late 80s and 90s.
Australia’s main free-to-air TV networks, Seven and Nine, travelled to Poland, as did Sky News Australia, and
print and digital journalists from News Corp (publisher of The Australian) and Nine. But no Australian crews
from the ABC and SBS were in attendance, despite the fact that in the ABC’s case, it has multiple journalists
stationed in Europe.
At 7.15pm, several hours after The Australian approached the ABC for comment, a spokesman confirmed it
had not sent any of its Europe-based journalists to the event.
“The ABC is covering the Auschwitz commemoration service across a range of platforms using local and
provided coverage,” he said.
Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council executive manager Joel Burnie said the ABC’s failure to send a TV
crew to Poland was a “stark reflection of its broader lack of commitment to addressing the gravity of anti-
Semitism in Australia. This neglect, coupled with their often one-sided, anti-Israel coverage, reveals a
troubling tendency to marginalise critical issues impacting the Australian Jewish community.”
After Mr Boas’s father died in 1948, his mother, originally from Holland, decided to bring her three children to
Australia.
“I came here when I was 14 in 1954. We came with no money, no nothing and Australia has been good to me.
I would do anything for Australia,” he said.
But he expressed deep sadness at the levels of anti-Semitism in the country he loves. “Unfortunately what’s
been happening over the past 15 months should never have happened at all,” he said.
“Anti-Semitism has always been in Australia, simmering under the blankets; the blanket was blown up on
October 7, 2023.
“It reminds me a lot of what happened during the Holocaust. They had a similar situation in Holland … In
1939, the population turned against Jews. Jews had lived peacefully. What is happening here in Australia is a
total follow up of what happened in 1939.
“I don’t think the federal government has made any effort whatsoever. They’re playing politics,” he said,
adding that NSW Labor Premier Chris Minns’s efforts to combat the problem were commendable
