Results of the ballot regarding a statement on Israel and Palestine
Following a request from members, the AAS 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 (7-21 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.
AAS Statement on Israel and Palestine (March 2025)
As members of the Australian Anthropological Society, whose constitution includes the objective “to advance anthropology as a professional discipline grounded in the systematic pursuit of knowledge and to promote its responsible use in the service of humankind” (https://www.aas.asn.au/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’s 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 AAS 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 AAS 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’s 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’s (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 AAS 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