A major Aussie tourist icon has been vandalised over the Easter weekend.
The Big Banana in Coffs Harbour, NSW, was graffitied with the words “F*** Israel” on the side, with police saying that the act occurred between 1.30am and 4am Sunday morning.
Police said the incident is being investigated under the federal government’s new hate speech laws.
“We’re certainly investigating it as a suspected hate speech offence. Certainly at the lowest level, it’s graffiti and malicious damage and at the worst it would be considered hate speech,” Superintendent Joanne Schultz told ABC Coffs Harbour Breakfast.
The images were shared on social media, which Schultz has encouraged people to remove, as they may be implicated under the hate speech laws.
“It is quite broad legislation so I would encourage people not to post that information, those images,” she said.
“It is certainly offensive. It’s offensive to parts of our community and it’s not wanted.”
The new hate speech laws were introduced in December last year, following the Bondi terror attack.
Changes include bans for the slogan “globalise the intifada”, which NSW Premier Chris Minns said was “hate speech” and “encourages violence in our community”.
Offenders accused of breaking these laws can face up to two years in prison or fined $22,000 for individuals and up to $110,000 for corporations.
In January, Anthony Albanese introduced mandatory minimum sentences of 12 months for displaying hate symbols, three years for financing terror groups and six years for terror offences.
Images: Instagram
