17 December 2025
We acknowledge last Sunday’s tragedy in Bondi, with deep respect for those who were killed, for their families, for the community, and for all who are grieving. This is a time for mourning, reflection, and collective care, not for division.
In times like these, we know the weight of the news can feel overwhelming. At MWA, we have spent the last few days been checking in with our clients and community members, listening carefully to how people are feeling, and offering reassurance, care, and support. Many of the women and families we walk alongside have experienced direct violence, whether in their own homes, or in the countries they come from, and moments like this can reopen wounds and deepen fear.
This moment calls for kindness over cruelty, care over condemnation, and dignity over dehumanisation. It calls on us to protect one another’s humanity, to honour grief without weaponising it, and to stand firmly against hatred in all its forms.
In the aftermath, there is growing concern at the way some narratives are being used to create further harm. Attempts to blame entire communities, shame faith groups, particularly Muslims, or suggesting that speaking out against injustice, oppression, or occupation is somehow responsible for what happened in Bondi are not only false, but they are also dangerous.
Let us be clear and remember that advocating for justice, human rights, and the protection of innocent lives anywhere in the world does not cause acts of violence.
Conflating peaceful advocacy with criminal acts fuels fear, legitimises discrimination, and places already vulnerable communities at risk. This kind of propaganda does not bring safety or healing, rather it deepens division and retraumatises those who are already carrying so much grief, loss, and fear.
We sincerely ask those promoting such narratives to calm down, pause and reflect.
Words do matter. Framing matters. When misinformation, collective blame, and/or ideological scapegoating is amplified, it causes real harm, emotionally, socially, and physically. It reopens wounds, spreads mistrust, and compounds trauma for people who are already hurting.
We sincerely ask that you do your fact checking before sharing, avoid sensationalism, reject fear driven narratives, and provide accurate context without fuelling suspicion or hostility toward entire communities.
True leadership in times of tragedy means calming tensions, protecting the vulnerable, and strengthening the social fabric of our society.
Honouring the lives lost in Bondi requires us to refuse narratives that divide, to safeguard human dignity, and to ensure that grief is not weaponised to justify further harm.
We stand for compassion over blame, truth over propaganda, and unity over division. This is how we care for one another. This is how we heal. This is how we move forward.
When we come together, we are so much better, and will be able to disagree without the need to name shame and blame.
Together, we are better.
Hajeh Maha Krayem Abdo OAM
Chief Executive Officer
