But black-clad National Socialist Network members were also spotted in the western capital, with cries of “heil Australia” drawing condemnation, including from protesters on the day.
On Monday, Cook said he would leave it to police to determine if the phrase was deserving of criminal charges, but said it was “incredibly offensive, and I think an absolute opposite to the values that all Australians embrace”.
“Let’s be very clear, not everyone at that rally yesterday was a racist, but that rally did provide comfort to racists and extremists in Australia,” he said.
“They would have looked at that rally and thought, ‘There is a good breeding ground for our evil and nasty campaign to drive division and hatred in the West Australian community’.”
One Nation MLC Rod Caddies, who spoke at the Perth rally, on Monday said only a minority of the 10,000-strong crowd were neo-Nazis, “the rest were everyday Aussies from all backgrounds”.
“What the premier is doing is focusing on the neo-nazi’s who unsuccessfully tried to hijack the march here in WA, to deflect from his and Labor’s policy failures in health and housing,” he said.
The March for Australia rally in Perth on Sunday.Credit: Cameron Myles
“The best way to convince an Aussie to become a racist, is to tell them that their legitimate concerns make them one.”
The rallies were ostensibly against mass immigration, with many attendees echoing the sentiment that communities and public services couldn’t cope with the uptick in overseas arrivals.
“I want to force the other parties to accept that we need to radically reduce immigration numbers to benefit all Australian citizens,” Caddies said.
Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows there was a 60,260 net increase in overseas-born migrant arrivals in WA to 2023-24, down from the 69,140 peak in 2022-23.
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That peak was the highest since 2011-12, when there was a net increase of 51,620 overseas-born migrants in WA.
However, Federal Multicultural Affairs Minister Anne Aly labelled the rallies racist and told question time on Monday that “no one in Australia should have to justify their belonging in this country”.
Aly, who represents the WA seat of Cowan, said multiculturalism wasn’t “just about a celebration of festivals and food”.
“It is about ensuring everyone is empowered to participate in this democracy,” she said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told ABC’s Afternoon Briefing the marches represented a minority of the population, and the tone was “unfortunate” at best, “but hateful in some of the extreme examples”.
“Good people will turn up to demonstrate their views about particular issues,” he said.
“But what we have here is neo-Nazis being given a platform. That’s what we saw on the weekend.”
with Nick Newling
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