Far-right groups may face further legal action over a rally scheduled to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Cronulla riots after a complaint to the Australian Human Rights Commission.

The Party for Freedom, led by Nick Folkes, has been planning a “memorial rally” at Cronulla on Saturday to mark the anniversary. T-Shirts and commemorative plates are on sale, and guest speakers include Shermon Burgess, who stepped down in October as the head of the United Patriots Front.

But Jamal Rifi, a western Sydney GP and community advocate, lodged a complaint on Friday with the commission about the party, alleging he had experienced racial hatred as a result of its promotion of the rally.

Rifi’s complaint said: “As an Australian of Lebanese origin and an active member of the Australian Lebanese community and as a person of Middle Eastern race, nationality and ethnic origin, I was, am and will be deeply offended and insulted by the content of the material published by the respondents ... and the respondents’ intentions to hold and address a public rally in Cronulla.

“I am very concerned that so much of the good work in building racial harmony which we have accomplished in the last 10 years will be affected detrimentally by the continued dissemination of the material on the internet and by the holding of a public assembly in Cronulla … at which offence speeches will be made by Mr Folkes and Mr Burgess and others containing material of substantially similar content to the material on their websites.”

He said Australia’s international reputation could be tarnished if the rally were held, and it “may be used by overseas radical or terrorist groups to promote that persons of the Lebanese race, nationality and ethnic origin are not welcome”.

NSW police sought an injunction to stop the rally. The group has failed to gain police or council approval to hold the event.

Rifi told Guardian Australia: “I’d like to fight this battle in the court rather than in the media. I feel quite aggrieved and assaulted and humiliated by the rhetoric of Nick Folkes and the like, and I feel that I have been on the receiving end of racial hatred.”



A complaint to the commission can be investigated by its president. A process of conciliation will usually be undertaken to try to resolve the complaint. But alternatively the matter could be taken to the federal court for a hearing.

Folkes said he welcomed the complaint. “I’d be more than happy to put Islam on trial. He’s offended? I’m offended. I’m offended at the ways Muslims behave,” he said. “If he’s going to take it to the human rights tribunal I’m more than happy to state our case.”

He said he hoped the group would defeat the police injunction.

Some of the far-right groups who have signalled their intention to rally at Cronulla have been at odds with one another. Jim Saleam of the Australia First party issued a statement condemning the Party for Freedom, saying: “This rabble of would-be patriot leaders was not present at Cronulla in December 2005, nor did they speak for it. It is now just convenient for them that they seek to enter into the historical memory with a different interpretation and ride it as a justification.”

Folkes said Saleam was a “troublemaker” who “hasn’t learnt that his rhetoric just doesn’t help anything any more”.