State Library Victoria chief executive Paul Duldig has spoken publicly for the first time after the library was accused of censorship for cancelling a series of workshops set to be run by writers with pro-Palestine views. Speaking on ABC Melbourne on Tuesday, Duldig conceded that a complaint had been made about one of the writers whose workshop was cancelled, Omar Sakr, and social media posts he made about Israel’s invasion of Gaza. But he denied the complaint had anything to do with the library’s “postponement” of the events, instead pointing to its “duty of care” and a review that was undertaken of policies and procedures.
Paul Duldig, chief executive of State Library Victoria. Credit: Joe Armao ABC interviewer Rafael Epstein then asked: “So if Omar Sakr reposted the same thing, does that stop him being invited to the library to do workshops?” “No. I’ve already judged that as being acceptable,” Duldig said.
This masthead in July revealed that board members, the chief executive and senior state library staff had discussed the writers’ political views at length – particularly those of Sakr. Management also spoke to donors and the state government and flagged concerns over the religious backgrounds of writers before deciding to cancel the workshops. On Tuesday, Duldig insisted that Sakr’s commentary was not at the core of the issue.
“That particular expression was a very thoughtful analysis of the commentary that sits around Israel and Gaza. I mea.