Arabic version: اتحاد الناطقين بالإنجليزية في فيكتوريا يواجه تحقيقاً بشأن تمويل جهات قومية

According to ABC News, the Australian English-Speaking Union has opened an internal investigation into its Victorian branch after questions over funding provided to white nationalist organisations. ABC NEWS Verify found ESU Victoria awarded a $2,000 grant to The National Observer, an online publication it described as white nationalist.

ESU Victoria said the publication’s application cited independent podcasts promoting Australian culture, heritage and language, and sought funding for lapel microphones and website development. It said podcast content was The National Observer’s responsibility and reiterated its support for freedom of expression. ESU Australia said it was a non-partisan, non-political organisation that did not support donations to political organisations or groups that did not uphold its purpose and mission.

The Victorian branch, which runs activities including poetry competitions and public-speaking support for schoolchildren, has more than $16 million in cash and assets, according to financial documents. The ABC said it did not suggest all ESU Victoria members shared or supported white nationalist views.

ABC NEWS Verify also reported that ESU Victoria shares a building in Ascot Vale with the British Australian Community, a far-right political interest group. ESU Victoria president Robert Furlan was previously a secretary of the group. ESU Victoria said the organisations were separate entities, that it had no current financial relationship with the British Australian Community, and that its historical corporate membership and associated benefits had ceased to operate in 2016.

Extremism researcher Josh Roose of Deakin University said some of ESU Victoria’s activities, including the grant to The National Observer, risked crossing into funding political activism. He called for a thorough federal government review of the branch’s stated aims, mission and activities.