A message of 'hope' or 'misuse' of local governance?

City of Ballarat councillors clashed over a notice of motion calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict, put forward by councillor Belinda Coates.

Mayor Des Hudson called the motion a way to give "hope" to people in the Ballarat community who are impacted by the war.

Cr Coates' motion asked councillors endorse the council writing to the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister to urge the Australian government to call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, call for unconditional release of all hostages, and an end to the siege in Gaza, urgently provide humanitarian aid and urge all parties to uphold international law.

The Palestine/Israel conflict came to a violent head in October 2023, which left thousands homeless and starving since Israeli military operations have targeted the Gaza Strip - most horrifying is a death toll of 30,000.

Extremist group Hamas kidnapped a number of Israeli citizens in October 2023, which flared tensions, but this global conflict has been ongoing for decades.

While some may argue this was an issue around the other side of the world, the voices in the room at the meeting showed the impact was being felt in Ballarat.

There were eight public submissions, all supporting the motion.

Palestinian woman Dr Mai Altous now serves the Ballarat community as a healthcare professional.

Dr Altous said the horrors she sees the healthcare workers face in Palestine haunt her.

"This motion is a powerful statement," she said.

"We stand together as a community and can extend our compassion beyond our cities border."

An 11-year-old girl, Ayesha Noor, also spoke to councillors.

Her father, Obaid, had spoken before her - he had seen war in his home country of Pakistan in areas neighbouring Afghanistan.

Ayesha said she had seen the images online of the war and didn't "understand why this was happening".

"All children should have a normal life like me," she said.

"Be able to play like me - to be held in the arms of their parents, to be able to eat."

Ayesha asked councillors to "please be brave" and support the motion.

The speakers all spoke of simple stopping the violence and showing compassion - to elevate the voices of their community.

No-one spoke of sides or blame.

There have been rallies in cities across Australia, and even in Ballarat, peaceful gatherings have been held calling for the Australian Government to support a ceasefire by the Free Palestine Ballarat group.

Speaker Nawal Al-Adasani is a member of this group and a survivor of war in Kuwait.

"We were very fortunate to return after the war ended," she said.

Ms Al-Adasani said her community was able to rebuild thanks to worldwide support for her country.

"This is no about taking sides, this is about caring for humanity," she said.

Cr Hudson said it was a motion to show leadership.

"This recommendation is about hope and it's a hope of small voices - small voices looking for someone to amplify their voices and to advocate," he said.

"This may not change the way of foreign policy or the action of the federal government but we have acted in a way of hope to try and show leadership to the people in our community who just want something good to believe in."

Cr Coates said the case for the motion was clear.

"We are a intercultural city, we are a welcoming city - a refugee welcome zone," she said.

"We've committed to being a compassionate city and that means not walking away when people are suffering."

Cr Coates said it might seem like a motion was outside the purview of council, more than rates, roads and rubbish.

"You've heard directly from a number of community members who are directly impacted and they represent many more people in our community," she said.

"We have as a council many, many times advocated to state and federal government - that's our role."

There were councillors who were concerned about what these actions might say about the council.

Councillor Ben Taylor was critical of the motion, saying it was outside the purview of a local council.

"I'll advocate for the community when it comes to Buninyong roads, or community relations for a power station in York Street," he said.

"But not when it comes to foreign policy that the federal government doesn't have a position on because it is a very delicate in relation to position."

Cr Taylor said a notice of motion should be used for what happens in Ballarat.

Once the motion passed, Cr Taylor called for a briefing on governance procedures.

Councillors Samantha McIntosh and Tracey Hargreaves spoke against the motion and voted against it.

Following the motion carrying, MP Joe McCracken published a media release, condemning the motion being passed and calling for a monitor for the council.

Eight Victorian local governments have passed a motion to call for a ceasefire, while City of Melbourne and City of Greater Shepperton voted a motion down.