Fuck them and their endless ‘demands’.
The same goes for our obstinately clueless politclowns who refuse to take any action to contain islamic belligerence in this country.
Terms like “radical Islam” and “extremist Islam” are useless because Islam is what it is. Islam is always radical & extremist. To suggest that there is another form of Islam, one that tolerates us, is nothing but wishful thinking. It doesn’t exist.
Morrison responds as Australia’s peak imams body demands end to terms like ‘radical Islam’ after his reform call
Former prime minister Scott Morrison has responded after Australia’s peak Muslim body demanded an end to terms such as “radical Islam” and “extremist Islam” following a speech he gave calling for Islamic reform in the wake of the Bondi massacre.
Former prime minister Scott Morrison has responded after Australia’s peak Muslim body demanded an end to terms such as “radical Islam” and “extremist Islam” following a speech he gave calling for Islamic reform in the wake of the Bondi massacre.
Australia’s peak Muslim body has demanded an end to terms such as “radical” and “extremist Islam” after former prime minister Scott Morrison called for reform in the wake of the Bondi massacre. Picture: Supplied
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Australian National Imams Council (ANIC) accused Mr Morrison and Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg of being “reckless” for calling on Muslim leaders to “take responsibility” for Islamic extremism in Australia.
“Associating terrorism with Islam is wrong, rejected, and has no factual or moral basis. We cannot and must not blame entire communities for the actions of a few criminal individuals,” ANIC said.
The threat of Islamic extremism in Australia has come under fresh scrutiny in the wake of the Bondi terror attack, with authorities alleging the accused gunmen were inspired by ISIS.
The Albanese government has passed new legislation to take action against hate preachers, however the laws have received significant criticism for limiting free speech.
Mr Morrison, though, has demanded the government go further – arguing Muslim leaders must face a reckoning akin to Christian groups in the aftermath of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.
ANIC said the recent comments by Mr Morrison, calling on Muslim leaders to undertake “wholesale reform” and to take “accountability and responsibility” to address “political Islam”, were “reckless, irresponsible, and deeply ill-informed”.
The council said Mr Morrison implied Islam or Muslims bore responsibility for the recent terrorist attacks at Bondi.
“Senator Bragg’s comments on ABC Radio, suggesting that Australian Muslims should ‘take responsibility’ for acts of terrorism, reinforce the same divisive and dangerous narrative,” ANIC said.
“We call on former prime minister Scott Morrison, Senator Bragg and all political parties and leaders… to refrain from using divisive and misleading terms such as ‘radical Islam’, ‘extremist Islam’ or other divisive language.”
ANIC said Australia’s Muslim community was built on a “deep desire for harmony” and was committed to “our Australian values” and “mutual respect for our differences”.
Speaking at a major antisemitism conference in Israel on Tuesday evening, Mr Morrison argued questions over religious governance could not remain “taboo” as he pre-emptively pushed back against those who might seek to dismiss his proposals as Islamophobic.
“Some will seek to characterise these remarks as hostile to Australia’s Islamic community, and even multiculturalism itself, trolling out the usual accusations of Islamophobia,” he said.
“To the contrary, I am advocating reforms I believe will help religious leaders in our Islamic community keep the wolves from their flock.
“To treat such issues as taboo serves only those who wish to keep these influences opaque and in the dark, where our two homegrown extreme Islamist terrorists were radicalised.
“After December 14, all options to combat antisemitism must be on the table without fear or favour; this includes how Islam is practised and governed in Australia.”
ANIC suggested Mr Morrison was hypocritical by pointing to the murder of 51 innocent people at a Christchurch Mosque during his prime ministership by a man who was “radicalised on Australian soil”.
“On that occasion, no collective blame was placed on a race, religion, or community, nor should it have been. That same standard must apply consistently,” ANIC said.
Mr Morrison responded to ANIC’s statement, writing on social media his calls for “self regulation of the Islamic faith” did not put imams at a different standard to other religious leaders.
“I am asking for Islamic leaders to regulate and provide stronger protections against radicalisation within the Islamic faith community for the benefits of their own community and our wider Australian society,” Mr Morrison wrote.
“As I said in the speech, if there (are) similar weaknesses in other faiths, including my own, the same requirements should apply.”
Mr Morrison made a follow up post in which he said the “same excuses and diversions” were being made to avoid dealing with radical Islam in Australia.
“This is not about blame for December 14 – that is a straw man argument – but an honest appeal for what is needed to prevent such radicalisation in the future,” he wrote.
“Hollow appeals for unity mean nothing if they are used as an excuse for not confronting or acting on how radicalisation is occurring in Australia.
“We must stop avoiding the issue and work productively and honestly to address this issue for the sake of all faiths to make a positive and peaceful contribution. If not now after December 14, then when(?)”
In his address, Mr Morrison also pushed for the expansion of the Foreign Interest Transparency Scheme to cover foreign religious groups attempting to fund or direct activities in Australia.
“For the overwhelming majority of Australian Muslims, and imams, these reforms should change little,” the former prime minister said.
“They are not designed to police the mainstream, but to protect it from a potentially very dangerous, even deadly fringe.”
ANIC said political leaders, such as Mr Morrison and Senator Bragg, had a “duty to unite the nation” in moments of crisis and not “divide it”.
“Australia deserves leadership that strengthens social cohesion, brings people together in times of crisis, and firmly rejects narratives that fuel fear, division, and harm,” ANIC said.