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Launch
of Isma
21 March 2003.
Speech by Dr William Jonas, Acting Race Discrimination Commissioner
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, the traditional owners and custodians of the land where we meet today.
I would also like to thank everyone for coming today to find out about our project and express their good will towards it.
I would particularly like to thank members of the Isma project reference group who have come to support our project launch today. I am the convenor of the reference group whose members our new community liaison officer, Ms Omeima Sukkarieh, will introduce to you shortly.
Today we celebrate the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. In Australia, this day is otherwise known as 'harmony day'.
Australia is a relatively harmonious society. But it is important to recognise that racism was, and continues to be, a serious problem in Australian society.
As the Acting Race Discrimination Commissioner, it is my job to identify and denounce racial discrimination where and when it occurs. It is also my role to conduct research and develop programs that combat the prejudices that lead to racial discrimination.
Recognising and denouncing racism and the prejudice that leads to racism is especially crucial during a time of war. War fosters a climate of fear and suspicion. This climate is the perfect breeding ground for intolerance towards, discrimination against and vilification of certain groups.
The war poses a real threat to Australian Muslims and to Australians of Arab or Middle Eastern background. This threat is neither imagined nor exaggerated.
In a moment, reference group member Rawan Abdul-Nabi and Omeima Sukkarieh will speak about their own personal experiences of discrimination. Their experiences are representative of the kinds of information we have been hearing about informally over the last 6 to 12 months from various community groups.
Since 11 September 2001, Arabic and Islamic community organisations have reported increased levels of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim prejudice, discrimination and vilification. Community leaders have told us that the reported incidents are really just the tip of the iceberg. Fear and isolation have made many people reluctant to come forward and speak out or complain. It is important that we listen to the voices of these people.
We have heard from some of them on our Commission's E-Race internet forum on anti-Muslim prejudice. What these on-line voices are telling us is that the conflation of Arab with Muslim has resulted in an especially virulent form of prejudice and discrimination.
These on-line voices also tell us that intolerance towards particular groups encourages discrimination against other minorities - including Sikhs, Jews, Christian Arabs or non-Arab Muslims. Attacking the very principle of respect for diversity has an alarming ripple effect.
There are many other sources of information which alert us to the fact that war will exacerbate racial tensions.
In 1991, the Human Rights Commission's Report of the National Inquiry into Racist Violence in Australia described upsurges in violence towards Arab and Muslim Australians during the Gulf War. But the Gulf War was simply the trigger for violence - not the sole cause. The report pointed to deeper, long-term underlying tensions as the root cause of discrimination and vilification.
We need to be mindful of this in our current work. This war is likely to exacerbate racial tensions - not cause them. One need only look at a recent survey on racist attitudes in Australia by geographer Kevin Dunn to understand that the level of anti-Muslim and anti-Arab prejudice was high among the general Australian public even before the outbreak of war.
We understand that, for people who face discrimination every day of their lives, this war is just the latest crisis in long, protracted period of crises. Our goal is to help develop strategies that address the underlying causes of discrimination and vilification against Australian Arabs and Muslims. We are not just trying to come up with a 'quick -fix' for tensions that flare up during crisis flashpoints.
Our aims are ambitious. Over the next six months we will consult with as wide a cross-section as possible of Arab and Muslim community representatives, as well as with other federal, state and territory government agencies and non-government agencies across the nation.
Once we have consulted extensively, we will report our findings and recommend future directions for implementing strategies for change. I want to emphasise that the Isma project is just the beginning of a longer term process of engagement for HREOC.
The first step is to listen. As the project name 'Isma' suggests, our goal is to listen to what Australian Arabs and Muslims have to say about their experiences of prejudice and discrimination. We also want to listen to suggestions for developing and coordinating strategies between communities and government agencies that will help to eliminate discrimination and vilification against Arab and Muslim Australians.
We look forward to working with you over the coming months and thank you for your interest in our project.
I would like to now introduce Ms Rawan Abdul-Nabi who is the youth representative on the Isma reference group. Rawan will speak to us about her experiences of prejudice and discrimination.
Thank you.
