Consultations Homepage || Meeting Notes: 5 June 2003
Consultation hosted by Multicultural Community Services of Central Australia, Alice Springs, 5 June 2003
The meeting was facilitated by Ms Marguerite Rooke from Multicultural Community Services of Central Australia and attended by Ms Omeima Sukkarieh from HREOC (notes). Some 27 invited participants attended from the Alice Springs community.
Following a welcome from the chair, the Imam made the following introductory comments.
"On behalf of the small Muslim community in Alice Springs, I would like to thank Omeima for coming all the way to AS. Luckily in Alice Springs, since September 11, we haven't had many mishaps or much discrimination on our facilities. There has been very little discrimination or racially motivated attacks against facilities used by the local Muslim community, including the mosque. [We have made it clear to the broader community that] the Muslim community are not sympathizers with Osama Bin Laden nor with Al Qaeda and that extremists are not representative of the Muslim community.
"We paid our respects in the service for the victims of terrorist attacks in the US. That was very good. And after that the Rotary Club in Alice Springs invited us and we had a good chance to talk about our religion and terrorism and people were understanding and could differentiate between both. Many different schools are bringing their classes to mosques. So after 9/11 there were side effects but there were good effects, where people wanted to learn more about our religion. I have been here in Alice Springs for the last four and half years, and I have never given as many copies of the Qur'an out as much as I have after September 11. People have been asking for English translation and surprisingly, they're not just taking it but they're bringing it back asking for more information.
"The other thing we organised was on the last National Harmony Day, where we organised an Open Day at the mosque. We invited people to come and learn more about our religion and we displayed posters, especially about what is Jihad, what is the Islamic point of view on terrorism, Islamic beliefs and our daily practices. So that's what we've done in our fight against terrorism.
"I believe that this is the reason why there were no attacks on the mosques according to my knowledge. So that's what we did to pass on that knowledge and still people are ringing us asking us more questions with open minds and we have people come and visit us all the time. After the Open Day at the mosque you will be surprised to know that seven men and women who are not Muslim now come to the mosque and have joined a class asking me to teach them more about the religion. I've been doing this for the last three months every Sunday. They are taking interest and they know as well as I know that the purpose is not converting them, the purpose is to understand the religion. They are also learning Arabic.
"So what more could be done is at the government level? The government has to highlight for example the Islamic celebrations and events in their calendar. For example, the holy month of Ramadan comes when Muslims are fasting. [It would be good] at that time if a Muslim scholar for 10 minutes on TV or in the media can talk about the holy month of Ramadan explaining that it's about sacrifice and helping other people. Or even in the HREOC newsletter just as a short notice. We have food in our fridge but we don't eat it because God wants us to realize that there are poor people who don't have any food to eat. So it gives a good impression to those people who don't know anything about Islam and it makes them question what they have seen on TV about Muslims like killing people is Islam or terrorism is Islam or suicide bombing is Islam. Instead they see the good points. Good points such as how Muslims celebrate Eid Al Fetir, how they give charity, Zakat and all these things. ... We should be given a chance to say what it means and what we're going to be doing during this period so a positive impression will go throughout the community as Australian people are understanding and accept facts quickly. So they will more strongly oppose those people who tell Muslims to get out of this country. I hope these people are 1% and don't represent all of the Australian community, even though these people are innocent because they form their opinion on what they see or hear in the media. So that's my suggestion for governments and even HREOC who should even highlight these events in their newsletter."
The meeting then opened to a general discussion on the issues raised by Isma.
1. What are your experiences of discrimination and vilification?
It was generally felt that the Alice Springs community in general is tolerant and accepting of its diversity.
"I think what you've got to recognize is that this place, even as its pioneers, has had Afghanis as part of this community right from the beginning. Though there are people who are bigoted, [they have been] the basis of this community. Sadadeen is one of our suburbs which was named after an Afghan cameleer and the train that comes here is called the Ghan. There is a history, a long history, in this place and any discrimination that does exist I believe is a later import into the place."
"Alice Springs is in the geographical centre of Australia. That can be either a blessing or it can be a disadvantage. Now in this instance it can be a blessing because we are isolated from the main and people are more free thinkers. Yes there's prejudice out there but they see people for what they are and what they do. So their religion really isn't that important once they know who you are."
"We are a pretty multicultural town and even though it's not perfect, it is very tolerant of difference. A lot of that is to do with its history where also a lot of Chinese came out and so too did the Italians, and the Jews, and the Afghans. They have all come to build it, so you know all of that brings upon a familiarity to people. Even when new people come in, it brushes up on others as well and so they are more accepting."
Some incidents were reported, nevertheless.
"After 9/11, I was in a tyre company getting my tyres changed and a young Islamic person dressed in full Islamic robes , who I think was an Imam traveling through the town, he was having tyres changed and somebody driving past in a truck yelled out all sorts of horrible things at that person."
"We have had in town a very beautiful and lovely, and very confident Muslim optometrist and we also have a very competent medical practitioner. They are both female and some people would not go for the mere fact that they had a scarf."
"People would go there and then instead of saying 'Dr S ... or Dr ...' they would say that doctor wears things on her head. They brand them by what they wear, not necessarily just by their names."
A young Muslim man was asked whether he had experienced any incidents at school.
"I go to college and I only experienced a few things. One of my bosses ... said something rude about Africans but I just ignore it. It doesn't really upset me because they just don't understand. We know that we are Muslims. When Ramadan came they were pretty understanding. This happened two weeks ago."
Two other students present indicated they had not experienced discrimination or abuse at school based on their religion or ethnicity.
One young participant described how he had taken an opportunity to engage with two interested, but potentially antagonistic, men at a local cinema.
"Three months ago, me and friends were at the cinemas and we were watching a movie. There was two blokes and they asked me 'Have you heard the news about the Bali bombing trial?' And they asked us, 'What do you say about all these things happening, like Bali bombing and September 11?' I said 'All that Osama Bin Laden, that's all they do, in any country. They have a group like this that do something, bad or good. So I think that not all the people are bad, or all the Muslims are bad. Some Christians they are good and some they are bad. So all of them are doing right or wrong things. They don't understand exactly but they heard what I said. They kept asking me questions like 'Why in Afghanistan do they wear this dress? Why they are living like this?' And I said that that's their culture and every culture they have their own culture, even the Americans."
What are the underlying causes?
The role of the media was referred to.
"After 9/11, I still remember the 'Today Show' in the morning on Channel 9. The cameramen went into the street and asked 'What do you think?' and 'What do you think?' And one lady commented angrily against Muslims and said 'I hate all Muslims'. And that was on TV. So where are those editors and program managers? Because everyone knows it's not every Muslim's fault what happened in America. So that lady was on national TV saying she hates Muslims and kids are watching this program also. So media if they are not careful, or they don't want to give time for education of Islam or show Muslims, then at least they need not to show negative things all the time or don't show comments of negative things ...or anything that racially disadvantages another group of people or incites hatred."
The role of the Middle East conflict was mentioned in this context.
"I have been introduced to a group of friends, a couple of them are Jewish people, so we'd engage in the Israeli/Palestine position, very freely in fact. The anger of these Jewish people against all the Arabs, all the Arabs, I have never seen that and I wouldn't have thought that was possible, here in Australia and here in Alice Springs. They were ready actually to shoot if it was possible. And after that I asked them, 'Do you think it's all right? Would you take a gun and kill somebody because he is an Arab?' And that person said 'Yes, because they want to throw us in the sea'. I said 'You are not in the sea. You are in central Australia'. But the whole conflict was very much engraved in their psyche you can say."
Ignorance of Islam was also mentioned, although the point was made that ignorance does not necessarily give rise to hostility.
"The first question that they asked me when I came to Australia is 'Why are you covering your hair?'. That was years back and until now they still ask me the same question. It's not because they are against it, but because they don't understand why. Maybe if they understand what's Islam and what's the positive side of Islam, maybe they will not ask this question anymore. But even if these people will not ask anymore, there will be new people who will, because there's no one talking about why Muslims do this except Muslims in a positive light. So I think it's good to get one of these programs and to talk about all the different religions and the similarities, because there are lot of similar things in Christianity, Judaism and Islam because we all believe in one God. It's just that everyone has their own way of worshipping and just like different countries, has their own culture. Religion is just part of the many cultures we live in today and it is part of the person. People should understand that diversity does exist everywhere in Australia."
Others made the point the discrimination against outsiders is not confined to Australia.
"When I was in Egypt - I am African - they ask me 'What are you doing here?' People discriminate others based on what country you are from also. And people here do the same thing. I have been questioned and abused also because I don't drink."
The point was made that abuse of tea-totallers is common in Australia regardless of ethnicity.
"I have been in a place where a Muslim refused to take a glass of wine or beer and people would look at that person as if ...oh "what's wrong with you, why don't you drink". I've been in parties where somebody who is Muslim was ridiculed because they don't drink alcohol which I don't think this should happen."
"There are also people who are not Muslim and also don't drink and you get picked on because it's the macho thing to do."
The influence of government policy was also mentioned.
"[For immigration detention] to give this impression that that's what we ought to be doing with anyone who's different, to me is a powerful unfortunate message that is contrary to what Islam believes, what Christianity believes, what all sorts of religions and cultural humanitarians believe."
"This has been our history in this country. Remember we did it to indigenous peoples. We did it to people with disabilities for years and continue to do it. Any group that is marginalized or that is different or seen as different fits into the same category. And it doesn't matter what government is in power or what leadership is there, they are responding to the voice of the people."
2. What is being done to fight anti-Arab and anti-Muslim prejudice and discrimination?
The interfaith network and its involvement with the Town Council.
"One good thing that we've done in Alice Springs is that we have the interfaith network which includes all religious leaders from all faiths. We get together once a month to talk about each other's issues as well as what we've done and what we're going to do. Last month at the monthly meeting of Alice Springs Town Council, I opened the meeting with a recital from the Q'uran. It's a bit strange that it's the first time in this district that a Town Council meeting or any meeting is opened up with Islamic prayers."
"Since the interfaith network, the Town Council has invited the religious leaders from whatever faith on a roster basis to begin the Council meeting with words from the scripture and so the Imam was the first non-Christian leader to do that. Coming up there will be the leader of the Buddhist monks and the leader of the Baha'i Community to lead the prayers. We have formed this interfaith network to make a positive response in this community. The other thing that we've done is that all the religious leaders with the co-operation of Multicultural Community Services, all signed a statement about living in harmony and peace together. It's in calligraphy and all the leaders signed it and it will be framed and presented to the Mayor and Town Council and living in the Town Council as an indication of our living in harmony and peace together. ... I believe it is a dreadful thing happening in Iraq but let us be an example and turn discrimination and hatred on its head and be an example to the rest of Australia from the heart of Australia that is, the heart of being an Australian is living together in harmony and peace.
"One of the things that the interfaith network has on its books to do is to publish an interfaith calendar that has every religious festival of all the different religions represented in Alice Springs available to everybody so that everybody will know when Catholic Easter is, when Orthodox Easter is, when Ramadan is."
Multicultural Community Services
"The establishment of what used to be the MRC [Migrant Resource Centre] and what is now know as the MCSCA: I think we play an invaluable role in creating some of this harmony and getting events together and getting people together, because they come to us as a focal point. So we can be facilitators and help to address some of the issues before they become major problems. I think that can be under-estimated because we do our job quietly and it's not always seen."
The Friendship Caravan project was also mentioned. It is a US event in response to 11 September and the Iraq War. It is detailed on a website: http://www.friendshipcaravan.org The 'mission' of the Caravan is described as:
- "To promote grass roots people-to-people friendship and mutual respect, through events designed to attract local, national, and international media attention.
- "To instill positive, optimistic feelings into this period of fear and uncertainty."
The major event is to be a caravan across America in 2004-05 with exhibits about the Arab World. One consultation participant is working with the project and hoping for Australian involvement, such as from Alice Springs camel farmers.
The World Council of Churches initiative 'Decade to Overcome Violence 2001-2010' was also mentioned. There is a website for further information: http://www2.wcc-coe.org/dov
3. What more could be done to fight anti-Arab and anti-Muslim prejudice and discrimination?
The following suggestions were made for strategies in community and school education and with respect to the media.
Public education
"Australian people today are very good at knowing what is political correctness. We had political correctness for indigenous people, on how to refer to people. We have political correctness for disability, and we have political correctness for everything. So a lot of people, even in very good positions, know out loud and in public that you don't say things against Muslim, Arabs or a marginalized group. But within their own circle, they do. So they need to be educated at a different level."
"I think one of the strategies that you need to employ is the use of the arts for bringing around tolerance and harmony, and music and dance and all of those things. I think we really under-estimate the value they have in bringing people together and for people to know who people are because there are no barriers that appear within the art world. It lowers the barriers and people are seen for their artistic value. So ... maybe the festivals could be a combination of education and the creative arts. So it's not just the arts; it's like 'this is why we dance'. It's telling a story. Because we love to watch it but we don't know what the Indian hand movements are, etc. So it's actually a way of educating people ... a really good medium for educating the community in a nice way."
"Cross cultural education should be encompassing of all cultures. It is the responsibility not just at a national level but it should also be the responsibility of each state and territory to take that on and do it in their own ways through their government bodies. They should show leadership and that is a good way to start."
School education
"Studies of culture and religion should be embedded in the curriculum. It's not just Islam really, it should be other things as well, because if you just segregate and isolate, you're creating your own prejudice."
"It's important to go into schools and tell entertaining stories in a gentle way ... it's introducing the children to more variety of learning at the same time as highlighting the contributions that Muslims and Arabs have made to this country."
Media
"I think they [the media] should not report all the negative things about Muslim countries because what's happened is that there's a lot of good stuff, a lot of good activities, ceremonies, etc. If it's not blood and guts and shootings and disaster, they won't show you. They just want to show the very bad disasters about Muslims and if it's not about Muslims they will associate it with Muslims. I think they should show more positive things about what the community is doing. They report all negative things. They should be more balanced in the way they report things. I am not a Muslim and I get very upset by the media."
"I think they also should be showing Muslim Australians and Arab Australians doing what every Australian does and I think they need to be showing people leading ordinary lives, contributing to Australian society like the average Joe Blow. There's a lot of people doing what everybody else is doing, but they just happen to be Muslims or Arabs or Italian or someone else, because we just happen to be multicultural. I think the other thing I would be asking the media, is that they should not just be leaving it to SBS to do that. A lot of people don't watch SBS even though it has a very important role to play. I think it's to also show two sides of the story. Our reporting now is general, it does not show two sides of the story, or the two points of view. Instead we get a point of view that's been taken by the media and that's what the lot of us get. I think if there's one side being shown and then there's the other side then let's look at it and then say to say to people 'you make up your mind based on fact, not on stereotypes, not fiction'."
