After September 11, each of the AFP Executive Teams in respective regions sought to develop strong relationships with Muslim and Arab communities. Specifically:

• General Managers within Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth offices initiated and developed strong relationships with leaders of Islamic Councils in respective states. Formal and informal lines of communication continue with Islamic Councils as part of this outreach program
• Representatives of the Islamic community have presented to AFP members on Islamic issues
• AFP has addressed Muslim students in relation to discrimination and fears held by the community
• Female AFP members have attended meetings with female members of the Islamic community in Brisbane to discuss issues and concerns they may have in dealing with the AFP.

The project allowed students to hear first hand from other Australians whose religious views may be different from their own. It offered them the opportunity to understand the meaning behind different views and encouraged them to keep an open mind when listening to others. The project produced a resource kit 'Achieving Harmony through Religious Understanding: A Resource Manual for Teachers' which was designed to guide teachers through a four week activity program. At the end of the program, teachers were encouraged to plan their own religious forum so students can hear first hand from their own local religious clergy. 3000 kits were produced and distributed to education departments and schools around Australia. An online version of the kit was also available for downloading on the AMF's website. Users of the kit were asked to evaluate its effectiveness. Feedback indicates it was well received by teachers and students who used the resource in general English classes, studies of religion classes and in special theme subjects.

For more information see:
www.amf.net.au/rsch_research_harmony.shtml

The aim of the project was to hold a series of consultations with religious, government and community organisations as part of a broader study of religion, cultural diversity and social cohesion in contemporary Australia. A series of fourteen inter-faith focus groups (including Muslims) were held in states and territories across Australia. The purpose of these focus groups was to gather information about the feasibility of an Inter-Faith Council to act as an advisory body for government and non-government agencies, gain a better understanding of activities of the various community interfaith groups and identify emerging issues and trends. The project research team included Professor Des Cahill (RMIT), Gary Bouma (Monash University), Michael Leahy (Deakin University), and Mr Hass Dellal (AMF). The report of the project will be released mid-2004 and will be used as the basis for informed debate and outline the actions needed by various community sectors to achieve social cohesion in the area of religious and cultural diversity. Other outcomes include a booklet on Muslim Australians by academic Abdallah Saeed and a resource kit to provide community groups, education institutions and government and non-government service providers with a better understanding of Islam and Muslims in Australia.

For more information see:
www.amf.net.au/rsch_research_religionDiversity
Cohesion.shtml

The reference book seeks to help police deliver culturally appropriate services includes information about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) spirituality, Baha'i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Islamic, Jewish, and Sikh Faiths. General background information about each religion is provided together with information about key religious festivals, sects, and worship practices. Also highlighted are issues relating to death, gender and family roles, physical contact, religious practices and policing (including examples of how religious teachings may impact on the delivery of police and emergency services).

For more information see: www.apmab.gov.au

DIMIA has administered the LIH initiative since August 1998. The initiative comprises of three linked elements - a community grants program, a partnership program, and a public information strategy incorporating Harmony Day held on March 21 each year. The initiative aims to promote community harmony and address issues of racism in Australia. DIMIA has supported numerous projects which counter anti-Arab and anti-Muslim prejudice through its LIH community grants and partnership programs. For example, in 2002, 42 LIH community grants were awarded. Of those grants, two had an inter-faith focus including the Islamic community, five projects worked with Arabic groups to promote community harmony including one grant which provided mentoring for young Arabic boys. In 2003, 44 LIH community grants were awarded. Of these grants, 10 projects focussed specifically on addressing anti-Muslim prejudice or had an inter-faith focus which included the Islamic community. Of the remaining grants, ten projects addressed anti-Muslim or anti-Arab prejudice more generally.

For more information see:
www.immi.gov.au/multicultural/harmony/

The partnership focused on developing a better understanding of Islam and Muslims in Australia, through facilitating informed and accurate reporting in the media and producing information, articles and media releases on Islam/Muslims. Activities have included media training for Islamic community leaders, development of a national media policy for AFIC and the establishment of a network of state and territory based media officers. The booklet 'Appreciating Islam' which provides accessible information about Islam was also produced and distributed. 60,000 copies of the booklet have been printed and distributed widely.

For more information see: www.afic.com.au

ANDCMJ formed to provide leadership in a time of increasing international tensions and conflicts, to support and encourage Australians to respect the rights of religious communities and their places of worship and ensure that issues overseas do not intrude on the stability and tolerance of Australian society.

For more information see:
www.minister.immi.gov.au/cam/media/media03/
h03024.htm

APERO was established in response to the climate of conflict caused by recent terrorist attacks and Australia's military commitments in the Middle East. APERO members include representatives of Christian, Islamic, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindi, Baha'i and Sikh faiths as well as the World Conference for Religion and Peace, AMF, Adult Multicultural Education Service, Council for a Multicultural Australia and the National Council of Migrant Resource Centres and Service Agencies. The partnership works closely with government to ensure that community harmony is promoted and government policies and programs do not discriminate against or disadvantage any particular faith or ethnic community.

For more information see: www.fecca.org.au/Partners/APERO

This project seeks to address fundamental misunderstandings around issues of different faiths by bringing groups from both Christian and Islamic faiths (especially Turkish) together in the Ryde and Auburn areas of Sydney. The project aims to develop a self guided program for use by other faith groups and will provide training to all participants on dialogue and listening skills.

For more information see:
www.immi.gov.au/multicultural/harmony/grants2003/
grant2.htm

AIF was founded in 2001 to create and sustain enduring affinity and relationships with people through inter-cultural and inter-faith dialogue and understanding. AIF runs a variety of activities designed to promote broader understanding and awareness of Islam and foster dialogue between Muslims and various religious groups. Activities have included:

For more information see: www.affinity.org.au

The AACC responded to September 11 by setting up the Racism Register to document individual complaints of racist incidents in the community as well as negative media coverage that people found offensive. In its first week the Racism Register logged over 50 complaints.

For more information see: www.arabcouncil.org.au

Since 2001, the AACC has delivered cross-cultural awareness seminars to government and non-government service providers with Arabic-speaking clientele. Interest in these seminars has risen significantly over the last two years. Demand for more specifically tailored cross-cultural awareness seminars from government service providers such as Centrelink, TAFE and some local area police commands, has also risen significantly since 2001. On request from specific agencies, the AACC staff has conducted numerous seminars and talks on a range of agency specific issues relating to Arabic-speaking clientele.

For more information see: www.arabcouncil.org.au

This was a half day seminar which included information on mass communications and media, textual analysis, language and representation, orientalism and race and representation in Australia, news organisation, news values and news production, analysing news output: content analysis and transitivity and an overview of the legal framework governing media operations in NSW.

For more information see: www.arabcouncil.org.au

This project aims to create a network of religious leaders who will meet regularly to promote inter-faith understanding at a local level and enhance the skills of religious leaders to address issues of racism, and to respond collectively in times of crisis. Activities will include Open Days at places of worship, specific tours for local schools in May 2004, community harmony workshops at schools and working with the media.

For more information see:
www.canterbury.nsw.gov.au/interfaith

The campaign was launched in the wake of September 11 to foster the compassion within school communities, and by extension in the broader community. The first program was conducted in a state primary school in June 2002. Since then over 1,000 children have participated in the project. The project involves joint visits to schools by representatives from Islamic, Jewish and Christian faiths who encourage children (primary school Years 3-6) to discuss how they will make a difference to their school community through an act of kindness. In 2003, the program received a DIMIA LIH Community Grant to enable facilitators to visit more schools together in Sydney, the Central Coast and Armidale. 80-100 schools will be visited. This activity will be supplemented by the production of a cooperative craft project.

For more information see: www.goodness.org.au

A telephone hotline was established on 13 September 2001 to assist community members experiencing problems resulting from the attacks on September 11. Initially, a 24 hour Arabic hotline was set up and from 14 November 2001 a Punjabi language line was open from 5pm- 9pm. In the first 5 weeks following September 11, Arabic and Punjabi hotlines received 400 calls. Around 13% of callers had contacted police by the time they contacted the hotline. There were some complaints about police responses. Evidence collected through the hotline suggested that the events of September 11 impacted heavily on community relations in NSW. Calls to the hotline tapered off significantly after 5 weeks. In October 2002 in response to the Bali bombings and throughout the lead up to and outbreak of hostilities in Iraq, community members had the capacity to report incidents of abuse, insult or discrimination to the Commission via the following mechanisms:

There was a marked decrease in calls once hostilities in Iraq abated. This lead to the decommissioning of the language specific hotlines on 19 May 2003. The telephone and email hotlines are both monitored by Commission staff on a daily basis and remain as permanent features at the Commission.

Researchers from the University of Technology (Sydney) (UTS) are currently conducting analysis of data from the hotline. The project will evaluate the impacts of the events of September 11 2001 on community relations in New South Wales. The research will focus on the impacts on community harmony for members of diverse ethnic, religious and language groups. The research will produce recommendations for both policy and projects that aim to minimise future negative impacts of such events. The research will build on the body of research on both media representation and occurrences of racist violence to focus on identifying best practice and developing constructive suggestions for improvement in media practice and in policies and projects in community relations.

For more information see: www.crc.nsw.gov.au

In mid-October 2002, the NSW Premier directed the CRC to establish and convene the Community Harmony Reference Group to deal with community unease following the attacks in Bali and to ensure a coordinated rapid response to any local community relations issues which may arise in the wake of international events. The group consisted of 45 leaders from Islamic, Jewish, Arabic, Iraqi, Turkish Indonesian and Sikh communities along with representatives from government agencies including the NSW Police Force, the New South Wales Anti-Discrimination Board (NSW ADB), Department of Education and Training (DET) and the Department of Community Services. After the project's establishment, three working groups were formed to address issues of community concern and to implement projects that assisted communities during times of community relations crises. The working groups focused on issues such as those pertaining to the Arabic and Islamic communities, education and public discourse. A Steering Committee was initially formed to establish the working groups. Once the Working Groups had established their own identity and there was no longer an identified need for the Steering Committee and thus was subsequently abolished.

For more information see: www.crc.nsw.gov.au/crc/chrg/index.htm

FAIR is a public relations group whose aim it is to promote a positive and harmonious relationship between Muslims and the wider community in Australia. FAIR's objective is also to preserve civil liberties for Australian Muslims, protect religious and social rights and eliminate religious bigotry by tackling ignorance about Islam. FAIR publishes its own newspaper called Australia Fair and operates its own media and research centre to carry out media monitoring, issue press releases and plan media strategies.

For more information see: www.fair.org.au

The project aimed to promote racial and religious unity amongst young people (aged 15-25 years) of different ethnic backgrounds (including Lebanese, Sudanese and Egyptian) from the Melkite Catholic Eparchy of Australia together with broader youth communities in the Bankstown and Canterbury Local Government Areas.

For more information see: www.immi.gov.au/multicultural/harmony/grants2002/
grant5.htm

This project seeks to increase knowledge about Islam amongst mainstream media by running seminars for journalism students at several NSW Universities. Other activities will aid in the development of professional networks between these students and the broader Muslim community. As part of this project a 'Harmony Day Event' was also organised on 16 April 2004 in partnership with the Daily Telegraph to give the community and people interested in journalism the opportunity to meet journalists from the Daily Telegraph and share information and thoughts on the impacts of reporting on the community as well as to gain insight into how the media works.

For more information see: www.mwnna.org.au/events/Evt_journalism1.htm

The project brings together young people in Sydney (Jews/Muslims/Christians) to explore issues and to experience each others faiths and cultures (including Indigenous). Experiences will be filmed for broadcasting and use in the community. Activities include a week long residential, inter-faith visits, participation in diverse religious festivals and a day of reflection.

For more information see: www.ncca.org.au/dov/journey_of_promise

Two Arabic speaking education officers were appointed to the NSWADB for a six month term to work with Arabic and Islamic communities on a range of projects aimed at combating anti-Arabic and anti-Islamic sentiment. Projects included developing an education kit, providing education sessions in communities and preparing informative material in Arabic to assist Arabic speakers deal with harassment and discrimination. The team conducted 26 community training sessions addressing 1 672 individuals, mostly in Arabic. There were 6 training sessions for community workers and service providers with 173 participants, as well as attendance at information days at Migrant Resource Centres and informal networking. The team also produced a referral poster to assist community workers to refer clients appropriately when they are dealing with discrimination matters.

For more information see: www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/
adb.nsf/pages/ar0203_educating_the_community

The project's objective was to, 'offer various perspectives, as well as encourage discussion, about migration, racism and community identity in New South Wales.' The project tackled the issues of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim prejudice and discrimination in Australia within a broader anti-racism framework. The project was made up of several components:

• Release of a series of postcards (October-December 2002) profiling diverse NSW citizens, including a post-card of diverse religious leaders (including a photograph of an Imam). Avant Cards reported that one of the most popular cards was the card featuring religious leaders 'highlighting the need for this type of message and its broad appeal in all venue types'
• Establishment of a website with 'online profiles' of culturally diverse Australians
• A seminar series: Beyond these Walls held 18 October 2002 which included the session 'Arab and Muslim Australians: under siege?' and 'We Interrupt this Program' held on 29 November 2002 which included workshops for community groups on countering negative media portrayals.
• 'Race for the Headlines' released 13 March 2003. The report examined the way media in NSW have reported race issues, specifically to media representations of Muslim and Middle-Eastern Australians in the local and national press.

For more information see: www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/adb/aaf.nsf/pages/index

As part of the NSW Premier's Department's Youth Partnerships program, the NSW DET are involved in implementing education initiatives that support youth of Arabic speaking background in schools in Bankstown, Granville, Liverpool and St George districts. These include:

• Gateways: aims to increase the retention, participation and completion of schooling to Year 12 of 200 students at risk
• Homework Plus: establishes four Homework Plus centres to provide after hours literacy and numeracy support to identified students
• School to Work: develops stronger links between schools and local Arabic speaking employers
• Machismo: designed to improve communication skills and build self-esteem among boys

For more information see: www.youthpartnership.nsw.gov.au/education.html

Youth Partnership with Arabic Speaking Communities project is a joint initiative between community representatives from Arabic speaking communities, business leaders and the State Government. The Partnership has three objectives:

• promote the well being of young people from Arabic speaking backgrounds
• increase parent support and education to help prevent risk taking behaviour
• provide children and young people with better learning opportunities and recreational activities for long term personal development

The project focuses primarily on a population of 110,000 people of Arabic speaking background living in 10 Local Government Areas in Sydney's West and South-West. 17 projects, programs and initiatives have been funded under the auspices of the Youth Partnership with Arabic Speaking Communities project. A broad range of specific programs are managed by six NSW government agencies and cover five key areas:

1. Youth Liaison Teams who interact with young people in places where they gather and try to make positive connections with young people or situations where young people may take part in anti-social or risk-taking behaviour

2. Education initiatives to strengthen school and community relations, reduce truancy and behavioural problems and assist young people with learning.

3. Parent support to ensure they are appropriate and accessible to the needs of Arabic speaking families and facilitate specific initiatives to raise awareness and improve services to parents and families to help them parent

4. Sport and recreation and cultural initiatives which aim to engage young people in sport, recreation and cultural activities to reduce boredom and develop confidence and self-esteem

5. Establishment of a 'Community Trust' where community and corporate sponsorships can be obtained for specific projects (in addition to the funds allocated by the NSW Government for the initiative)

For more information see: www.youthpartnership.nsw.gov.au

This is one of a series of 'Place Projects' which aim to build and maintain community harmony in specific areas by bringing together community leaders, state and local government agencies to make commitments and decisions about future directions of their local community. The project arose from concerns about crime prevention and fear of crime stemming from the 1998 attacks on the Lakemba police station and compounded by a series of gang rapes in 2000. 'Leading the Way' Canterbury-Bankstown Youth Leadership Forum was one of the initiatives held to encourage an active role for young people as community builders, giving them a voice on issues in Canterbury-Bankstown and providing them with positive leadership training. The main features of the forum consisted of a series of practical workshops that helped develop and encourage positive leadership skills of young people which included using the media to promote positive images of young people and building community harmony. Another major initiative of this project will be the creation of a community harmony round table that will bring together representatives of the significant communities of different ages and cultures in the area.

For more information see: www.communitybuilders.nsw.gov.au/solutions/
canterbury/can.html

NSW Premier's Department initiative to inform the wider community about Islam, the Muslim experience in Australia and how communities, particularly our religious communities, interact with each other. Speakers included Premier Carr, representatives from Anglican, Catholic, Buddhist, Muslim and Jewish faiths, select academics and members of the media. A brochure entitled 'Islam in a multi-faith Australia' was distributed at the forum.

For more information see: www.crc.nsw.gov.au/press/2001/islamforumprem.htm

A number of initiatives have been undertaken by the Rockdale City Council including:

• Racism and discrimination are identified in the Draft Social Plan for Rockdale - Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Residents, particularly addressing the effect of September 11 and Post Bali bombing on Rockdale's Arab and Muslim communities. Consultations were conducted with the Arab and Muslim communities living in the area. To counter the effects of these events, the Council is working with the Regional Violence Prevention Worker and local Islamic women's groups, including Al Zahra Islamic Council and Al Zahra Muslim Women's Association to address the issue of discrimination and harassment of Muslim women.
• 'Growing Peace in Rockdale' public forum held in October 2003. An initiative of the Columban Mission Institute Centres for Christian-Muslim Relations, and Peace, Ecology and Justice. The forum was organised by the Council in partnership with Al Zahra Muslim Women's Association, St. George Area Local Command, and AIF. The aim of the forum was to promote peace and mutual understanding among people at a local level.

For more information see February 2004 community newsletter at: www.rockdale.nsw.gov.au/docs/council_documents/
council_documents.html

Project to expand links between St Joseph's Catholic School and a local high school (Wiley Park Girls' High) (with a 97% Muslim population) to address interfaith understanding. Activities will include seminars, school visits, with reports back to whole of school communities.

For more information see April 2003 newsletter at:
www.joeys.org/about/collegenews.htm

The project included a number of initiatives and phases:

• A series of workshops with young people from the St. George area on issues of racism and harmony and the creation of a short play that carried an anti-racism message analysed how racism operates within Australian society and the impacts this may have on young people. Participants were from Chinese, South Pacific/Maori and Arabic speaking backgrounds. Almost half of the participants were from an Arabic speaking background, many of whom were Muslim.
• An extended anti-racism forum which was attended by over 100 young people from 11 local high schools was held over two days and provided an opportunity for participants, some of whom ran the workshops, to debate racism and discuss strategies to combat racism.
• A play called 'SNIPE' was created and performed at five different events.

A package has been developed for distribution upon request and includes a video and reports documenting all phases of the project as well as the script of the play.

The MWA delivered cross-cultural awareness training session for service providers from local, state and federal agencies whose clients include Muslim women. In 2002, the MWA, with support from Bankstown City Council (Community Grants Program) delivered several sessions to local service providers. In 2003, MWA conducted over 100 cross cultural/religious training sessions/ information sessions to schools, community and women's health centres, sexual assault services, Centrelink offices, Legal Aid offices, Councils, TAFEs and universities and police services.

For more information see: www.mwa.org.au/SEMINAR.htm

Students from the University of Technology, Sydney's Faculty of Business, together with the MWA conducted a research project into the employment experiences of Muslim women in NSW. The report aimed to: establish the main type of workplaces in which Muslim women worked; determine whether the qualifications of Muslim women reflect their current positions of employment and determine the employment satisfaction and possible barriers to employment of women currently in paid employment and unemployed women currently seeking paid employment. The report found that Muslim women who are currently employed are experiencing few barriers and are generally satisfied in their current position of employment. However, for those seeking employment, a majority of respondents reported difficulties in finding employed and perceived significant barriers in gaining employment due to their status as Muslim women.

For more information see: www.mwa.org.au/Study%20Muslim%20Women&
Employment.htm

This booklet is one of many ongoing publications and projects that aim to combat ignorance regarding the Arabic language, culture, and highlight the rich history and positive contributions of Australians of Arabic background today. It accompanies other teaching resources on Arab history and the experiences of Arab and Indigenous youth in Australia. This booklet includes information about the contributions that Arabs have made in the golden age, medicine, mathematics, astronomy, architecture, art and music and philosophy. This is a free booklet and has been distributed widely throughout Australia. A copy can be obtained from the AAC.

For more information see: www.aac.org.au

The Network is active in promoting harmony among different faiths and cultures in Dandenong and conducts tours of places of worship as well as faith presentations aimed at informing the public about each faith and removing the fear of 'otherness'. The Network is also working on production of an education/information video to be shown in schools, shopping centres and organisations depicting everyday elements of practicing faiths to help remove the fear of 'otherness'. The Interfaith Network have published a document, Many Faiths: One People, which sets out a brief history and activities of the Network and gives a summary of the major tenets of major religious faiths including Islam. The Network also helped establish a multi-denominational 'Sacred Space' in the Dandenong Hospital where patients and families of all religions can pray, meditate and grieve in a culturally appropriate space.

For more information see: www.greaterdandenong.com/infopage

'Given the Chance Program' has some funding through the Victorian Department of Human Services' Community Strengthening Unit, the Victorian Women's and the Invergowrie Foundation, a private trust set up to promote and advance education for women and girls in Victoria. The program was developed in 2001 and began running in October to December 2002. It is designed specifically for refugees, temporary and permanent visa holders, and involves getting mentors for women on the program through corporate and government organisations. The mentors, mostly from corporate businesses, and the work experience supervisors are trained in cultural awareness and about refugees. As part of the program, EMC was also running a public speaking program throughout June 2003 where participants are invited to speak to the ANZ Women's Corporate Unit in July 2003. In addition, along with the local community legal centre, EMC also held sessions where women are taught safety procedures and how to keep themselves safe from any form of harassment.

For more information see: www.bsl.org.au/main.asp?PageId=565

The EOCV collaborated with Diversity Victoria and VicHealth to develop and deliver a community education campaign urging all Victorians to 'stand up to racism'. The campaign was designed to discourage the rise in racial and religious vilification and abuse towards Australians from Muslim and Arabic communities following the attacks in the United States and publicity surrounding Australia's refugee policy. Over 1000 campaign kits were sent to businesses, not for profit organisations and individuals urging them to stand up to racism by holding events, distributing campaign material (stickers, posters, fridge magnets). Kits contained fact sheets on cultural diversity and Muslim communities in Australia, tips on writing media releases and attracting media attention (as well as media contacts), summaries of key anti-racism messages and quotes and campaign posters and stickers.

For more information see:
www.eoc.vic.gov.au/aboutus/outreach/standuptoracism.html

In November 2001, the EOCV appointed an Arabic-speaking community educator to inform Muslim and Arabic-speaking groups throughout Victoria of their rights and responsibilities under Victoria's anti-discrimination laws (including the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act) and of complaint handling processes. The EOCV took on the project in response to concerns raised in consultation with Arabic communities about their experiences of discrimination, harassment and vilification following Sept 11. The project ran for 10 months.

For more information see: www.standuptoracism.com.au

The ICV acted to safeguard the security and wellbeing of Muslims in Victoria against any backlash attacks by setting up a 'Helpline' and circulating advice for Islamic organisations and individuals on security and safety issues. Community members were encouraged to call the 'Helpline' to report and seek advice and referrals following incidents that involve threats to safety, security and discrimination, vilification, intolerance and hostility.

For more information see: www.icv.org.au

Three-year community education program to develop the capacity of Muslim women in the parenting, employment, and community leadership and education arenas. This project takes a rights based approach to building the capacity of the Muslim communities by first building the capacity of Muslim women. This program provides intensive skill development and personal development group work programs for women from Arabic speaking, Horn of Africa and Turkish communities. Funded by the Department of Family and Community Services.

For more information see: home.vicnet.net.au/~iwwcv/ or www.mwnna.org.au/newsletter/content4.htm

The Interfaith Gathering includes representatives from Moreland's Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Catholic, Anglican, Greek Orthodox, Indian and Eastern Orthodox religions. The group's purpose is to build trust between leaders of faith communities, work together towards agreed goals and take part in activities that involve faith communities providing examples of respect, acceptance and cooperation to the wider community.

For more information see: www.moreland.vic.gov.au

In response to the 'Tampa Crisis' and the effects of September 11 and the Bali Bombing, the NMRC undertook a number of initiatives including:

• Understanding Islam Profiles. These were workshops on Islam delivered by the Arabic Community Settlement Worker. The worker and the workshops were both were developed after being accredited by the Board of Imams in Victoria.
• The NMRC has been particularly involved in organising and initiating activities and events which demonstrate support to the Muslim refugee community, such as commemorative events for the Iraqi refugees whose boat capsized off the Australian shores in 2001
• The NMRC held a self funded Harmony Day Breakfast with the Darebin City Council which involved a hypothetical on issues of refugees and the journeys of asylum seekers.

For more information see: www.mrcne.org.au/aboutmrc.html

In partnership with Victorian Arabic Social Services (VASS), Victoria Police ran an Arabic Language and Culture Course for police officers, based on a similar successful program in Vietnamese. The course comprised a series of presentations from community members on important Arabic family, religious and cultural values.

For more information see: www.vass.org.au/CrossCulturalTraining.htm

Following commencement of the war on Iraq, Victoria Police took a number of steps to minimise racially/religious motivated incidents and more effectively deal with such incidents reported to police. Steps undertaken included:

• Formal consultations by all Regional Assistant Commissioners, Multicultural Liaison Officer (MLOs) and the Victoria Police Multicultural Advisory Unit, with groups and communities likely to be affected by the war in Iraq or other related incidents prompted by domestic or overseas events
• Victoria Police issued formal operating instructions to police on how to effectively respond to racially/religious motivated incidents. This included the development of a poster of a flow chart of complaint processes for racial and religious vilification placed in all police stations all over Victoria.
• Victoria Police, in cooperation with multicultural communities, initiated an Register that records racially/religious motivated incidents. The Register is ongoing and records all such incidents reported to Police through internal police data and community information. Groups and communities identified as more vulnerable to vilification were invited to provide direct input into the Register. These included ICV, AAC, the VASS and the Islamic Women's Welfare Council of Victoria
• The Police and Community Multicultural Advisory Committee (PACMAC) co-chaired by the Deputy Commissioner Operations and the Victorian Multicultural Commission's Chairman, discussed in detail and supported all above initiatives, concurrently urging the multicultural communities to exercise restraint and cooperate with police by reporting all incidents to the authorities
• Victoria Police have worked to design a hijab as part of police uniform for new Muslim women recruits who wear the hijab. They have also examined rules, regulations and training programs to allow the transition of the first Muslim woman police officer in Australia who wears the hijab.

For more information see: www.police.vic.gov.au

This is a training course on Arabic Culture and Language that targets Victoria Police. The first training course delivered in October 2002 was attended by about 30 police. It has been developed in partnership with the Victoria Police MAU, and is delivered by VASS and involves is run over 4 days with a total of 24 hours. It enables participants to gain better understanding of the Arab world, history, and geography, Arabic migration to Australia, Arabic traditions and customs, issues of concern to women, youth, men and the elderly. Police officers also get to know about the system of policing in Arabic countries, and to try and devise strategies for better relations with the Arabic community in Victoria. The course also includes 4 hours of introduction to the Arabic language and some basic Arabic words and conversation. The third training course was recently delivered in early May 2004 to members and police officers of Cobram Police Station in an attempt to strengthen the links between police and the region's Iraqi community. This session was initiated by the Ethnic Communities Council of Shepparton and the Victorian Police MAU.

For more information see: www.vass.org.au/CrossCulturalTraining.htm

The project involves running workshops with young people of Arabic speaking backgrounds at a negotiated school time. Workshops address topics such as rights, obligations, citizenship, identity, self esteem, knowledge as power, anti-racism, public performance and speaking, and leadership.

For more information see: www.vass.org.au/resources/ARAB.doc

Through its Settlement Facilitation Program, which is funded by DIMIA, VASS assisted the set up of an Arabic Parents Association (APA) at Brunswick Secondary College. Members of the APA meet with the Vice Principal once a month to openly discuss concerns and issues such as racism which parents and students feel affect their children. The settlement program aims at assisting the school's newly-arrived students and parents in their settlement process through a social-connectedness approach, peer support and educational and recreational sessions and activities. VASS is currently in the process of developing a resources kit for schools which includes various educational resources and support material for the teaching of the Arabic language, culture, history, contributions to society, etc.

For more information see: www.vass.org.au/projects.htm

Funded by DIMIA under the LIH grants, this national conference discussed ways to improve the welfare of Arab communities in Australia through raising awareness of issues which are affecting Australians of Arabic descent, such as unemployment, bullying and dangerous youth behaviour, raising children in the Australian environment, the changing role of men, and women achieving their full potential, and citizenship, identity and belonging.

For more information see:
www.vass.org.au/resources/arab%20conference%20MR.doc

Following September 11, the VMC coordinated a working group of representatives from Arabic and Islamic communities, the DET, DIMIA, Victoria Police, the EOCV and the Victorian Office of Multicultural Affairs to monitor ongoing developments and improve responses. The working group developed a range of recommendations including:

• The establishment of an Arabic community helpline;
• Special consideration be given to students of Islamic faith or Arabic-speaking backgrounds for exams/assessment; and
• The distribution of multicultural education information in schools.

In October 2001, an Arabic community helpline was established, staffed by bilingual counsellors. The helpline ran for three months, enabling people to report incidents, seek support and receive referrals to appropriate agencies. Approximately 30 calls were received, most relating to disputes between neighbours and random abuse.

VMC provided financial support to Arabic and Islamic community organisations to enable them to better assist their members during crises and also in the longer term. Grants awarded through the VMC's Community Grants Program to Islamic and Arabic communities in 2002 included:

• ICV: Carrying out of a services and needs audit of the Victorian Muslim community based in West Melbourne;
• Craig Family Centre and Parkhill Primary School: Engagement of a support worker to work with the South Sudanese and Afghan communities;
• Afghan-Australian Public Servants Association Inc.: Provision of language and advice services for new arrivals;
• Horn of Africa Women's Group: Support for migrant parents adapting to a new environment;
• Islamic Society of Victoria: Bringing women's groups together irrespective of culture and religion;
• Moreland Turkish Educational and Social Affairs Centre Inc. in partnership with Australian Denizli Association.
• VASS Community capacity building purposes.

For more information see: www.multicultural.vic.gov.au/index.htm

To commemorate the first anniversary of the September 11 attacks, the VMC, together with SBS Radio, the AMF, the World Conference on Religions for Peace and the City of Melbourne hosted a public forum to discuss 'The role of faith in building a harmonious multicultural society.' Panellists included representatives of six faiths (Judaism, Aboriginal Spirituality, Hinduism, Christianity, Islam and Buddhism), the Chief Commissioner of Police, Christine Nixon and Professor Gary Bouma.

For more information see: www.multicultural.vic.gov.au/publications/
multicultural_victoria/archive/newslettervol9_2a.htm

On 26 June 2002 community leaders participated in a Community Roundtable and, as a symbolic gesture, signed a Community Accord declaring their commitment to the promotion of racial and religious equality. The document was tabled in Parliament. Following the Community Roundtable, a Community Leaders Summit was held in September 2002 to progress, in a practical way, the intentions detailed in the Community Accord. The Summit attracted more than 50 participants representing over 40 different cultural and religious groups. Sessions and workshops included:

• Race Vilification and Inter-cultural Communal Leadership
• Religion, Cultural Diversity and Social Cohesion
• Promoting and Demonstrating Tolerance and Respect for other Cultures
• Inter-faith and Inter-racial Cooperation
• Future Directions

The RRTA was enacted on 1 January 2002 to protect Victorians from vilification on the basis of their race or religion, and provide means of redress. The introduction of the RRTA was accompanied by a comprehensive community information and education campaign (Many Backgrounds, All Victorians) to raise awareness and understanding of the RRTA and Victorians' rights and responsibilities under the Act. The campaign included:

• Press and radio advertising in community languages;
• Racial and religious tolerance information kits with a range of information material and a 'what you need to know' fact sheet translated into 23 community languages;
• Specific interest group briefings; and
• A series of community briefing forums

For more information see:
www.mau.vic.gov.au/domino/web_notes/voma/vomasite.nsf/
Frameset/VOMA?OpenDocument