A GOOD BEGINNING

When I was a young boy, there was a family of Italians who lived down the bottom of our street. My father discouraged me from mixing with them even though there were several kids amongst them of my own age or thereabouts.

“Don’t go playing with the wogs down the road”, was his general advice, delivered with a malevolent look and veiled threats of violence should I ignore this pronouncement. Such was the relationship back then with “New Australians” as they were once colloquially described.

Ten years later I met an Italian kid and lo and behold if it wasn’t one of the kids from that family. Marco and I became good mates and it occurred to both of us that we had wasted a lot of years in between, separated by nothing more than suspicion and ignorance.

Notwithstanding the European invasion of what was once Aboriginal land, Italians were one of the first ethnic groups to enter Australia, if you don’t count the Chinese who seem to be everywhere or the British who make up much of Australian early heritage. It took about two generations at most for Italians to integrate or to use the new catchword, assimilate. They were followed by Greeks, Vietnamese and Lebanese, amongst others, all of whom have blended well into the Australian culture. Indeed they have become Australians, who, while possibly holding some minor sporting allegiance to their former country, are prepared to defend their adopted country with all their heart and soul.

It occurred to me that full integration takes about one to two generations and I have often argued that the ignorance and suspicion of the parents will be wiped away within that time and it relies only upon the rest of us to patiently await the metamorphosis of the offspring.

The influx of Islam into Australia had a promising start. The early Muslims were mostly from the Middle East and took to the traditions of Australia enthusiastically. Cronulla, from whence this writer hails, has a railway connection right to the heart of one of Sydney’s most beautiful beachside suburbs and it was quite common to see families of obvious Muslim persuasion, enjoying the benefits of sun, sand and salt water. For many years the Arab population lived amongst us without any negative consequences. Then for some reason something changed.

DARK CLOUDS ON THE HORIZON

Perhaps it was 9/11 that suddenly aligned us alongside our American friends and allies and the Arab population with its Middle Eastern counterparts. I don’t bother to speculate further on the causes because the reality is that anyone who has chosen to live in this country should be supportive of this country’s views and allegiances. One doesn’t have to agree. One has a right to protest. But that protest must be carried out in the spirit of the freedom that Australia offers and not in lockstep with the allegiances of another country and particularly any other country that does not offer the freedom of expression available right here.

The reality is that Muslims, including those from the Middle East, will also assimilate given time, patience and opportunity.

This does not account for the those Muslims, fortunately not the majority, who despite living in a country where freedom is taken for granted would prefer that Australia becomes a country where freedom is limited and strictly controlled by a fanatical religious law; a law that would curtail the very advantages that presumably the parents wished for when they left their birthplace. This is a desire for a law that has no place in our culture.

This is a desire that spawns the culture of hate; that breeds radicalisation; that feeds the hatred; that begets the followers of death cults like Islamic State, al-Qaeda and other similar groups. For reasons of brevity I will henceforth refer to them in this blog as ISIS.

The Grand Mufti of Australia managed to dig his faith even deeper into the abyss of generational mistrust, pushing back the chances of patience amongst Australians and firing up racism in some who, under any other circumstances perhaps, would find such attitudes abhorrent, by accusing the west of having created the motivation for the horror inflicted upon the Innocents of Paris last week.

IS ISLAM THE PROBLEM?

I am not a religious person; in fact I am very much opposed to religion as I believe it lies at the heart of many of the problems the world had dealt with throughout the centuries. Having said that, most religions have levels of authority. Catholicism for example has a Pope and if any catholic priest steps out of line by adopting a point of view that is radically different than the one decreed by the hierarchy, said priest risks excommunication; a serious problem if he wishes to continue to represent the Catholic Church.

Other religions have a similar hierarchy with multiple levels of authority. Islam on the other hand does not seem to have that same hierarchy. To further compound the problem, there are two distinct denominations of Islam, Sunni and Shia. It is not my intention to attempt to explain the difference but suffice it to say there is not much love lost between the two.

It appears anyone can pronounce himself as a representative of either denomination of the Islamic Faith and it is here that many of the problems have their beginning. Imams abound and rogue Imams are numerous. These rogue Imams can preach whatever brand of Islam they see fit and in Australia that includes preaching the type of hatred that has seen impressionable young men take up arms against every descent Australian value that has provided them the opportunities of education, health and security throughout their short lives. Every Australian born terrorist had his conversion to hatred in a Mosque somewhere right here in Australia. And that applies to every terrorist born in a free country or region similar to Australia; America, Britain and Europe amongst others.

WAS PARIS DIFFERENT?

The atrocities committed in Paris, the responsibility for which was proudly accepted by ISIS, were brutal and evil. The targets were young people, girls and boys, doing nothing more than celebrating their freedom of expression. The perpetrators of the violence had nothing to celebrate. They were expressing their contempt for freedom and their malignant hatred of those innocents who can enjoy it.

Amongst the tributes to the Innocents of Paris, there have also been claims that terrorist atrocities in other countries have been treated with less concern. In its brutality and evil, the terrorism committed in Paris is no better or worse than that committed in Beirut a few days before. However it must be understood that Lebanon along with many other similar nations have been in internal conflict for many years suggesting that those same countries have not been able to resolve their own problems and as such will continue to attract barbarous acts of evil. Let’s be honest, similar atrocities are committed in Arab countries on a daily basis. France on the other hand is a free nation in all respects. It has very similar laws to Australia whereupon its citizens can protest, demonstrate and criticise its government with impunity. Try that in any Arab nation and see where it takes you.

AN APPROPRIATE RESPONSE

How should we deal with the terrorism that ISIS is prepared to deliver on a regular basis? Of course, while I might have theories I would be foolish to think my version of a solution will be any more successful than the myriads of opinions that abound at the moment.

What I know is inappropriate is what I see now as a type of fervent nationalism that peppers much commentary by the “shock jocks” and many within the media. I consider myself a fervent Australian in every sense of the word. But fervent nationalism concerns me and it is contrary to every value that was imbued in me as a young boy by my wonderfully intelligent and articulate mother. Australians are by their very nature a free thinking, free speaking people. We have always been easy to get along with. Without those most endearing qualities we would not have attracted the massive influx of diverse cultures and nationalities that have enriched this great nation.

This may anger many of my friends but it needs to be said. Muslims are not the problem. Muslims have lived in Australia peacefully for many years without conflict or rancour. It helps not a toss to demonise Islam even if one thinks the religion has many oppressive and intolerant characteristics and, although I totally agree that Islam does seem to hold such views, unless one harbours the unrealistic and intolerant view that Islam should be banished around the world as a religion, we in Australia had better find some way of accepting it. To do otherwise will only further entrench the division and cause us more angst and inconvenience.

Nevertheless Islam needs to understand such oppressive and intolerant characteristics do not carry well in free countries. Islam will be viewed as an intolerant religion until such times as those characteristics are eliminated or tempered at least. One such method would be to tailor Islam to the nature of the country into which it is being introduced. Australia is not an Islamic country and it never will be. Left to their own device, young Muslims will adopt the freedom of this great nation willingly. If that does not fit in with the dictates of the Islamic faith then it is up to the faith to adapt.

ISIS AND WAR

I have long argued that the West should do more to bring peace and reason to nations around the world. That argument is more often than not treated with scorn and derision. For example, not many of my friends or many commentators agree that we should have been a party to the invasion of Iraq. This contra argument must therefore assume that the systematic murder of over 100 thousand Iraqis and Kurds per year for 28 years, just a tad under 3 million in total, by Saddam Hussein was acceptable for the stability of the region. That argument is abhorrent to me.

So should we participate in conflicts in these third world countries or should we bury our heads in the sand because, there is no doubt, anything less than a boots on the ground approach is destined to fail. If we attempt to ignore the problem, we will surely be guilty of indifference; if we involve ourselves in conflict we will be blamed later for interfering in the affairs of a sovereign state.

I wrote some time ago about Syria and the blogger who went by the name of Syria Pioneer, real name, Rami al-Sayad. He came from Baba Amr, a suburb of the city of Homs, and he directed this criticism to the International Community.

“Baba Amr is facing a genocide now, and I will never forgive you for your silence.”

Shortly after posting that blog, Rami al-Sayad was killed in another round of bombing directed against the population that consisted of mostly Arabic speaking Sunni Muslims, Alawite and Christian minorities. Such was the scale of the slaughter that Homs ran out of coffins.

It is this type of brutal leadership by President Bashar al-Assad and his like that typifies leadership round the globe in other third world countries and that those who would argue against intervention must endure as being “acceptable for the stability of the region.”

But there is one finite and incontrovertible fact about ISIS. Its members will never retreat. Its fanaticism will never diminish. The only method upon which we can be ensured ISIS is no longer a threat is when every one of its malignant and evil affiliations is dead. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, there will be no peace without total and unequivocal victory.

JRL