PM warned of more riots
Herald Sun ^ | 1 September 2006

Posted on 08/31/2006 10:53:33 PM PDT
THE chairman of the government's Islamic advisory committee has warned of more Cronulla-style riots unless the Prime Minister tones down his comments on Muslim migrants, having to learn to speak and read English and treat their women and the women of their host country with respect.
Part of the glue that holds this culture of hatred together is their not being able to speak and read the language of the country they have immigrated to. This prevents them from any integration. And so within this sealed culture any news or information they receive must come from their local cleric or Imam or approved council. And it is also important to note that most indoctrination of hatred and terrorist ideology is communicated in literature or recorded in these people’s native languages as well.

Prime Minister John Howard sparked a backlash in some sections of Australia's Muslim community by saying Muslim migrants needed to conform to Australian values by learning English and treating women with respect. But the head of the government's new Muslim advisory committee, Dr Ameer Ali, warned of trouble unless the Mr Howard backed down.

"We have already witnessed one incident in Sydney recently in Cronulla, I don't want these scenes to be repeated because when you antagonize the younger generation, younger group, they are bound to react," Dr Ali told Macquarie Radio.

But Mr Howard today stood by his comments.

"I don't apologize," he told reporters.

"I think they are missing the point and the point is that I don't care and the Australian people don't care where people come from.

"There's a small section of the Islamic population which is unwilling to integrate and I have said generally all migrants ... they have to integrate."

The comments prompted a fierce reaction from young female Islamic leader Iktimal Hage-Ali, a member of the Prime Minister's advisory group. She accused Mr Howard of threatening to further marginalise Muslims. This marginalization is a requirement for Muslims to speak and read English. This would require also their children male and female to attend government-regulated schools. And be tested to show results. And adults along with having to learn to read and speak English would also be required to take some kind of classes outlining the laws and rights of men and women in a free society – and the consequences of the abuse of women and children in such a society.

"There's no value in pointing out the minority of the Muslim group," she said. "There's a whole lot of other ethnic communities whose parents, whose grandparents don't speak the English language, and it's never a problem in the mainstream Australian community for them to go on living their everyday life without speaking the language. But not one of these “other ethnic communities” has the history of violence, and oppression against women and children that your community has. And to simply stand by and permit such a community of hatred and repression to grow unchecked and spread its poison throughout another culture cannot be allowed.

"Yet as soon as it's a person of a Arab descent or a Muslim person ... politicians feel like they need to bring it to mainstream attention as the only group, like marginalising us even more then we already feel marginalised today."