Mainstream Islamophobia

This large and prominent Australia-wide community is an integral part of the Australian society. Australian Muslims have been very constructive and affirmative in building a unified and harmonious Australia. Muslim professionals, both males and females, are found in every walk of life. They are successful doctors, lawyers, technologists, journalists, educationists and so on.

Australian Muslims have always demonstrated their full commitment to maintaining harmony and unity with the other Australians. Even when in neighbouring Indonesia people were on the streets waving portraits of Osama Bin Laden and lighting American flags demonstrating against the US-led attacks on Afghanistan and Iraq, Australian Muslims showed their full responsibility and loyalty to Australia. From the 9-11 attacks in US to the Bali and London bomb blasts Australian Muslims loudly condemned all acts of terrorism.

The largest Muslim country of the world, Indonesia, is Australia’s next door neighbour. Australia has always had good, long-term relations with Muslim countries. And many Australian professionals work in the Middle East, enjoying generous wages.

Just like Catholic and other religious schools, Islamic schools are delivering a quality education as per the Australian educational system. According to the latest report, Malek Fahd Islamic School situated in Chullora (in Sydney) is the biggest Islamic School in Australia. Interestingly, this year, Malek Fahd Islamic School is among the top 10 high schools of New South Wales in performance. The school is at 9th position this year and was at 15th last year. Malek Fahd Islamic School is not selective, like some other private schools, yet it has shown outstanding performance providing the highest level of education.

The question is then, why does a section of the Australian community feel threatened by fellow Australians whose faith is Islam - one of the great religions of Abraham (Christianity, Judaism and Islam)? They openly express their hatred against Muslims in the media. In fact mainstream media, in Australia, has played a major role in portraying Islam and Muslims as entities of terrorism. When ordinary people look at Osama bin Laden, al-Qaida or the Taliban through media stories they think this is what Islam or Muslims are. But these fanatic groups are as dangerous for Muslims as they are for non-Muslims.

The fact is, the media has barely exposed either the amity or the enmity between Osama bin Laden and the United States. It has hardly exposed the fact that Osama bin Laden and Mulla Omer were, at one stage, backed by the CIA, which provided them with funds and ammunition to fight against Russian foreign forces in the name of Jihad for more than 10 years. And that the religious extremists seen in Afghanistan and Pakistan today are the same people who were supported by the US in the past, to establish their religious schools of thought, in the towns and cities of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The media is supposed to work in the public interest. How much the Australian media has fulfilled its responsibility to expose the tales of these people and groups is open for debate. For example, how many Australians would have known that these fundamentalists groups and individuals in Afghanistan are the result of long-term support, by way of firearms and money, from the United States?

Then, there are blatant inaccuracies involved in the casual use of terms and phrases like “jihad” and “Islamic terrorist group” the precise meaning of which requires a dissertation. Certainly these terms are crudely misrepresented by populists (Islamic and otherwise) all round the world. Islam, like other religions, is open to various interpretations, and as such it can be used to support various ends. Scholars in the field of Islamic studies know well that most informed Koranic readings need careful scholarly analysis and explanation.

The commercial media, today, can entertain the masses and simultaneously make remarkable profits. However, whether media stories promote harmony and solidarity in a multicultural Australian society is an important question for every Australian.

The recent demonstration against the plan for an Islamic school at Camden has been reported by mainstream Australian media with extensive coverage, inflammatory headlines and interviews reflecting a negative image of Islam and Muslims. Conversely, hardly any print or electronic media group has shown the other side of the story or interviews of those who want to build the Islamic School.