Sixty holding a nation to ransom

Farced Zakaria of CN t , said , "My tuiderstauding is that they (Al -Qaeda) are doi ng inj u sti c e cowa rds tl1e i'vluslims of our country If anyone thinks Indian Musli m s will dance to their nme, they are de lusional. Indian Muslims w ill li ve for India. They w ill die for India. They will not wane an ything bad for India".

Arecent report suggests that between GO and 70 Australians ma y have joined ISIS in Iraq and Syria, That 60 misguided individuals can hold a country steeped in multiculmralism to ransom, is indeed a study in frenzied media statemeors, politicians wanting to cas h in o n populi st vo t es, and playing on the fears and insecurities of peopl e.

o doubt, we must respect intelligence reports and ratchet up way s to make our community safer. lVIo re frontline police presence will certainly al la y any fears which membe rs of an y community may be facing

However, we n eed to focus on three areas so we can continue enjoying the freedom and openness that is a hallm ark of our society, rather than the campaign o f susp ic ion and fea r that is currently o n.

Let's start w i th tl1e leaders Look ar the marked contrast between how Indian Prime Minister Na rendra l\fodi and his Austr ali a n coun terpart Tony Abbott articulated their concerns of home -grown terror threats.

PM 1\fodi, in an intervi ew with

Asked wh y so few amongst India's roughly 170 million Muslims have join ed Al- Qaeda, Modi s uggested the issue was o n e of a wider fight for princip le s, rather tl1an a question of nationality "Thi s is a crisis against humani ty, noc against one country or one race".

PM Ton y Abbott o n the ocher hand, articu lated simila r ,vords of 'Team Australia', bm rather chan to drive home the m essage of being ' o n e nation, one peop le', o nly managed to antagonise a certain secti o n of the community Whi le all Australi ans will agr ee that we need co fight chis evil, true leadersh ip can also be demonstrated by speaking softly but carry ing a large s tick PM Abbott's latest comments about the burqa speak poorly abom h is judgement on social cohesion.

PUP Senator Jacqui Lambie's illinformed comments about sharia law, and L iberal senator Cory Bernardi's call to ban tl1e burga, rankled Musl im Australians and di sp layed ignorance at best or started a recruitment drive fo r ISIS at worst.

Second, the media needs to exerc ise restraiot in feeding the fi re. Case in poin t, the haste with wh ich ev en a balanced group like Fairfax Media labelled an innocent yotmg Muslim Aus tralian man a "Teenage Terrorise". ln an apparent grab for eye b alls, competing against the more aggressiv e News Ltd stabl e of papers , this grave error b y the Fairfax group, co be s trongly cond emned, n ig h lighcs the n eed for those in charge of reporting and shaping community opinion to look beyond the headlines in to what sort of soc ie ry m essage chey seek to sen d out. Shame on you , Fair fax, for what came through on your front pages.

Perhaps you could p ick p o sitive stories from multic ul tural Australia, about those who have contributed significantl y to soci ety , Th e doctors who perform miracles; the technic ians who keep our IT s ystems running; the honest tax i drivers; the chefs who regale us witl1 their culinary skills; the innumerable teachers who s hape and mould the lives of our young o n es - go seek ouc and expose these srories.

And finally, to u s. There are man y things we can do to ena b le ourse lves and our children to li v e in a harmonious society Google sharia law, so we can understand what it means, rath er than to take JacqL1i at h er ignorant ran ting Learn about wh y the burqa is worn. Get to know our m igrant neighbour. As I 0- year -old caller Mohammed said on a recent ABC talkback show, "l am a Muslim Australian Tali< to us and get co know us. We ar e good people".

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