Former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison's recent comments on Islam have sparked widespread criticism, with leading Islamic groups labeling him as "deeply ill-informed" and "dangerous". At a Jerusalem antisemitism conference, Morrison advocated for a national register of accredited imams, increased scrutiny of foreign funding to religious institutions, and stronger measures to combat extremism. The proposed reforms come in the wake of the 2018 Bondi terror shooting, which left 15 people dead.
Morrison's remarks have been met with fierce opposition from Australia's peak Muslim body, the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC), which claims his proposals are a "fundamental attack on religious freedom and equality before the law". AFIC President Dr Rateb Jneid described Morrison's rhetoric as "reckless" and "profoundly dangerous", arguing it creates divisions between "acceptable" and "unacceptable" Muslims.
The Australian National Imams Council (ANIC), representing over 300 Muslim leaders, has also vehemently opposed Morrison's claims, calling them "deeply ill-informed". The ANIC pointed out that Islamic teachings are already translated into English, rendering Morrison's suggestion to translate texts "fundamentally ignorant".
Gamel Kheir of the Lebanese Muslim Association echoed this sentiment, saying Islamism and neo-nazism should be examined in parallel. He accused Morrison of being tone-deaf by attributing terrorism solely to Islam.
Critics, including former Liberal leader Bill Shorten's advisor Aftab Malik, have argued that targeting particular communities can lead to further polarization. They believe that measures like the proposed register are misguided and may fuel extremism rather than address its root causes.
Australian Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman has emphasized the need for accountability but cautioned against singling out specific faiths or communities. Pat Conroy, Defence Industry Minister, described Morrison's idea as "problematic" and praised Muslims for condemning violence.
The backlash reflects growing concerns about Islamophobia in Australia, where a rise in hate crimes and extremist ideologies is prompting calls for greater understanding and social cohesion.
Morrison's remarks have been met with fierce opposition from Australia's peak Muslim body, the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils (AFIC), which claims his proposals are a "fundamental attack on religious freedom and equality before the law". AFIC President Dr Rateb Jneid described Morrison's rhetoric as "reckless" and "profoundly dangerous", arguing it creates divisions between "acceptable" and "unacceptable" Muslims.
The Australian National Imams Council (ANIC), representing over 300 Muslim leaders, has also vehemently opposed Morrison's claims, calling them "deeply ill-informed". The ANIC pointed out that Islamic teachings are already translated into English, rendering Morrison's suggestion to translate texts "fundamentally ignorant".
Gamel Kheir of the Lebanese Muslim Association echoed this sentiment, saying Islamism and neo-nazism should be examined in parallel. He accused Morrison of being tone-deaf by attributing terrorism solely to Islam.
Critics, including former Liberal leader Bill Shorten's advisor Aftab Malik, have argued that targeting particular communities can lead to further polarization. They believe that measures like the proposed register are misguided and may fuel extremism rather than address its root causes.
Australian Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman has emphasized the need for accountability but cautioned against singling out specific faiths or communities. Pat Conroy, Defence Industry Minister, described Morrison's idea as "problematic" and praised Muslims for condemning violence.
The backlash reflects growing concerns about Islamophobia in Australia, where a rise in hate crimes and extremist ideologies is prompting calls for greater understanding and social cohesion.
The thing is, I feel like Scott Morrison just poked the beehive 
and now everybody's all up in arms 
... Like, seriously, who does he think he is? Criticizing Islam without even understanding it? 
Not cool, mate. He needs to listen to people from different backgrounds before spouting off about "combating extremism" 
. I mean, isn't that just code for targeting the wrong group of people? 
. I think Scott Morrison's comments were reckless, but not necessarily malicious. He was trying to tackle the problem of extremism, and I get that. But his methods? Not so sure 
. I think Morrison was trying to have a tough conversation, but he needed to do it in a way that wasn't so... divisive 
.
. But we need to start having these conversations in a way that's respectful and inclusive 
. Otherwise, we're just gonna end up making things worse 
.
. He's proposing to track imams, which could lead to unfair scrutiny of Muslims 
. The Aussie Muslim community isn't buying it - they think he's being super biased 
. I mean, shouldn't we be working together to prevent extremism rather than stigmatizing entire groups? 
. We need to focus on understanding and empathy, not targeting specific faiths or communities 
.
. And what's with the national register of accredited imams? Isn't that like, a huge overreach? I mean, how are they even supposed to vet every imam in the country? It just seems like more paperwork and bureaucracy 
... And from what I've seen, most people who get radicalized aren't necessarily Muslims 
. Can't we focus on addressing the root causes of extremism instead of targeting whole communities?
. Like, how can you just create divisions between "good" Muslims and the rest? It's all about fear-mongering and using terrorism as a scapegoat. The fact that he thinks translating Islamic texts into English would solve anything is just mind-boggling 
. 
I think it's great that the Australian government is having these tough conversations about extremism and terrorism. It shows they're willing to take on the hard issues 
. The fact that the Muslim community is speaking out against his proposals just means they want to make sure their voices are heard and their rights protected 
. We need to have nuanced discussions about these issues, not shy away from them 
.
morrison needs 2 educate himself on how muslims actually work 
I think its interesting that some of the ppl who are against Scott Morrison's idea of a national register of accredited imams, are not necessarily against extremism itself but rather the way it was presented 
this guy morrison's comments r super concerning 
? proposing a national register of imams and extra scrutiny on foreign funding 
... sounds like some bad anti muslim policies 
. pat conroy r saying the same thing 
. He should've listened to the Aussie Muslim leaders before making those out-there claims 
. And what really gets my goat is when politicians try to whip up fear by associating certain groups with terrorism 
️. We need more bridges, not walls 
.
. It's time for some real leaders who can bring people together, not drive them further apart.
calling him out for being tone deaf and attributing terrorism solely to Islam, like come on man! 
for speaking out against the problematic idea 
, like, who does he think he is? Trying to control imams like they're some kinda babysitters or something 
. I mean, come on, he thinks we need a register just 'cause some bloke did something bad? That's like saying all Indians or Asians are terrorists, which is just not on 
. We gotta stand up against this kinda Islamophobia and get back to being an inclusive country 
. Can't let Scotto take us down the path of division and fear 
.
. We need to be having conversations about root causes and addressing those instead of targeting specific communities 
.
.