"The captain and the coach of the team is not telling us about his game strategy": Jamal Rifi. Photo: Brendan Esposito

Muslim leaders worried about new terror laws

August 22, 2014

(Translation of this article appears in Arabic section)

The Abbott government faces an uphill battle to win Muslim community support for new counter-terrorism laws and to dispel fears they are fighting Islam, some community leaders and members say.

After a fortnight of bridge-building efforts that have included community meetings with Prime Minister Tony Abbott and an in-depth interview on Muslim radio with ASIO boss David Irvine, some Muslims remain wary of the push for tougher terrorism laws and dismiss the government's consultation as a stunt.

Jamal Rifi, a doctor and Lakemba community leader who conducted the interview with Mr Irvine last week, said he was happy to be part of Mr Abbott's "team Australia" but added he needed to know the game plan.

"The way I saw it was that the captain and the coach of the team is not telling us about his game strategy ... He kept us in the dark, so how do they expect us ... to be good players?"

Mr Abbott held meetings with Muslim leaders in Sydney and Melbourne this week for about 90 minutes each and told ABC radio this week that the "spirit of the meetings ... was excellent".

The Islamic Council of Victoria earned a rebuke from Mr Abbott for boycotting the Melbourne meeting but council secretary Ghaith Krayem said on Friday that such a short meeting was "not consultation - it's tokenism".

"We want to have a genuine conversation about policy and we're open to having a genuine conversation about policy. But you can't do that when the government wants to rush through a piece of legislation of this significance," he said.

Mohamad Tabbaa, a PhD student and teacher in terrorism studies at the University of Melbourne who put his name this week to a petition condemning the new terrorism laws, said "there is a lot of opposition to it in the community".

Rebecca Kay, a Sydney Muslim community activist who organised a recent petition from Muslim groups opposing the new laws, rejected Mr Irvine's key message in his radio interview that the new laws were fighting terrorism, not Islam.

"I definitely think it is (a fight against Islam)," she said.

Keysar Trad of the Islamic Friendship Association said he welcomed the fact the PM listened but he was disappointed that a subsequent meeting with Attorney General George Brandis was postponed until the new laws were drafted, saying that the community should have more input at an earlier stage of the process.