Speech

8 June 2007

Speech to Australian Islamic Cultural Centre
Peace and Harmony Interfaith Conference

Thank you Michael Photios

Thank you very much Sheikh Shafiq Khan, Managing Director, Al-Faisal College
Mrs Ghazwa Khan, Principal of Al-Faisal College
Your Excellency, Pehin Sri Taib Mahmud, Chief Minister of Sarawak
Mr Philip Ruddock, Attorney-General
Trustees of the Australian Islamic Cultural Centre
Excellencies, Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen

Let me say how pleased I am to be here this evening to visit the Al-Faisal College, tour its facilities and meet members of this vibrant local community

-and the students who gave us a stirring rendition of our National Anthem are outstanding ambassadors for this College

I'm also very honoured to be Chief Guest at this opening ceremony of the Peace and Harmony Interfaith Conference being held over the next few days

I am a great believer in dialogue - particularly between peoples of different faith Just last week I was in New Zealand, attending the third Regional Interfaith Dialogue

-with Shafiq Khan and Ameer Ali who were members of the Australian delegation

-interfaith dialogue helps build mutual understanding between communities

-and, at its best, it promotes a common resolve to work together to meet challenges such as extremism

I co-founded this regional process with Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda back in 2004, and since then it has gone from strength to strength

Last week's Regional Interfaith Dialogue produced some welcome outcomes

-including a plan to do more through education and the media to enhance understanding and tolerance

So I commend your initiative in hosting the Peace and Harmony Interfaith Conference here in Sydney - it is great when good ideas catch on!

Message of Responsibility

One of the key messages I gave to last week's Dialogue was that the responsibility for promoting tolerance and understanding between, and within, communities must rest with the communities themselves - and particularly their leaders

-because, frankly, there are limits to what governments can do - or should even try to do - in this area

Governments must, of course, set the legal parameters for what is acceptable behaviour - that is why we outlaw incitement and sedition

But the business of forging trust between communities is another matter all together Politicians like me can talk about it - should talk about it - but its only people like you here that can make it a reality

Luckily, we happen to live in Australia The state of inter-communal relations here is remarkably good - not the life-and-death issue it is in some other places This is because, while we have a strikingly diverse society (42 % of Australians were either born overseas or have one parent who was born overseas), we also have some real advantages in terms of our capacity for dealing with our diversity:

-firstly, we are a liberal democracy and, while authoritarian systems are good at suppressing differences for a short while, only democracies have proven they can flourish in diversity

-secondly, we are a country of the new world; commentators have noted how European states have seemed to struggle in recent years to adapt to their new status as immigrant societies; we have successfully accommodated new generations of migrants for over two centuries

-thirdly, thanks to excellent economic management, we have a booming economy; it is hard to be resentful of your neighbours when you are doing well yourself -

: on the other hand, there is nothing like a high rate of unemployment and disadvantage to expose fault lines even in the healthiest society

-finally, regardless of where we have come from, I believe that the great bulk of the Australian people share certain basic values - common ground that we all stand on

Shared values

Let me outline some of these values:

-I am talking about the right to life, respect and equality of opportunity, justice, and freedom of worship

-these are basic rights that are essential in any decent and harmonious society

If I were to sum up these rights into a shared value I might call it respect for human dignity

-this concept is embodied in the first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which says:

:"All human beings were born free and equal in dignity and rights"

-Muslim scholars also teach that the holy Qur'an proclaims human dignity as an inherent, absolute and unqualified right of the individual

I know that respect for the dignity of every person is at the heart of the values taught to the students of this College

-I know they talk regularly with students from Catholic and Jewish schools about values - an enormously positive and practical thing to do

Leadership

I believe that the key to promoting these values is leadership Let me give you an example Over the last four years support among Indonesians for suicide bombing has fallen from 25% to 10%

-you are unlikely to read about this in any newspaper, but it is a fact

I would love to take credit for this, but the credit in fact belongs to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has quietly and courageously led his nation of over 200 million Muslims down the path of peace and moderation

Leadership is equally important in your own community This is a free country and no-one can tell you who to follow or who should speak for you That's what Australia is all about!

- But that also makes your choice of leaders even more important - for two reasons

Firstly, communities define themselves to the outside world through their spokespersons If the words or actions of these representatives bring discredit to the community, then whose fault is that?

-The Muslim community, more than most, has suffered from popular misperceptions and negative stereotyping

-But there can be no cause for complaint when the damage is self-inflicted

The second reason why the choice of leader is so important is that leaders attract followers Young people in particular are vulnerable to making bad life choices

-it is the responsibility of communities to provide their children with positive role models

-the alternative is to leave them to take their chances with the ideologues and extremists, who care as little for their immortal souls as they do for their temporal well being

-we have seen the radicalisation of youth in other places and we have recoiled in horror at the consequences

-nothing is more likely to bring this scourge down upon our heads than the belief that it can't happen here

What Government can do

I have spoken about the primacy of community action and community leadership in promoting tolerance and understanding I would also like to say a few words about how Government can help

-Philip Ruddock mentioned the Government's National Action Plan

-you may also have heard of the Government's Living in Harmony programme, which funds community projects to help people participate in the Australian way of life and forge a sense of belonging

-it aims to engage the whole community in building mutual respect, understanding and acceptance

We are also doing work on the foreign policy front, with our friends and neighbours in the region

For example, the Philippines and Australia are working to build peace, harmony and security in the southern Philippine's province of Mindanao

-including organising grass-roots interfaith programs between Christian and Muslim groups

With Indonesia, we have facilitated exchanges between leaders from our Muslim communities

-to share views and experiences including on how Islam is practiced and taught in schools

Today, I would like to announce a further initiative that grew out of discussions I have had with Shafiq and Ameer I have agreed that the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will arrange a high level visit by a delegation of Australian Muslim leaders to South East Asia

-The details are still to be worked out but the aim would be to further promote the values of democracy, pluralism and respect for human dignity within the region

An open society

Our international efforts, and the work of this Centre and its students here, demonstrate the great practical benefits from having an open society that lets people speak up for their values

In Australia, governments, community and religious leaders, and responsible citizens face some basic questions about what sort of society and what sort of country we want to live in:

-a society that is open or closed;

-a society that accepts difference or imposes conformity

These questions go to the heart of why the Government and Australia's Muslim communities must continue to stand together against ignorance, hatred and intolerance

-because we all face the challenge of terrorism committed in the name of religion

-terrorists want to make people believe that different faiths and beliefs cannot live together

:they do not show any respect for human dignity

:they seek to justify the murder of innocent people as a religious duty

:they want to turn people against each other

Challenging the extremism narrative

Leaders and community members here tonight have a responsibility to speak up for shared values Ignoring radicals is not the best strategy

-I appreciate that many of you would feel distaste at the thought of debating those who stand on the extremist fringe of your community

-but if you don't, then no one else can

You might feel they are not your problem They are of course everyone's problem

- but you are uniquely placed to counter their narrative

The extremists have a simple strategy It is to portray Muslims as the victims of global conspiracies; a people under siege The perpetrators are the Christians, the Jews, the atheists and, most importantly, the moderate Muslims Having isolated the problem and the enemy, they also offer the solution: terrorism and war

Their narrative is destructive and divisive

-and it is factually wrong!

In Afghanistan and Iraq freely elected governments are locked in a desperate struggle against ruthless terrorists

-terrorist who have stated their belief that "democracy is un-Islamic"

Their doctrine is not one of liberation - it is one of enslavement

-the Taliban did not just deny women social mobility, it also denied them employment, education and health care

-it did not just ban alcohol, it also banned music, television, kite flying and even clapping at sporting events

Contrast this with one of our closest neighbours - the world's most populous Muslim nation, Indonesia

-Indonesia is the world's third-largest democracy

:which proves that Islam and democracy can co-exist harmoniously

Democratic India includes about 140 million Muslims who are fully involved in the political life of that country

-and India's remarkable economic growth is creating new opportunities to help lift millions of people out of poverty

In Australia, we have a Muslim community that is strong and thriving, and active in our democratic processes

-your community has produced strong leaders and role models, many of whom will be part of your conference

Conclusion

Ladies and Gentlemen, let me thank you for inviting me here this evening

-I'm very encouraged by the school's work

-I would like to congratulate the Australian Islamic Cultural Centre for hosting the Peace and Harmony Interfaith Conference

-and I look forward to seeing positive, practical outcomes, which will be reflected in greater understanding, moderation and tolerance in this great country of ours

Thank you