Sydney University VC Mark Scott may be powerless to act against pro-HAMAS supporters because of funding decisions by former VC Michael Spence, and failure of his General Counsel Richard Fisher to address the issue

 by Ganesh Sahathevan 

Sydney University VC Mark Scott may be powerless to act against pro-HAMAS supportersrs because of funding decisions made by former VC Michael Spence, and  the  failure of  his General Counsel Richard Fisher to address the issue. Fiher and Spence were sentt queries with regards the story below. Spence remained silent,and Fisher threatened to sue for defamation.

First posted by Ganesh Sahathevan on the Terror Finance Blog in 2010

The University of Sydney, Australia has refused to confirm or deny that funding has been received from the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT)  and/or its associates  even while the  IIIT remains under investigation for financing terrorism.

Queries on the matter were put to the university’s Vice-Chancellor, Michael Spence ,consequent to the university’s  invitation and sponsorship of a lecture tour of Australia by IIIT director Anwar Ibrahim. The sponsorship comes at a time when the university  cuts corners due to what it  say is a shortage of funding for day-to-day operations.

Anwar was invited to give a public lecture titled  "Islam, Democracy and the Status of Malaysia's Quasi-Secular State". The lecture was organised by the university’s Department of Government and International Relations.

Anwar and his fellow IIIT directors continue to invoke the 5^th Amendment against self-incrimination in their declarations disclosed in the IIIT’s IRS 990 tax filings. The IIIT’s IRS 990s provide some evidence of a history of providing funding to bodies that have then either extended invitation to Anwar , or bestowed on him some award. The ongoing investigation has led to these filings containing less detailed information such that the ultimate beneficiaries may not be identified.

  The queries about IIIT  funding were also put to Michael Spence in his personal capacity. These queries have also been met with silence. In addition, Spence and the university  continue to maintain silence  about  the university’s   communications  with  Dr Adrian Ong Chee Beng, who has been convicted of fraud, and  has worked for Anwar and his principal adviser Dr Rahim Ghouse. Ghouse is  believed to have represented Anwar in his business dealings with  Sheik Yassin Al-Qadi,   the Al-Qaeda financier whose activities included the transmission  of funds to terrorist groups for  and/or on  behalf of Mohamad Al-Faisal.

(http://www.abc.net.au/rn/backgroundbriefing/stories/2006/1754286.htm AND http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/business/09trust.html?_r=1&th&emc=th)

One of the first high-profile visitors to the  university following Spence’s appointment as VC in 2008 was Turki al-Faisal, Mohamad Al-Faisal’s brother. As mentioned previously , there was no apparent reason for Turki’s visit (http://www.terrorfinance.org/the_terror_finance_blog/2009/07/jakarta-marriot-ritz-carlton-17-july-2009-australian-government-dereliction-of-duty-cannot-be-ignore.html).

Spence is no stranger to Saudi  funding. He  was formerly at Oxford University , where he was  Head of the Social Sciences Division, one of the four Divisions that make up the University. In  welcoming him to Sydney University , the University said:

One of Dr Spence's priorities at Oxford was actively to encourage fundraising and substantial sponsorship from benefactors and corporate groups (http://ussc.edu.au/people/michael-spence)

These benefactors and corporate groups have included many from the Middle East. For example the controversial  Saïd Business School was under his purview . (http://www.usyd.edu.au/news/84.html?newsstoryid=1990)

It was also  during his tenure that £20 million was received  from the late King Fahd of Saudi Arabia for the financing of the  Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, which is associated to the university.(http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1584954/Extremism-fear-over-Islam-studies-donations.html)

It appears that Spence has brought to Sydney his Saudi  connections. Via the MWL  and WAMY , both funded by the Faisal Foundation,  Anwar and the IIIT themselves owe much to the Saudi Government and Royal Family . As reported in Malaysian Business, September 1, 2005:

Then, sometime in mid-1970'S I (Tengku Razaleigh,former Finance Minister,Malaysia)   met Prince Mohammed Al-Faisal who was then running the Al­Faisal Foundation. He asked me if I had heard of a young man called Anwar Ibrahim. He wanted my view of Anwar, saying that the foundation would go ahead with helping him (Anwar) with his
activities if I said okay."

The Al-Faisal name seems to link Spence to Anwar, and the IIIT. Spence’s stint at Oxford may provide some clues as to what their objectives might be.

In 2005  Anthony Glees, the former  director of Brunel University's Centre for Intelligence and Security Studies identified Oxford as one of a number of UK universities that had accepted Saudi funding and whose scholarship then took on a pro-Arab stance.In regards to Oxford he said:

Saudi Arabian and Muslim organizations are funding cash-strapped British universities to the tune of more than $466 million….. over the past five years, 70 per cent of politics lectures at the Middle Eastern Centre at St Antony's College, Oxford, were "implacably hostile" to the West and Israel - an allegation denied by Oxford …

Glees sees the donations as a poisoned chalice: "Britain's universities will have to generate two national cultures: one non-Muslim and largely secular, the other Muslim. We will have two identities, two sets of allegiance and two legal and political systems. This must, by the government's own logic, hugely increase the risk of terrorism."(http://www.thejewishpress.com/pageroute.do/31497)

The matter was also reported in the UK Telegraph:

Extremist ideas are being spread by Islamic study centres linked to British universities and backed by multi-million-pound donations from Saudi Arabia and Muslim organisations, a new report claims.

Eight universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, have accepted more than £233.5 million ($466 million) from Saudi and Muslim sources since 1995, with much of the money going to Islamic study centres, according to the report.

Universities that have accepted donations from Saudi royals and other Arab sources include Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, University College London, the London School of Economics, Exeter, Dundee and City. Prof Glees says Government policies "push the wrong sort of education by the wrong sort of people, funded by the wrong sorts of donor".

He added: "The Government must reconsider its far-reaching, security-driven plan to use higher education in the fight against the radicalisation of young British Muslims. If it proceeds, it will create the very situation the Government wants to avoid: the development of self-imposed Muslim apartheid in the UK."

 (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1584954/Extremism-fear-over-Islam-studies-donations.html)

 Sydney University  being  one of the oldest in Australia has significant  input into government departments that shape policy. I have previously written about Islamists influences at Sydney and other universities in an article that can be located at http://www.terrorfinance.org/the_terror_finance_blog/2007/03/islamist_influe.html.

Sydney University and Michael Spence’s  work with Anwar appears to be  the latest act in a long term strategy to buy influence , and ultimately government policy.

END

(Currently archived at https://web.archive.org/web/20160803042259/http://www.terrorfinanceblog.com/2010/11/index.html. Some links in the article above may not be active).

China's Wang Yi has spoken on behalf of South East Asians, and Australia's Penny Wong appears to have agreed that he can and should- Latest Australian foreign policy maneuver likely to cause even greater distrust of Australia's foreign policy among South East Asians who have relied on the US and Australia to keep China at bay for over 50 years

 by Ganesh Sahathevan 

Despite Anwar Ibarhim declaring recently while in Australia that he does not have a problem with China it remains a fact that Malaysia continues to have problems with  China's expansion. In fact   the majority of South East Asians, being Malay Muslim,  are in conflict with China and Chinese even now.

Against that backdrop, Wang Yi's reference to regional aspirations, with Penny Wong's approval, can only cause Australia's neighbours to be even more wary  of Australia's intentions, which appear to be more China centric, and less South East Asian friendly, as it has been for over 100 years. These utterances will be viewed with apprehension, if not anger by the many in this region who have no interest in being dominated by China:

Wang Yi said that the ups and downs of China-Australia relations in the past decade have not only left both sides with lessons to learn from, but also accumulated experience worth cherishing. The most fundamental thing is to uphold mutual respect. The most crucial thing is to stay committed to seeking common ground while shelving differences. The most important thing is to pursue mutual benefit and win-win results. The most precious thing is to remain independent. Since China-Australia relations are on the right track, both sides should have no hesitation, no yawing and no backward steps. Since the course forward has been charted, both sides should strive to make steady, good and sustained progress. This serves the common interests of the two peoples and also meets the common expectation of countries in the region.

 Malaysia and Indonesia ,as well as Vietnam and Singapore, do not want a South East Asia overseen by China.The existing order led by the US, assited by Australia, the UK and others has proven to be a good one, as Lee Kuan Yew explained it  in 2013:

China will not let an international court arbitrate territorial disputes in the South China Sea, so the presence of U.S. firepower in the Asia-Pacific will be necessary if the U.N. Law of the Sea is to prevail.

SEE ALSO 

Saturday, August 19, 2023

Australia's ASEAN liaison is a Malaysian Chinese who is a "moderate voice on China" but is Michelle Chan what ASEAN wants

 by Ganesh Sahathevan 

Australia's Department Of Foreign Affairs And Trade states on its website:

Michelle Chan (photo above)  is the Deputy Secretary, South and Southeast Asia Group and Head of the Office of Southeast Asia, in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. She is Australia’s ASEAN, East Asia Summit and ASEAN Regional Forum Senior Official.

It also says:

Prior to assuming her current role, Ms Chan was the Deputy Secretary National Security and International Policy in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and was the National Security Adviser and Senior International Adviser to the Prime Minister.

This is not quite right. A known China "dove" Chan was moved  out of the position of National Security Adviser and to the ONA at a time when tensions with China were on the rise. 

 ASEAN nations are having almost daily to pacify China, so a China dove out of Australia may not be what ASEAN wants. In addition, Chan's Malaysian Chinese heritage may not sit well with all ASEAN members, perhaps even her country of birth (see story below) . A white Australian was always the preferred choice of representative for Australia for there was then greater assurance of impartiality in Australia's dealings  among ASEAN nations .

TO BE READ WITH 

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Morrison adviser Michelle Chan is not the "the moderate voice on China" needed at this point to advise on national security matters : In her native Malaysia Chan would not have been allowed anywhere near national security and intelligence matters

by Ganesh Sahathevan




One of Scott Morrison's inner circle, his former National Security Adviser Michelle Chan; has been recently promoted deputy secretary in the Office Of National Intelligence. According to Canberra publication The Mandarin:


Michelle Chan


Michelle Chan has been promoted to deputy secretary in the Office of National Intelligence. She has held various senior positions within the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, including the prime minister’s senior international advisor, and ambassador roles.


The Australian described Chan as a "moderate voice on China":

Michelle Chan The Prime Minister’s national security adviser As Morrison’s national security adviser, Chan is considered a moderate voice on China, with insiders saying she is a “dove” to Andrew Shearer’s “hawk”. She was most recently deputy director-general of the Office of National Assessments and a former ambassador to Myanmar. She has also had postings to Indonesia, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Chan is regarded an expert on South East Asia, presumably as a result of her being born in Malaysia, and her service in Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar.
Additionally her husband Simon Merrifield served first as political counsellor and later deputy high commissioner to Malaysia between 2001-2005. He was later appointed resident ambassador to ASEAN.

Service in South East Asia does not necessarily make one an expert on South East Asia; diplomats are often kept in a cosy bubble by their hosts, and are happy to learn only what they are told, or read in the local government controlled papers. As Mr Merrifield's high commissioner James Wise once told this writer, with regards anything else "I'd rather not know."

It should also be said that had she remained in Malaysia Chan would never have been allowed anywhere near that country's  intelligence and security apparatus, because of her Chinese heritage. Malaysia has had to battle the Communist Party Of China since the 50s, and is not so naive as to disregard racial and communal loyalties. Indeed, in Malaysia Ms Chan's "moderate voice" on China matters would be assumed. 

END 

SEE ALSO 

Aussie Merrifield has passionate ties with Malaysia
NATION


Monday, 26 Sep 200512:00 AM MYT

By PAUL GABRIEL

MAKING MERRY: Merrifield (left) chatting with Wisma Putra principal assistant secretary Abdullah Zawawi Tahir (secondfrom left) and executive member of the Malaysia-Australia Business Council Peter Tan Choon Hoo (right) at the farewellreception for him hosted by Wise (third from left) in Kuala Lumpur last Wednesday.

KUALA LUMPUR: For outgoing Australian Deputy High Commissioner Simon Merrifield, Malaysia was more than just a foreign mission.
Asam laksa, tosai, climate and multiculturalism aside, there were more compelling reasons why Malaysia had been good to him – wife Michelle Chan Su-Wen was born in Petaling Jaya, and the couple’s soon-to-be-born baby was conceived here.

Merrifield, who will head the Staffing Division at the Foreign Ministry in Canberra, had been passionate about Malaysia since his first visit here as a 20-year-old backpacker in 1982.


Merrifield had wanted to stay on in Malaysia and have his first child born here, but decided to pack up on the advice of High Commissioner James Wise, who had wisely told the former to put family first and concentrate on setting up home in the Australian capital.

“He’s been a fantastic boss, and I value his advice. Things are getting very busy at the Australian mission here and it would be difficult having to contend with a newborn as well,” he said after a farewell bash at Wise’s residence in Jalan Langgak Golf last Wednesday.

Merrifield and Chan, who moved to Australia as a young girl, will be reunited at home, and at work, in Canberra; she will also be leaving Indonesia and her position as political and economic head at the Australian mission there.

Posted here in 2001 as political counsellor before being promoted in January last year, Merrifield said he had learnt a lot from Wise and was proud to have served here, in one of Australia's largest foreign missions.

“Besides my Australian colleagues, we also have many first-rate local staff who made my job so much easier.

“There has never been so much happening on the bilateral agenda as now – from education, trade, security to legal cooperation,” said Merrifield who leaves on Friday.

Wise praised his deputy’s resolve, saying: “The mission here will truly miss his services. He’s been outstanding both as a professional, and friend.”

Political counsellor Peter Doyle will replace Merrifield.

TheNation

THE NETWORK OF INFLUENCE

Geoff Chambers, Simon Benson

Geoff Chambers and Simon Benson

1244 words

10 December 2019

The Australian

AUSTLN

Australian

7

English

© 2019 News Limited. All rights reserved.

Geoff Chambers and Simon Benson reveal the national security chiefs, advisers and their enforcers who arehelping the Morrison government protect Australia in a period of heightened tensions

THE BIG 5 MIKE PEZZULLO Department of Home Affairs secretary Started role: December 2017 Remuneration package: Up to $864,580 With Home Affairs one of three key national security departments, alongside Defence and Foreign Affairs, the influence of Pezzullo, pictured right, is significant. His power has grown immensely under the Coalition government despite historic links with Labor, having previously worked with Gareth Evans and Kim Beazley. In addition to border protection, counter-terrorism, cyber security, transnational serious and organised crime and crisis co-ordination, Pezzullo is a leading figure in the response to foreign interference and influence.

MIKE BURGESS Australian Security Intelligence Organisation director-general Started role: September 2019 Remuneration package: $665,070 Burgess is one of the new-guard national security chiefs after being appointed by Scott Morrison as ASIO chief in August, replacing Duncan Lewis, and putting the domestic spy agency on a more aggressive footing. He is now considered the most influential security agency chief, who also holds the title of director-general for national security. He is a former head of the Australian Signals Directorate and sat on the government’s naval shipbuilding advisory board. Burgess started at the Defence Signals Directorate in the 1980s before moving into the private sector as an independent consultant specialising in strategic cyber security and Telstra’s chief information security officer. Burgess brings a different approach to the ASIO role, injecting corporate experience and a deep knowledge of cyber threats into a position traditionally occupied by security and Australian Public Service veterans. Following significant funding and resources boosts to ASIO, Burgess has been tasked with beefing up ASIO’s capacity to combat espionage and cyber-attacks.

GREG MORIARTY Department of Defence secretary Started role: September 2017 Remuneration package: Up to $864,580 Moriarty has an extensive background working with the Defence Intelligence Organisation and as national security adviser to Malcolm Turnbull. The former commonwealth counter-terrorism co-ordinator worked closely with Morrison in the creation of Operation Sovereign Borders during his time as ambassador to Indonesia.

GENERAL ANGUS CAMPBELL Chief of the Defence Force Started role: July 2018 Remuneration package: $864,580 The former Chief of Army and commander of Operation Sovereign Borders acted as national security adviser to two prime ministers. The veteran soldier is considered a leading reforming figure inside the ADF, and is modernising Australia’s warfare technology to combat external threats. He worked closely with Morrison on Operation Sovereign Borders.

PHIL GAETJENS Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary Started role: September 2019 Remuneration package: $914,460 A veteran public service chief and one of Morrison’s closest advisers, Gaetjens has been tasked with ensuring the security agencies and departments are being properly equipped and that funding is being allocated to the most high-priority programs. As DPMC chief, Gaetjens’s role is to ensure co-ordination across departments is working.

THE BIG 5 + 2 ANDREW SHEARER Cabinet secretary Shearer is a former deputy director-general at the Office of National Intelligence, and worked as a national security adviser to both Tony Abbott and John Howard. He was brought back from the Washington think-tank the Centre for Independent and Strategic Studies by Malcolm Turnbull to ONI shortly before Morrison became PM. Shearer was brought closer into Morrison’s inner sanctum following the election as Cabinet Secretary with significant influence on strategic policy, including China. Shearer is an influential voice inside the national security community and inside government and strongly tipped to replace Nick Warner as National Intelligence director-general.

NICK WARNER National Intelligencedirector-general Started role: December 2018 Remuneration package: $720,480 The veteran public service and spy boss is likely in the final stages of his career, and his impending retirement would open up another key role in Morrison’s new national security team. Warner is a former Defence Department secretary, director-general of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service and senior DFAT official. Morrison will be planning for a smooth transition, with cabinet secretary Andrew Shearer an option to replace Warner after a 40-year career.

SECURITY ENFORCERS & ADVISERS RACHEL NOBLE Head of the Australian Cyber Security Centre Noble took on the leading cyber role in June following the departure of Alastair MacGibbon. As PMC national security chief information officer and cyber policy co-ordinator, the respected public servant oversaw whole-of-government policy on cyber issues and improved information-sharing between national security agencies. Prior to serving in government, Noble worked for Optus. She is close to Mike Burgess and is considered a leading candidate to be the next head of the Australian Signals Directorate.

PAUL SYMON Australian Secret Intelligence Service director-general Symon, a retired major general, was appointed ASIS chief in December 2017. After a 35-year military career, including six years as Defence Intelligence Organisation director and deputy chief of the Australian Army, he joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. He previously served as military adviser to Nick Warner during the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands, and was deployed to East Timor, Lebanon and the Golan Heights.

REECE KERSHAW Australian FederalPolice Commissioner Started role: October 2019 Remuneration package: $720,480 The former Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services commissioner returned to the AFP after working there between 1988 and 2011. The hard-nosed cop was hand-picked by Morrison as part of his shake-up of the national security architecture and has a key focus on foreign interference, counter-terrorism and organised crime. He has extensive overseas experience, including in East Timor and the Solomon Islands, and was previously seconded to the National Crime Authority and Australian Crime Commission. He is viewed as a team player, which is crucial in the new security arrangements under Home Affairs.

LIEUTENANT GENERAL JOHN FREWEN Australian Signals Directorate acting director-general Started role: September 2019 Remuneration package: $665,070 (ASD director-general remuneration) Worked with Mike Burgess at ASD, and has been acting director-general since September. While he is expected to make way for a new appointment in the coming months, Frewen is considered a leading voice in combating cyber threats and is a senior defence intelligence figure. ASD remains Australia’s first line of defence against cyber attacks on political and higher education targets, as well as strategic institutions and businesses.

MAJOR GENERAL MATTHEW HALL Defence IntelligenceOrganisation director Hall heads the DIO, which was established in 1990 to lead the response to global security issues, weapons of mass destruction, foreign military capabilities, defence economics and transnational terrorism. The DIO plays a key role in supporting the planning and conduct of ADF operations, defence capability and policy development.

MICHELLE CHAN The Prime Minister’s national security adviser As Morrison’s national security adviser, Chan is considered a moderate voice on China, with insiders saying she is a “dove” to Andrew Shearer’s “hawk”. She was most recently deputy director-general of the Office of National Assessments and a former ambassador to Myanmar. She has also had postings to Indonesia, Vietnam and Cambodia.

CHRIS MORAITIS Attorney-General’sDepartment secretary Started role: September 2014 Remuneration package: Up to $775,910As head of the AG’s Department, Moraitis, a former deputy secretary of DFAT, has a leading role in responding to foreign interference and influence in Australia.

Will Sydney Uni's Mark Scott reverse predecessor Michael Spence's decision to lower admission standards for Chinese students , a decision that was condemned by even the Chinese

 by Ganesh Sahathevan 

                                                

          Vice-Chancellor's first visit to China

As vice-chancellor University Of Sydney the Reverend Dr Michael Spence made a number of decisions that were not in the best inteests of the University  but the decision to lower standards in order to admit more students from China stands out for it was condemned by even the Chinese( see story below).

It is left to be seen whether the current VC, Mark Scott, reverses that folly.Meawhile, Scott remains silent about the recruitment of his policy lawyer, Louise Pritchard who in her previous job as Executive Officer, NSW LPAB, oversaw (with others EOs)  the Communist Party China linked Sydney City School Of Law scandal.

To Be Read With 

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Sydney University condemned by the Chinese: A case study of how to fail in business in Asia

In October 2011 the Vice-Chancellor , University of Sydney, The Rev Dr Michael Spence, announced that the University will accept for entry into the University grades achieved in China's National College Entrance Examination(or Gaokao in Pinyin).

On February 21 2012, the Chinese state owned English publication, China Daily, reported:
Compared with the admission cut-offs set by Chinese universities, the entry score set by theUniversity of Sydney is very low, according to the guide to academic entry requirements for Chinese students applying to undergraduate programs at the university in 2012.
The entry score is listed by China's municipality or province. In Shanghai, for instance, students with a minimum gaokao score of 468 can apply for the university, which is more than 100 points less than the score needed to enter China's top universities, such as Peking University orTsinghua University.

The publication is state owned and serves to disseminate the views of the Chinese leadership.


That the Daily has chosen to describe the University's cut-off mark as "very low", and then compared it unfavourably to Peking and Tsinghua universities should be of concern to Sydney University for the words convey a lack , if not a loss of regard for the University's standing.The reasons are unclear, but regardless of what the reasons might be, the University obviously does not enjoy the confidence of the Chinese leadership.
While their motives are not known, what is clear is that the above has followed the Reverend's decision to accept NCEE marks for admission. While he might have felt he was doing poor Chinese students and their families a favour, the Chinese reaction is that he has been motivated by money. As another state owned if not controlled publication , the Shenzhen Daily put it:
A growing number of Australian universities are preparing to lower the enrollment requirements for Chinese students in the hope of enrolling more high school graduates from the country.

This is an opinion shared by younger Chinese as well, who have made their opinions known on the website OffBeatChina
In that sense, the reaction of the Chinese leadership is easily understood as a simple taking of an advantage when the opportunity to do so is offered.The Reverend offered the opportunity by showing the University as being willing to lower standards to gain more fee paying students, the Chinese leadership took advantage of that opening to publicly demonstrate the superiority of Chinese institutions.
Any Asian would have seen that coming.

END

Anne Aly claims to speak for Gazans and Palestinians but in 2014 Anne Aly, joined by Randa Abdel Fatah , justified terrorism and condemned counter-terrorism as mere "theatre"

 by Ganesh Sahathevan 

Labor MPs Anne Aly and Ed Husic(photos above)  say Palestinians are being ‘collectively punished’ after Hamas attacks in Israel.

Aly however is part of the problem of passive support for terrorists like HAMAS, which has turned Gazans amd Palestinians into targets. 

For some inkling into Aly's thinking recall that in 2014 Anne Aly, joined by Randa Abdel Fatah,  justified terrorism and condemned counter-terrorism as mere "theatre". Meanwhike Aly has yet to   answer questions about her PAVE charity, and links to Malaysia 

TO BE READ WITH 

Excerpt

ANNE-AZZA ALY [writer, former Media Liaison Officer at the Islamic Council of Victoria]:  ... All terrorism is theatre and all counter-terrorism is theatre. So, yes, it was a manufactured spectacle but that’s what counter-terrorism is…

Has there ever been a more

 dangerous and despicable Q&A?

 305 Comments | Permalink

Andrew Bolt Blog 

Andrew Bolt

SEPTEMBER232014(3:01pm)

 

Has any Q&A panel been more frightening and threatening?

The claim that terrorists have “legitimate concerns”, although, of course, the killing is bad.

The unchallenged vilification of Israel and its “war crimes”.

The describing of Israel as a “root cause” of Muslim terrorism.

The insistence that we will keep getting extremism unless we end our support for evil Israel.

The steering of this discussion away from Islamist threats to Australians and onto alleged Australian meanness to Muslims.

The dismissal of terrorism as “theatre”.

The repeated attacks on the government for allegedly arranging the police raids for political purposes.

The repeated claims that white racists aren’t policed as Muslims are.

The repeated complaints - by people in the audience, too - that Muslims are picked on.

The attacks on the expectation that Muslims follow “the Australian way”.

The heckling of Justice Minister Michael Keenan, with claims the timing of the raids was convenient for the Government.

The barrage of tweets attacking the Government and Islamophobia, and suggesting the police raids were a stunt.

The West created this threat by invading Iraq.

The pack attack on politicians opposing the burqa, a shroud of oppression of women.

Naturally, host Tony Jones has stacked the panel: two Muslim activists (who do most of the talking), plus one MP each from Labor, the Liberals and Greens. Jones reserves most of his hard questions for the Justice Minister, and none for the two Muslim apologists.

Muslim extremists watching would feel more justified than ever in their rage at the alleged crimes Australia and Israel commit against Muslims. They would feel that Australia must change to accommodate them ... or else.

The ABC is out of control. And this kind of stuff actually puts us in more danger.

UPDATE

Why did the Labor MP, shadow Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, not protest at the gross vilification of Israel? I would have, and I’m not even Jewish.

UPDATE

ABC balance: a Left-wing host has a panel of four from the Left and one conservative to discuss how the terrorism raids seemed a stunt, we’re just picking on Muslims and Israel is one of the “root causes” of the rage of jihadists.

How can the ABC board possibly justify this? This is not just biased, but dangerously inflammatory.

UPDATE

From the transcript, these incitements to dangerous and ill-founded hatreds, resentments and paranoia: 

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH [Curtin University academic]: ... The timing of the raids, you know, the fact that it is happening one week before - it happened one week before, conveniently, the most draconian legislation is about to be announced… It should not be the case that you are guilty until proven innocent when it comes to Muslims. You cannot help but feel cynical about the timing of these raids, the fact that it is whipping people up into a frenzy of hysteria of war fever… I’m very cynical about the Government’s use of these raids to politicise the Muslim problem of terrorism (indistinct)… 

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: ...No one is saying that there isn’t a credible risk that we face in Australia. What we are saying is the approach, the way that this is being handled is being used to feed a wider narrative that simply serves the purpose of whipping people up into a more of an Islamophobic environment… 

ANNE-AZZA ALY [writer, former Media Liaison Officer at the Islamic Council of Victoria]:  ... All terrorism is theatre and all counter-terrorism is theatre. So, yes, it was a manufactured spectacle but that’s what counter-terrorism is…

SCOTT LUDLAM [Greens Senator]: ...To me that feels like the element of theatre, not the raids per se, but the extraordinary media circus that goes on around it. I don’t understand what that is for if not to increase tension…

MICHAEL KEENAN [Justice Minister]: ...  Now, the idea that this is some conspiracy from the Government because we’re putting through some foreign fighter legislation through Parliament this week is just not - just not measurable by the facts. The timing of these things is an operational decision for the police…

ANNE-AZZA ALY: But you have to admit that the time uncanny.

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: Yeah, what a coincidence.

SCOTT LUDLAM: Amazing coincidence.

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: Going into Iraq and terror laws.

MICHAEL KEENAN: No, you know what - you know what, I - I really don’t. The timing…

ANNE-AZZA ALY: You really don’t think it’s uncanny at all?

MICHAEL KEENAN: Look, the whole point is they acted because there was information that they had that a senior operative in the Middle East had instructed his followers in Australia to go about and commit random and barbaric acts of violence on Australian citizens and it was going to happen within days. What would you expect the police to do in those circumstances? They don’t respond to our political agenda.

ANNE-AZZA ALY: There are people in the Middle East instructing them every day on social media. We have no idea what influence means.

MICHAEL KEENAN: I’m sorry, this was a specific instruction for their followers to go and carry this out.

ANNE-AZZA ALY: We have no idea. We are making arrests based on somebody tweeting something, somebody saying something.

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: Chatter.

ANNE-AZZA ALY: Some chatter.

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: Chatter…

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: We make it a Muslim problem ... and the one thing that we never address is the role of Western foreign policy and the grievances - the legitimate grievances - that causes people. That doesn’t mean that everybody who is aggrieved by the way that the West intervenes in the Middle East is going to become radicalised. But why is it that we choose to ignore that elephant in the room? The role of Western foreign policy and its role in creating such an unjust world and particularly its role in creating the mess in the Middle East that we see. You know, the fact that we had the decimation of Gaza by Israel two months ago and the conspiracy of silence - in fact, I’ll go even further, the legitimating and justification giving Israel a licence to kill, does that not fuel anger? Does that not plant the seeds? We go around in the West trying to cut down the trees of terrorism even as we plant seeds of terrorism and we do that - we we do that when we allow Israel to get away with its war crimes. We do that when we support the US blindly. We say - the US says, jump, we say how high? Even though the US takes the moral high ground, even as it rains down drones and cruise missiles on civilian populations, engages in torture, extraordinary rendition, it takes the moral high ground. We plant the seeds of terrorism when we turn our backs on 200,000 Syrians dead, Iraqis killed and suddenly we are moved to humanitarian action because of some YouTube videos because Westerners are threatened and killed? These are legitimate concerns. These are not excuses for the barbarity that we’re seeing but it is completely insane for us to ignore that these are really serious issues and that there are some people who are going to take these legitimate concerns and go down a radical path. But until we address those root causes, and I don’t just say that just as a Muslim, there are many non-Muslim analysts who would say the same thing - until we address those root causes and stop thinking this is a Muslim pathology, we are never going to be able to address radicalisation…

TONY JONES: Can I just pick up on that point, though? I mean the Australian Defence League has evidently or allegedly threatened to bomb mosques, it has threatened the lives of people, it has threatened women, photographs women, in fact, wearing the burqa or so on and does behave in threatening ways. Is it time the federal police treated them as seriously or in some way as seriously?

MICHAEL KEENAN: You are assuming that they don’t police these groups in the same way as they would police any other group in the community.

TONY JONES: But not in a public way…

AUDIENCE MEMBER: ADL make threats to myself and my family, telling them that they want to behead me. So everything you’re saying right now is very insulting.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, if that is the case, then you need to alert the authorities.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: I have reported it to police numerous times, thank you.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, let me assure you, we don’t police in a way in this country that targets one group over another.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Yes, you do.

MICHAEL KEENAN: I can assure you that that is the case.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Yes, you do.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well…

SCOTT LUDLAM: I’m not sure the message is getting through, whether you sense the reaction of the room when you said that for the first time…

TONY JONES: Michael Keenan, can I just interrupt for a second, because that was a pretty extraordinary allegation. I’d just like you to - are you saying that an official of the security forces did this?

AUDIENCE MEMBER: I reported it to Bankstown Police Station on numerous occasions. They’ve called to slit my - the - my - my children’s throats and rape my dead ‘caucus’ on the side of the road.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well…

TONY JONES: So are you’re saying - sorry, you’re saying this is coming from racist groups?

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Yes.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, I mean, I can assure you that threats of that nature would be followed up.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: I am trolled 24 hours a day on Facebook and social media because of these right-wing Nazis, okay. My life is not pleasant right now living in this country and no-one seems to care because I am Muslim and they’re not. It’s all right for the non-Muslims to give me a hard time.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, it’s not.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: But when I complain about it, it’s not the same…

TONY JONES: I’m just confirming you’re not saying that was security officials. You’re saying that was a racist group that’s made these threats against you?

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Well, it - look, it’s the ADL, yes.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, I can assure you that will be followed up.

TONY JONES: Right, I beg your pardon. You said ADL. I thought you said ASIO. Okay, no, I thank you - thank you so much…

ASME FAHMI: A couple of years ago, as I was on my way to work, I was physically attacked by a man who called me an f’ing terrorist. Now, with the recent onslaught of negative media attention towards the Muslim community, many visible Muslims, many of whom are Muslim women who wear the hijab have been subject to verbal abuse and, at times, physical attacks. Now, language has been key in inflaming tensions. So what does the panel think of Tony Abbott’s use of the divisive term “Team Australia” and just the language used by politicians in order to, you know, keep the Muslim community as the chosen bogeyman?…

MARK DREYFUS:  ... Michael is right, of course, that we don’t set out to have unevenness in policing… I fear, from what you’ve said and what you’ve also said, Asme, is that there’s a gap. Clearly, there is a gap. There’s a whole lot more work to be done and it fits together, as it happens, with countering violence extremism…

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: Well, you know, there’s been a huge backlash since the terror raids and we’re seeing, you know, the invective and obscenity online on social media. We’re seeing Muslim women at the frontline, because they’re obviously visibly identifiable in their hijabs as Muslims and people pin their anxieties and fears and hatreds onto those women and they have to suffer the most horrible verbal and physical abuse.... [T]he language of Team Australia… It’s almost as though they are emboldening Islamophobia and we’ve seen a direct correlation. The terror raids occurred and a huge increase in Islamophobic incidents and the Team Australia example, it’s the language of division. It’s the language of inclusion and exclusion… This is - this is the message that is being sent, whether unwittingly or not, by leadership and it emboldens Islamophobia - Islamophobes when that message of division and deviance is coming from the highest leaders of the country and that is why people feel empowered by those sorts of messages to attack Muslim women who wear the hijab as the incarnation of everything that we see as evil in Australia and it’s not fair for Muslim women to have to undergo that…

MONA EL BABA: As a Muslim lawyer practising criminal law in Western Sydney, I experience first-hand the distrust between my community and the law enforcement agencies, especially the intimidation and harassment tactics used by these agencies under the existing legislation. Are the new anti-terror laws that are currently being tabled before Parliament really necessary to prevent terrorism or are they a political wedge aimed at drumming up fear and xenophobia towards Islam and Muslims to score cheap political points?…

SCOTT LUDLAM: ... seeing Prime Minister Howard on TV saying he was embarrassed. 600,000 people died as a result of that occupation [in Iraq] and the sectarian carnage that we helped unleash, you know, embarrassed just doesn’t cut it for me… I think we are at grave risk of simply repeating and pouring fuel on a fire that we helped start....

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, I mean, thank God that we have countries in the world that are actually prepared to take some responsibility for things that happen around the globe. I mean we saw a situation where…

SCOTT LUDLAM: Do you mean the invasion in 2003?

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: Like Gaza?

ANNE-AZZA ALY: Oh, maybe he means Rwanda.

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: Yeah.

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, I’m sorry, but, well, if anyone in this - well, I mean, if anyone believes that it’s a bad thing that the Australian Government has joined with our allies to protect the Yazidi people, who were going to be massacred by this barbaric organisation, literally tens of thousands of people, I mean, if anyone believes that that’s a bad thing, that Australia shouldn’t be taking those sorts of humanitarian actions or that our allies shouldn’t be, then I would be very surprised.

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: I shouldn’t have to support a war…

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, it’s…

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: ...in order to say that I’m against ISIS. There should be other solutions....

MICHAEL KEENAN: ... I think it is absolutely right and proper that Australia, as a responsible world citizen, doesn’t just think it’s somebody else’s responsibility, that we do take some ownership over the fact that, you know, we need to make sure that this - that we - that…

TONY JONES: Do you mean take ownership over the mess that was created by the previous intervention?

MICHAEL KEENAN: Well, look, I reject that, Tony, and I don’t think that is a fair analysis at all…

RANDA ABDEL-FATTAH: That’s the problem of the West’s failure to acknowledge the connection between their imperial interests in the Middle East and the threat that comes to our soil. There is a connection there and it’s about time the West acknowledges the mess that it creates and the fact is that we are - we are at risk now on our soil because of our involvement and we’re not going to be seduced by this circular logic that we have to go back into Iraq because the threat has increased when renewing our involvement increases the threat. We’re not fools. We know what’s been happening in the last 13 years…

ANNE-AZZA ALY: Very briefly. Going back to the question by Marty, yes, our invasion of Iraq has played a huge role in what’s - what’s happening at the moment. The fact is that ISIS is barbaric and I think that a large part of it is the Western intervention and what’s happened.... 

UPDATE

Alex Hawke is right - the wildly unbalanced ABC is pouring petrol onto the fire and people could get hurt: 

Liberal MP Alex Hawke attacked last night’s Q&A program for providing a forum for the opinions without seeking to balance them with views from moderate Muslims.

Mr Hawke said the program had “inflamed” the debate about national security at a time when all sides, including politicians and the media, should avoid voicing extreme views.

The ABC defended the program, saying last night’s panellists had offered a range of views.

Mr Hawke said he was concerned Q&A had aired theories from some panellists that the ASIO raids on terror suspects last week were manufactured to build support for tougher security laws.

Accusing the ABC of breaching its charter by failing to provide balance, Mr Hawke told the full meeting of Coalition MPs this morning that he was “appalled” at the way the program had aired the views without offering a more moderate response.... [O]ne minister was heard to describe the criticism as the “speech of the day” in the Coalition meeting.

Speaking afterwards, Mr Hawke told The Australian ... “My concern about Q&A is they were not being balanced or moderate or sticking to the ABC’s charter obligations to be balanced ...

“For ordinary Australians watching, they would have felt there was a majority Islamic view that the police raids were a conspiracy and that is not a mainstream Islamic view.

“So that was inflaming a situation that does not need inflaming.

“And given that it’s the ABC and it’s taxpayer funded, I think people would be right to be concerned about the program.”