The Grand Mufti of Australia Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammed says Senator Fraser Anning’s call to stop immigrants of the Muslim faith is "racist and reckless."
On Tuesday, Katter’s Australia Party upper house MP called for an end to "Muslim immigration" and a program that favours “European Christian” values.
In his maiden speech to Parliament, he claimed a majority of Australian Muslims live on welfare and do not work.
“While all Muslims are not terrorists, certainly all terrorists these days are Muslims,” Senator Anning said.
The Grand Mufti told SBS Arabic24, "My job is to de-escalate a situation and not to escalate it. But if Senator Anning wants to discuss terrorism, I can show him the statistics about non-Muslim terrorism.”
Australia's Grand Mufti Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammed, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Labor Opposition leader Bill Shorten. Source: AAP
“Muslims are not responsible for what happened in Iraq. Muslims are not responsible for what happened in Afghanistan,” the Grand Mufti said.
When asked about how he expects the Muslim community to respond to Senator Anning’s speech, Dr Abu Mohammed said “We are used to ignoring those comments. Muslim students respond by succeeding in universities. They respond by providing the society with successful professionals. This is our country too."
Katters Australian Party Senator Fraser Anning in the Senate chamber at Parliament House in Canberra, Wednesday, August 15, 2018. Source: AAP
Katter standing by MP
In a press conference on Wednesday KAP leader Bob Katter defended his MPs comments "1,000 per cent", saying it was "a magnificent speech, solid gold."
"What I'm saying is - who is being persecuted? Australians are," he said. "Because there's been eight murders in the last three years, I'm told, the Bourke Street murders, six murdered with a bloke yelling out Allahu Akbar. Two murders in my electorate with a bloke yelling out Allahu Akbar."
'Outdated rhetoric'
Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohamad, said Senator Fraser Anning "got into politics recklessly, and he is not equipped with facts about the role of the Muslim community in Australia."
"I respect the voters who chose the senator and respect their free will, but I advise the senator to work in another field because his rhetoric is really outdated."
Dr Abu Mohamad told SBS Arabic24 that it is a worrying attack.
"I trust the Australian people and how smart they are. I trust their kindness. I trust their awareness to know how important is to have a multicultural society."
The Grand Mufti of Australia is a Sunni Muslim cleric appointed by the Australian National Imams Council. He provides spiritual guidance to thousands of Australians.
