Bill Shorten says Tony Abbott 'a very unusual man' who tarnishes Australia
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Version 0 of 1. Bill Shorten has accused Tony Abbott of tarnishing Australia’s international reputation with divisive comments about Islam that were “not befitting a former prime minister”. In a strongly worded plea for restraint, the Labor leader said public figures including Abbott should not give a green light for people to vilify minorities, and he noted that it was not so long ago that Catholics were disparaged in Australia. Related: Tony Abbott, you do know you belong to a church that has not reformed, don't you? | Kristina Keneally Abbott, who has been playing an increasingly assertive role in security debates, used a speech in Singapore on Wednesday evening to call for increased military action in Iraq and Syria to prevent “the persistence of a blood-soaked caliphate killing in the name of God”. Abbott said the declaration of a caliphate showed that “Islamic State wants to emulate Mohammed whose early campaigns would have looked just as puny to the great powers of his day”. He added: “Islamic State has a simple but deadly message, submit or die; to most, a mediaeval fantasy, but rational enough to many Muslims based on their scriptures.” The remarks followed a television interview on Tuesday and a newspaper column on Wednesday in which Abbott called for a reformation within Islam and argued that not all cultures were equal. Malcolm Turnbull, who ousted Abbott as prime minister in September and recast the national security debate by emphasising mutual respect, has responded by saying that it was important not to tag all Muslims with responsibility for the crimes of a few. Citing advice from security chiefs, Turnbull said terrorists wanted to turn people against the Muslim community “so we should not do anything that plays into their hands”. Shorten said on Thursday said Abbott had been “let off the leash” since losing the prime ministership and was “presenting a very poor image of Australia overseas”. He said Turnbull should pull Abbott into line because it was “a very bad look when majorities start dictating to minorities”. “This isn’t about tolerating terrorism or any of the dreadful acts we’ve seen – everyone’s against that – but in Australia it is always important that governments made up of majorities always respect minorities and don’t make them feel worse or somehow give a green light for other people to vilify minorities,” Shorten said. I do not believe that attacking the Islamic faith generally is a very good step. It is a retrograde step, full stop “That isn’t part of religious freedom in this country.” Shorten’s parliamentary secretary, Ed Husic, spoke out on Wednesday against “a broader effort to “Trump-ify” Australian politics by bringing the extreme elements of conservative discussion within the US political system to Australian shores”. Shorten stopped short of that comparison on Thursday, but said Abbott’s views were “not befitting a former prime minister who was in charge three months ago”. “I don’t know if he’s Australia’s version of Donald Trump but he’s a very unusual man, Tony Abbott, and we shouldn’t have a bar of what he says,” Shorten said. “He may be feeling very upset about his loss of office, he may see this as an issue which he can now speak out on but I ask him, as a former prime minister of Australia, to please respect the fact that we are a country of all faiths and all religions, we must have tolerance. “When you’re a leader of this country you don’t necessarily have the freedom to say everything that crosses your mind. What you’ve also got is remember is you’re a powerful person and when powerful people give the green light to vilify minorities, that’s a problem. Related: Tony Abbott calls on western nations to consider ground troops in war on Isis “Once upon a time Catholics used to get vilified in this country, once upon a time Asian people used to get vilified in this country. I do not believe that attacking the Islamic faith generally is a very good step. It is a retrograde step, full stop.” The immigration minister, Peter Dutton, defended Abbott, saying the former prime minister was motivated by a desire to keep the country safe and was not talking about all Muslims. Abbott had a continuing interest in national security and was a Rhodes scholar, Dutton added. “I think we compound the problems if we don’t talk about them,” Dutton told 2GB on Thursday. “I think we need to recognise that we do ourselves a disservice if we want to sweep this under the carpet.” Alex Hawke, the assistant minister to the treasurer, called for calm in efforts to prevent terrorism. “Obviously it’s most helpful if everyone in government and in parliament works together on that process, there isn’t any ego involved in this process, there isn’t any need for people to one-up each other,” Hawke told the ABC. The Australian National Imams Council issued a statement saying it welcomed the change in the narrative about Islam under Turnbull’s leadership. “This is a positive departure from the deliberate conflation of violent extremism with the religion of Islam which serves not only to vilify Australians of Muslim faith but also plays into the hands of extremist recruiters on all sides who propagate the notion that the west is at war with Islam,” the council said on Thursday. Related: Labor compares Abbott to Trump as Turnbull rebukes former PM for attack on Islam The grand mufti of Australia, Ibrahim Abu Mohammad, said Islam did not need a reformation “since the normative principles and practices of the religion allow Muslims to harmoniously coexist within pluralist societies that are based on the universal values of compassion and justice”. Pauline Hanson, the former federal MP and One Nation party leader, said she agreed with Abbott’s comments. Hanson, who has previously advocated a ban on Muslim immigration into Australia, told the ABC: “I have been speaking about it quite openly before Tony Abbott has made his recent comments, and I’ve actually called for a royal commission into Islam.” |