Rise Up Australia Party is just another 'One Nation'

Australia thought they had enough of far-right parties been founded when One Nation crumbled in the early 2000’s, unfortunately this is not the case. A new party, Rise UP Australia (RUA), has been formed by former Family First senate candidate, evangelical Pastor Daniel Nalliah to contest the next federal election later this year.

The RUA parties main platform is based on protecting Christian values, including up holding Australia’s heritage as a Judeo-Christian nation, by calling for the prevention of Muslims entering the country and bring with them Sharia law. Also, the parties are against Homosexuals and are climate change skeptics.

As the situation in federal politics stands, where both major parties are losing support from the voting public, many experts including Associate Professor Haydon Manning are concluding that the RUA could gain more support then they may have had, if they began contesting in an election in the past. Their extremist views would be likened by large sections of Australian society, who hold some of the same views as the RUA ideology, especially preventing Muslims coming to Australia.

I am not a supporter of the RUA’s views, but I do maintain that they have the right to free of speech to a certain point, although I am alarmed that the RUA ideology will be increasingly attractive to many people, especially far-right Christians, who view Islam as a threat to both their religion and society. Contradiction is every where on the party's website. the party states that they will uphold freedom of religion, but they openly wish to cut the intake of Muslims coming to Australia on the grounds of protecting Australian society. In my opinion, this view undermines the meaning of ‘freedom of religion’, as far as the RUA would give other migrants the rights to come to Australia and the freedom to practice their religion, but not Muslims.   

This sort of outspoken attack on Islam will do nothing but turn Australia into an islamophobic nation, unwilling to accept diversity in our society and freedom of religion. Let’s hope for Australia’s future as a multicultural nation (meaning we have many different races, cultures and religion living as one), that the RUA and its ideology will disappear, the same as One Nation did a few years ago.   

The Arab Spring still not over

Back in early December 2012, I wrote a blog post on the situation in Egypt, where the ideals of the ‘Arab Spring’were still been fought for.  Over two months later not much has changed in Egypt, and instability has even spread over to Tunisia, although reasons for a re-spark of the revolution are different.

Image source: WikiCommons Image credit: Mona

In Tunisia, where the so called ‘Arab Spring’ began,has descended into further chaos in the last few days. As we can all remember back in 2011, when a revolution succeeded in removing from power, former authoritative President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, stability in that country would be achieved. But on Wednesday, Shokri Belaid a top opposition politician, known for his staunch criticism of the government was assassinated outside his home, sparking violent protest against the government. Also, labor unions across the country have called a general strike, not been seen in Tunisia since 1978, which crippled the countries economy.

Prime Minister Hamdi Jebali, as to calm the situation, asked for the Parliament to be dissolved, and for a forming of a technocratic government to solve the economic situation and bring stability to the country, but his government and other parties have rejected his requests. This has lead to four opposition parties walking out of the National Assembly in support of a new technocratic government.

It looks like the countries gripped by the ‘Arab Spring’ two years ago have not been able to achieve what the millions of protesters who took part were demanding. Although in both Tunisia and Egypt, authoritative leaders were removed from power after decades of brutal control, the power has just shifted to more Islamist oriented parties and the military.

The situation in both Egypt and Tunisia is just a process that both countries will need to go through to achieve stability, if that be full democracy or their own version. In almost every time in history where a nation has removed a long standing authoritative regime, stability has been a long violent process until peace has been achieved. Other nations around the world need to leave both Egypt and Tunisia to go through this process without hindering the situation, instead offer support when requested for future development and stability.            

All these protests will just fuel stereotypes further

Protests on the anti-Islamic film reached Sydney (Image source: Wiki Commons)

So the worldwide protest about a silly film has reached Sydney.

Following on from my previous post, I am amazed at how much outrage a poorly made anti-Islamic film can spire into so much destruction and hatred against the US and the west in general.

Most of the protests and violence has been against the United States (US), where in many North African, Middle Eastern and some Asian countries, thousands of Muslims have taken to the streets near the US embassies protesting against the anti-Islamic film. But this fury has extended to Sydney, Australia last Saturday,  when a few hundred mostly young Muslim men and some mothers and their children began a violent protest in anger over the film.

As I have already said in a post I wrote last week, that I do not support the message of the film that has inspired this global protest by the Muslim community, however I do condemn all the attacks against innocent individuals with no links to the film.

The violent protest last Saturday in Sydney, were not even aimed at the US, as the event happened no where near the US consulate.

The violence was perpetrated by a group of young Muslims, and many of the leaders of major Islamic organisationsin Sydney have since stated thatthe attacks are un-Islamic and are condoned by majority of Muslims.

In the past few days since the protest in Sydney, there have beenhundreds of hate letters been sent to the Islamic communities  by racistindividuals or groups. I think that this short of action is not helpful and inflames further hatred and bigotry in society. Revenge for certain past actions just recycles anger and violence.

An open letter written by Peter FitzSimons summed up the consequence of this action in Australia well: "the net result of such irresponsible, appalling action is to give ample fuel to every racist in the country to reinforce every bad stereotype they have ever had of <Muslims>, and that will affect badly the hundreds of thousands of other peaceful and law-abiding Islamic Australians?"

What needs to happen now is for all people of all faiths, to cooperate to stamp out religious bigotry and hatred, as to prevent further violence.       

Why all this Religious Hatred?

Image source:  http://thegoldguys.blogspot.com.au/

This week we have witnessed more  anti-American attacks in Benghazi, Libya and in Cairo, Egypt. The U.S Consulate was attacked by a group of people who stormed the compound  shooting at staff inside, which three U.S officials were killed including the Ambassador; a crowd in Cairo were protesting outside the U.S Embassy, but there are currently no reports of any casualties. 

The reported reasons for these attacks were in protest and outrage against a low budget film, Innocence of Muslims, which portrays prophet Muhammad in bad terms,emphasising him as been gay and a fraud. The film is claimed to be made by a man calling him self Sam Bacile, an Israeli-American living in the U.S, although this information has not yet been proven, as there has been no Sam Bacile found. In a  telephone  interview with the Wall Street Journal, he claimed Islam to be "a cancer."   

The film has outraged large sections of the world’s Muslim population, which is understandable as the film does offend the Islamic faith. If anyone ever makes an offensive film against the Christians, Buddhists, Hindu and other world religions, the rest of us would be equally furious.

Although I do not support the film and its portrayal in any way, but I think that the three US officials killed in Libya did not deserve to be targeted because of the action of one man or any other people involved in the production of the film.

What we need today and for the future is to be more culturally and religiously tolerant towards each other no matter what faith one practices. These recent incidents and past ones remind us of the stupidity of religious hatred that does not solve any problems, but just brings harm to the world.