Muslims slam ‘racist’ stand

By Shaun Inguanzo and Sarah Schwager
A GREATER Dandenong councillor has been labelled a racist and religious bigot after he said Islam had no place in Australian society.
The comment came after Cleeland Ward councillor Paul Donovan, a practising Christian, said a major ward issue expressed by residents was the funding of multicultural-specific programs at all levels of government.
Cr Donovan said he wanted to see the funding abolished because it was dividing the community and that State and Federal MPs were ‘playing politics with multiculturalism’ and funding programs to buy votes from ethnic communities.
But in a move that has rocked Islamic communities across the city, Cr Donovan said Islam was a ‘problem we face the world over, but unless politicians wake up to it, the reality is that Islam is not a good thing for society.’
Cr Donovan that said if Australia experienced terrorist attacks or violence linked to Islam, he would battle the religion’s ideology ‘the same way Australia fought against Communism’.
Dandenong Turkish Islamic Culture Society committee member Altun said he was not particularly surprised by Cr Donovan’s comments, and hoped people would not read too much into them.
“He can say what he wants but that doesn’t mean it’s going to happen,” he said.
Altun said when someone made comments like that they had to think about the wider impact.
“He is abusing his position to talk like that. He is letting himself down.
“It looks like he’s a racist.”
Sherene Hassan, who is on the executive committee of the Islamic Council of Victoria, said judging by the remarks, it seemed Cr Donovan was misinformed.
“He’s judging Islam by what he’s seen on TV,” she said.
“I’d like to invite him over for a cup of coffee and go through the religion with him.”
Ms Hassan said it was very troubling that someone in his position was expressing such views.
“He’s inviting incitement and hatred to one particular religion.
“It is completely false and untrue to say that our values are inconsistent with Australian values.”
Fellow councillor Jim Memeti, a Muslim, said Cr Donovan’s comments were unsubstantiated, and showed shades of embattled Queensland politician Pauline Hanson after her comments on multiculturalism during the late 1990s.
Dandenong Residents and Ratepayers Association secretary Janet Cox said Cr Donovan was being a racist and a religious bigot by bringing his comments into council, where she said they did not belong.
Cr Donovan said he was hoping for open debate on his arguments surrounding multiculturalism and Islam, and said did not care if he was labelled a racist because he felt he was representing the feelings of ward residents.
City of Greater Dandenong CEO Carl Wulff said Cr Donovan’s views were his own and not the council’s.
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