SSI has welcomed the Australian Government’s response to the National Response to Islamophobia report, developed by Australia’s Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia. Schools will play a key role in the government’s commitments, building understanding of Muslim communities and promoting greater respect across Australia.
While education is a fundamental building block for inclusion and respect, SSI’s CEO Violet Roumeliotis said Australia’s response to rising Islamophobia needs to extend beyond the education system to drive change across all services the government delivers.
“The government's response includes important and welcome measures, but tackling Islamophobia requires more than education alone. Every part of government has a role to play in removing the structural barriers and inequities that undermine belonging and social cohesion,” Ms Roumeliotis said.
“Social cohesion is built on a shared sense of belonging. That belonging grows when people are included, treated respectfully and have genuine opportunities to contribute to the nation’s future. We cannot achieve lasting social cohesion while racism, including Islamophobia, continues to exclude and dehumanise people.”
SSI strongly supports the government's education and awareness measures, as well as funding to build community capacity and resilience. It also welcomes the Australian Federal Police's expanded Community Liaison teams and new Social Cohesion Consultative Board, while noting these initiatives will only succeed if they are backed by sustained engagement and genuine partnership with the Muslim community and their leaders, rather than one-off consultation.
The announcement of additional investment in the Office for Multicultural Affairs to deliver measures to combat Islamophobia has also been welcomed. However, the Office should be empowered and resourced to advocate for whole of government implementation of the Multicultural Framework Review and National Anti-Racism Framework recommendations.
SSI notes that several significant recommendations from the Special Envoy's report remain unaddressed. These include an independent review of counter-terrorism laws, policies and practices to investigate their potential discriminatory impacts on Muslim Australians. There has also been no commitment to the Special Envoy's recommendation for an inquiry into Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism.
SSI urges the government to adopt a genuinely system-wide, structural approach to addressing racism, including Islamophobia.
“The Special Envoy's report makes recommendations across several federal departments, recognising that real change requires action from the whole of government,” Ms Roumeliotis said.
“The National Anti-Racism Framework is the vehicle to address the structural and systemic racism that affects all communities. While measures to specifically address Islamophobia are important, they need to be part of an overall commitment to tackling the root causes of racism and hate against all communities."
SSI is calling on the government to take two immediate steps to commit to the National Anti-Racism Framework to eliminate racism in Australia, and establish a taskforce to oversee and advise on its implementation, including specific implementation plans to address racism against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and other affected communities. More than 70 civil society organisations have previously backed this call.
SSI is committed to working alongside the government to address Islamophobia and all forms of hate, and build an Australia where everyone can feel safe, included and a sense of belonging.
About us:
SSI is a national not-for-profit organisation providing dedicated human and social services to a diverse Australia. With community at the heart of everything we do, our purpose is to create a world in which everyone has access to equal opportunities.
SSI was founded in Sydney in 2000 with the aim of helping newly arrived refugees settle in Australia. Over time, our expertise in working with people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds served as the foundation for a gradual expansion into other social services and geographical areas.
We now deliver services across New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, have a dedicated research team informing our work and leading sector insights, and we advocate for our communities’ issues.
Contact details:
Hannah Gartrell
M: 0423 965 956
[email protected]
