Muslims see attacks in Australia treated with double standards

ANKARA (AA) – The Australian National Imams Council (ANIC) says that the police authorities fail to apply the same standards in cases of attacks.

An April 13 knife attack in a mall in Sydney killed six people before police killed the attacker. Days later, Australian police said the attacker had mental health problems that led to the isolated act and that the attack was not related to terrorism.

On April 15, Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and three people at the Christ the Good Shepherd Church were injured in an attack during services before the accused attacker was captured. The chief of the New South Wales Police quickly said the attack would be investigated as a “terrorist act.”

Imam Shadi Al-Suleiman, head of the Australian National Imams Council (ANIC), told Anadolu that authorities’ approach to the two attacks was not equal.

“One was described as a mental health issue, the other one was labeled a terrorist act. There is a serious disparity,” he said.

Al-Suleiman said they conveyed their concerns about double standards to authorities but got unsatisfactory feedback.

“The mainstream media agencies inflame the situation when they start using words like ‘religious’ and ‘Sunni Muslims.’ Not everyone understands that terrorism, extremism, and violence have no race, religion, or color.

“Islamophobia isn’t just physical attacks, it’s also verbal, online, and bullying. These are all types of Islamophobia,” he said.

Highlighting that Muslims are a minority in Australia that account for 3% of the population, Al-Suleiman said Muslims should stand in solidarity and raise awareness of Islamophobia.

“The legal system needs to be improved, and the Muslim community needs to improve its engagement and awareness,” he said.  National Imams Council.