Terrorism in Australia: No Worries!

 

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) probably along with the Australian Security Organization (ASIO) raided an Islamic Center in Melbourne yesterday. It recovered some registered arms, inflammatory literature and apparently some terror manuals. Arrests have been made and a young Muslim guy is about to be charged. (In a lighter vein, the guy apparently has had butterflies in his stomach soon after the arrest. This reflects the kind of terrorist or wannabe terrorist he is). This news made headlines and would then constitute grounds for worry and concern for the Australian state and society. The obvious conclusion and inference that the Australian authorities would draw is that Australia may be in the cross hairs of a terrorist attack-the domestic variety and that they should be on a full alert. The consequences will that the Muslim community in Australia would fall under suspicion and perhaps under the radar and scanner of the security agencies of the state. In the final analysis, however, this too will pass and life will go on.

                                                       

The implications of these assertions render light the latest incident.  This raises a set of questions: Is it prudent to take light notice of the Al Furqan incident? Should the Al Furqan incident be taken seriously? Is it a prelude to a serious terror attack in Australia? What accounts for this incident? And what should the Australian state and society do to preclude and pre empt these kinds of incidents?

 

The raids have yielded registered firearms, some leaflets , inflammatory material, and perhaps a terror manual or so. The point to note here is that all these have been found in a mosque or an Islamic center. In combination, this means that the people involved are amateurs. They are wannabe terrorists, lack sophistication and the experience necessary to mount and carry out even a minor terrorist attack. If a contrast or a comparison of these guys is made with the September II attackers, the amateurishness of the former stands clear and vivid. The September II attackers were a sophisticated bunch who knew what they were doing. They obscured their nature and intent by drinking alcohol, carousing with women and consuming  those symbols of millennial capitalism: McDonald’s burgers. They stayed away from mosques and ostensible religiosity so that no one would suspect them. If the Australian wannabes were half as sophisticated as their Sep II counterparts, their habitat would not be the mosque or the Islamic center-the obvious point of focus for the security and intelligence agencies. They would leave no traces or evidence for the police or security agencies and their modus operandi would be sophisticated. The obvious inference that can be culled from this is these guys are wannabe are disaffected and the lumpen elements forming the Muslim immigrant cohort in Australia. There is no critical mass of these disaffected Muslims in Australia who can form a sophisticated network across Australia and launch sophisticated and deadly attacks in Australia.  The Al Furqan incident , in this respect, is a non incident. Does this mean that the Australian state should drop its vigilance?

 

No. It would be silly to do this. And the Australian state will not do this. However, it is important and prudent to not to read much into this incident and draw inferences that can potentially implicate and tar an entire community. Harsh policing, intrusive surveillance, or  a Kafkaesque approach towards Australian Muslims would catalyze the broad disaffection that leads to and is the prelude to terrorism.  What then is the ‘correct’ and ‘right’ approach to both pre empt potential acts of terrorism in Australia?

 

The answer lies in Australia’s soft power. Soft power, for the benefit of readers, is the inherent appeal of a culture and society that draws on values and appeals to people on account of these. Australia, given its nature- a largely multicultural society, a democratic, tolerant  and a plural polity, open, welcoming and warm to the outsider- has reservoirs of soft power to draw from. It is this nature of Australia that needs to be emphasized and the Muslim immigrant cohort socialized into. It should be made clear to this cohort that their faith is safe in Australia and that Australia respects and appreciates diversity of outlook and faith. Concomitant to this, this cohort should be absorbed into Australia’s dynamic labor market. In sum then, abstract and intangible(but nonetheless important) aspects of peoples’ cultures and beliefs or what they hold to be important and meaningful should be tied into the Australian political, social and cultural framework and should be complemented by real and tangible aspects like employment, career advancement and opportunity.

 

This approach would give all Australian Muslims a stake in the society and culture that they have  chosen to live in. In the final analysis, it is a stake –economic- and voice-political- in society and the state that gives short shrift to extremism and disaffection.  If Australian Muslims continue to feel part and parcel of the fabric of Australian society and polity, it is highly unlikely that they will take recourse to extremism or terrorism. It is adherence to these principles and a degree of policing that will obviate and nullify the appeal of extremism among Muslim immigrants of Australia. It is then prudent that a policy review that takes into consideration these factors be conducted and outreach programs to Muslims be made-the kind that makes them feel part and parcel of Australian society. If Australia continues to be true to its nature and its social and economic policy is premised on inclusion, then it really has nothing to worry about. The Fatal Shore will continue to attract; not repel.  Its just ,’ no worries’ , for Australia.