Schoolgirl's rant sets alarms ringing
12sep02
AMID the torrent of words that have been published in an attempt to explain the horror of the September 11 terrorist attack against the civilised world, a 16-year-old Sydney schoolgirl's letter to The Daily Telegraph is perhaps the most telling, writes PIERS AKERMAN.
Amira Sbbet, who describes herself as a Lebanese Muslim student at a public high school and considers herself to be a moderate Muslim, outlined her beliefs to readers of this newspaper on Tuesday.
She said she believes in all aspects of her religion, accepts her responsibilities and defends her rights.
Modestly, she admits that she attempts to abide by Islamic law but is by no means free of sin.
From this promising start however she then says that whilst feeling "for all who had lost someone" in the September 11 "tragedy", she also feels "that the US Government needed a wake-up call".
If Amira Sbbet feels that the murder of 3214 innocent civilians in the name of Allah is merely a necessary "wake-up call" one wonders exactly what sort of alarm clock is used in the Sbbet household? Gelignite? A suicide bomb? A whiff of poison gas or one of the biological weapons from Saddam Hussein's stockpile?
She then says she has been persecuted because of the gang rapes conducted by a group of young men who used racist threats to their victims, even though she did not know the young men involved.
That she has been subjected to any humiliation is indeed most regrettable but one can only consider that she is fortunate those who have persecuted her have not been tempted to give her one of the "wake-up calls" she subscribes to.
Finally, she callously refused to show any hint of humanity for Amina Lawal, the Nigerian mother sentenced by an Islamic Shariah court to be stoned to death for committing adultery.
Instead, the young schoolgirl expressed her belief that "anyone who commits a crime should be punished".
"The fact is Amina did commit a crime, she knew what she did was against her religion and the law of her country, therefore she is completely responsible," Ms Sbbets wrote.
Readers would be aware that Keysar Trad, the principal spokesman for the Lakemba mosque, has also declared himself satisfied with the Nigerian religious court's decision to stone Amina Lawal to death.
Indeed, he has written to this newspaper pointing out that the court has shown leniency by permitting Ms Lawal to wean her infant before the barbaric sentence is carried out.
Fortunately, I received another Muslim view this week from a young man of Lebanese origin who said the Shia branch of the religion which he follows is opposed to the views of Mr Trad and the other Sunnis who worship at Lakemba.
I fear Amira Sbbet would be unhappy with the more reasonable views the young Muslim man espoused.
The ridiculous Anti-Discrimination commissioner Christopher Puplick has been scathing in his criticism of those he claims are fostering ill-will toward the Muslim community.
If it is the Amira Sbbets and Keysar Trads who put themselves forward as either moderate Muslims or as voices for significant numbers of the Islamic population, how could criticism of such appalling mediaeval and inhumane views be considered anything but reasonable?
If the flint-hearted Amira Sbbet thinks her sadly mistaken opinions are acceptable to her fellow Australians, God spare us the views of the fanatics.
IRAQI CRISIS IS NO FAIRY STORY, PIXIE
WELL, now that I apparently have Opposition's foreign affairs spokesman Kevin "Pixie" Rudd's attention, let me set him straight on a few matters.
I regret that he wasted taxpayers' money calling his staff in last Sunday to read a collection of my old columns to so little effect. He must have had another petulant fit of pique.
I cannot claim credit for his ridiculous nickname - it came from one of his Labor colleagues - and such name-calling increasingly appears to be a Labor trait.
In his recent article, however, Mr Rudd did not address the issue; despite his boast of top-level contacts in London and Washington, neither he nor his leader Simon Crean seems to have the wit or intelligence to grasp the depth of the Iraqi crisis which has prompted British Labour leader Tony Blair to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the US administration.
And it is not rocket science - Saddam Hussein's grim history is a matter of public record.
Don't take it from me, take it from Mr Blair, who yesterday reminded British unionists that Saddam has twice started wars of aggression in which more than one million people have died, and that when weapons inspectors were evicted from Iraq in 1998 there were still enough chemical and biological weapons remaining to devastate the entire Gulf region.
Saddam has a nuclear weapons program, too - disrupted only after inspectors went in. He is in breach of 23 outstanding UN obligations requiring him to admit inspectors and disarm.
I know Pixie is aware of this because it was discussed at the forum we both participated in last week.
Mr Blair says he does not want it on his conscience that "we knew the threat, saw it coming and did nothing". Unfortunately, Pixie has not come to the same realisation because he has been too busy reading old columns and playing petty politics.
akermanp@dailytelegraph.com.au
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