Border should be closed to terrorists, not all Muslims, writes Susie O’Brien

IT is disappointing that someone with such media status as Sonia Kruger has expressed the view that borders should be closed to Muslims, writes Susie O’Brien.

• MORE: Kruger calls for Muslim immigration halt
• BOLT: Muslim immigration opens door to terror
• ATTACK IN NICE: Melbourne students shelter survivors

I DISAGREE with Channel Nine presenter Sonia Kruger. Australian borders should not be closed to Muslim immigrants.

They should be closed to terrorists and terrorist sympathisers, not all Muslims.

It’s disappointing that someone with such status in the Australian media has expressed such views, which do nothing to further debate and just fuel alienation between Muslims and others.

Ms Kruger sided with Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt, who argued today that France was a key terrorist target largely because of the number of Muslims.

Ms Kruger said: “Personally I think Andrew Bolt has a point that there is a correlation here between the number of people who are Muslim in a country and the number of terror attacks.

“I have a number of very good friends who are Muslim, who are peace-loving, who are beautiful people, but there are fanatics ... does the population and the correlation between those two things, is it having an impact?

“Personally, I would like to see it stopped now for Australia. Because I want to feel safe, as all of our citizens do when they go out to celebrate Australia Day and I’d like to see freedom of speech,” she said.

Sorry Sonia, but many of the terrorists who have caused such death and destruction in other countries are second and third generation immigrants.

We can’t just close our borders to them: they were born here.

Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Sonia Kruger has sided with Bolt on Muslim immigration. Picture: Julie Kiriacoudis

This kind of us-and-them attitude merely breeds disenchantment and division, which is a key reason for radicalisation of Muslim youth in particular. I agree with the Race Discrimination Commissioner that this kind of stereotypical attitude does nothing but breed hate.

In any case, the reason France is a terrorist target is not because of the numbers of Muslims, it’s because of their alienation from French society.

This should not be seen as an excuse for terrorism, but an explanation. I also don’t want to be seen to be blaming the mainstream for the actions of the extreme. This is not a time for blame, but for a sober analysis of a complex social and cultural situation.

The sad truth is that French society is very divided: there is a rich ruling class and a large disaffected lower class with high unemployment, high poverty and high alienation.

Among them are many hundreds of thousands of Muslims who have missed out on the liberty, equality and fraternity under celebration on Bastille Day.

This group is alienated from the spoils of French society so celebrated by foreigners; the stylish lifestyle, the cafe culture, and the civilised Parisian existence.

Rather than seek to integrate the disaffected groups into the labour market and society as a whole, right-wing political leaders are seeking to further entrench them as outsiders.

People gather near flowers placed at a makeshift memorial near the Promenade des Anglais in Nice following the Bastille Day terror attack. Picture: Valery Hache, AFP

Borders should be closed to terrorists but not peaceful Muslims, writes Susie O’Brien. File image: Will Rose

This focus on assimilation rather than multiculturalism is something that has been a part of French society for some decades. In addition, the French nation has long been aggressively secular, as seen in the ban on headscarves and religious symbols.

Indeed, back in September 2014, the chief spokesman for ISIS, Mohammad al-Adnani, singled out the “spiteful French” among a list of enemies to be targeted.

There is also no doubt the role of France in various military campaigns in countries such as Iraq and Syria is also an issue, but many commentators point out that France’s particular location as a terrorist target predates the current campaigns against Islamic State.

All of this is why numbers alone don’t tell the story: France has around 4.7 million Muslims, which is about the same number as Germany.

But the situation in the two countries is very different socially, culturally and economically.

History also plays a major part in explaining the situation in France. Traditionally, Muslims arrived in France after world war two from Tunisia and Algeria, which are both former French colonies. Two generations on, many of these families stay locked in ghettos on the edges of large industrial cities.

Such disaffection has bred alienation and resentment, which is a key tool used by Islamic state recruiters. So I would argue that France’s status as a beacon of liberty and egalitarianism is not simply the reason it’s targeted by terrorists — it’s because many of the Muslims living there do not share this freedom.

Ultimately, the reality is that such terrorist attacks will continue to mobilise the disaffected and lead to further social polarisation.

The challenge now for leaders in Australia, and elsewhere, is how to ensure our own country plays a role in combating terrorism on a global scale, but also keeps our citizens safe. Having secure borders is the answer, not having borders that a closed to just one religious group.

[e-mail]