Labor to blame for cultural division: Australian Multicultural Council member Martika Shakoor

A member of the Australian Multicultural Council has resigned in a scathing letter to Andrew Giles, accusing the government of complicity in ‘perpetuating injustices against Palestinians’.

Immigration Minister Andrew Giles has not yet acknowledged the resignation letter. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

A member of the Australian Multicultural Council has resigned in a scathing letter to Andrew Giles, accusing the government of silence and complicity in “perpetuating injustices against Palestinians” and warning that social cohesion could not be repaired.

Martika Shakoor sent the letter to Multicultural Affairs Minister Mr Giles and council members on Wednesday, arguing Labor had failed to address Islamophobia and the “Palestinian struggle and resistance against occupation and oppression is justified”.

She said there would not be “harmony in our communities when the Labor government dehumanises Palestinians and gaslights and represses those who stand with them, whilst branding itself as a progressive party”.

Ms Shakoor, born in Australia after her parents migrated from Afghanistan in 1984, said her decision to resign stemmed from “deep ethical and moral concerns regarding the AMC’s lack of action and the Labor government’s stance on Palestine”.

“I am outraged that members (of the AMC) have not been called upon despite nine months of devastation and humanitarian disaster,” she said. “In October last year, I signed an open letter, along with 500 young people across the continent. This letter was not acknowledged by Minister Giles or his office, and we never received a response.

“The Labor government’s failure to support Palestinians and sanction Israel, despite widespread international condemnation, is deeply troubling.”

Ms Shakoor said she could “no longer meaningfully participate in my role as (a) council member when the Labor government continues to actively work against Blak, Brown and Muslim communities through the classic ploy of othering, racism and Islamaphobic tropes that I know all too well.

Martika Shakoor.

“My seat at the table feels completely futile when I am asked about social cohesion whilst we avoid truth-telling and productive discussions about oppression, genocide and settler-colonial violence, whether it is in Palestine or here, on unceded Aboriginal land.”

The fierce attack on the government’s response to the ongoing Middle East conflict and management of the Australian multicultural project follows the defection to the crossbench of former Labor senator Fatima Payman after she broke with caucus solidarity by crossing the the floor to support a vote on Palestinian recognition.

Labor also faces an electoral threat from the emergence of The Muslim Vote, a formal campaign aimed at ousting Labor MPs in seats with high numbers of Muslim voters.

While the movement planned to run a series of candidates – including in the NSW seats of Labor frontbenchers Tony Burke and Jason Clare – it has struggled to lock in viable contenders, prompting warnings the campaign was at risk of “imploding”.

In her letter, Ms Shakoor said she was “concerned but not shocked by the government’s reluctance to challenge narratives that perpetuate Islamophobia and justify violence against Palestinians under the guise of geopolitical complexities”.

“Palestinians did not choose their oppressor and you cannot equate the colonised with the coloniser. In the context of Israel’s unrelentless (sic) and violent colonisation, the Palestinian struggle and resistance against occupation and oppression is justified.”

She said it “could not be more apparent that the genocide in Palestine threatens social cohesion everywhere”.

“I will not compromise my integrity and commitment to justice … I still urge the Labor Party to find an ounce of morality, listen to the people and stand against oppression if genuine cohesion is the goal,” Ms Shakoor said.

Mr Giles is yet to release the government’s Multicultural Framework Review, chaired by Bulent Hass Dellal.

Dr Dellal, also chair of the Australian Multicultural Council, told The Australian in April the review was aimed at strengthening social cohesion in Australia.

“Our challenge is to break that cycle of hate, learn from history and move forward,” Dr Dellal said. “And I think as a nation we have been prepared to face those challenges because we as a community are very much engaged in developing good social policies and engagement. The challenge is to break that cycle of discrimination and hate and conflict, and (ensure) we do not pass it on to a new generation of Australians.”