Four Muslims caught up in the recent anti-terror raids tell Ian Munro their side
of the story.

He holds a sugar sachet over his coffee cup and pauses, leaning forward to fix
his dark eyes on his listener. "If I put sugar in this cup, what happens?" I
tell him it dissolves, and he resumes: "Well, we don't want to melt here, in
this country. We are following Allah, which is one God. And Allah has sent one
prophet, one man. This man called Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.
This man is to be followed step by step... We are keeping our religion, wherever
we go. We try our best not to harm anyone, but they are harming us. They are
filling our hearts with hate. Is it a welcome? I call it an oppression."

We have met, he and I and his three Middle Eastern colleagues, amid the Turkish
restaurants and multicultural jumble of coffee shops that line Brunswick's
Sydney Road. In the past two weeks, all four of them have been raided by ASIO
and Australian Federal Police, accompanied by Victoria Police. There have been
no arrests. The little that has been revealed about raids in Melbourne and
Sydney suggests that after almost 12 months of investigation, police have
decided that their best course is to let their suspects know they are under
observation. Unable to sustain formal charges, police said the raids were
designed to deter suspects "from taking the next step" towards terrorist action.
"It's rattling the cages at this stage," a senior federal source said.

The raids sparked debate this week about the role of ASIO - newly empowered to
detain suspects without public disclosure. Former prime minister Malcolm Fraser
declared that ASIO had been turned into a secret police, a charge the
organisation rejects because it does not have its own arrest powers. The
controversy dominated the airwaves for several days. Was this fear-mongering or
the legitimate sacrifice of liberty for security? For the men who found the
police and the spooks at their doors, there is little confusion. The raids are
seen as confirmation of the word of Allah.

"We know according to our religion that our way is not a honeymoon. It's not
easy. Trouble must come," says the most outspoken, who also appears to be the
group's spiritual and intellectual leader.

"We are not afraid, because Allah has already said" - he slips briefly into
Arabic before translating himself - "'do not be scared of them'. To be raided is
just the beginning. What's come so far, so good. We don't know exactly, but
worse is coming... for any Muslim. We are not scared. We know them already. The
more you face a hard time, the more you practise your religion."

These are men for whom no meaningful law has been passed in centuries. Democracy
holds no appeal, and is in fact a breach of their beliefs. They argue that the
continued American occupation of Iraq is less concerned with ensuring stability
and security than it is a cover to Westernise the country by stealth.

They are here, they say, because in their Muslim countries of origin it is even
more difficult to pursue their brand of Islam than it is in the inner suburbs of
Melbourne. Compared with some Muslim countries "it is better. Doesn't mean they
let us do everything." Until Sharia law, as applied by the Taliban during its
rule in Afghanistan, is adopted somewhere in the world, Melbourne is as good as
it gets for them.

"Let us practise our religion properly, not according to you - it has to be
according to the Koran," says the group's spokesman. "In our religion, they
don't have democracy. When we say democracy, it means we are making a partner
with Allah in making laws. Allah does not need a partner. That's why we don't
believe in democracy.

"One of Allah's names is 'the lawmaker'. From him we take the law. In our
religion we got plenty (of law)...

"Our religion fills the time and fills the space. Our religion does not need any
other say. ...Seeking judgement from other than Allah, you become a disbeliever.
That's why we don't believe in international law."

Repeatedly, they say they do not understand why ASIO has descended on them. They
are only trying to practise their religion. But for them, religion embraces
fighting for beliefs and fighting the enemies of Allah.

The group's spokesman is still angered at the imposition in his home country -
which he declines to identify - of what he calls "man-made law" over the
1400-year-old Sharia law.

He concedes that ASIO may be interested in his support for jihad overseas.

"We are trying to establish Sharia in our country, but it's not going to be
easy."

Enduring ASIO scrutiny is just one more hardship that erases their sins, their
spokesman says. "We are trying to practise (Islam) according to the way of the
prophet. They say 'you are fundamentalists, extremists' ...We are following the
prophet and this is how it has to be. We will be ready to die for it, whether
they like it or not. When we came to this country, nobody say, 'we will give you
equal nationality as an Australian citizen (but) you have to change your
religion'.

http://www.theage.com.au/news/general/keeping-the-faith/2005/07/01/1119724808038\
.html?oneclick=true

See also: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/1281 Tolerance and
Pluralism: Islamic Supremacist Literature casually sold in Australian Mosque

See also: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/1237 Triple-pronged
Jihad -- Military, Economic and Cultural

See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/1113
Comparing the Rhetoric of Jihadism and Nazism

See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/1050
Arab ethnic cleansing imperialism and colonialism:
1,400 Years of Islamic Aggression


See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/718
Islamic concept of Al-Taqiyah to infiltrate and
destroy kafir countries

See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/803
The Rise of Middle Eastern Crime in Australia

See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/713
Exclusivism and multiculturalism in Islamic society

See also: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/649 Sydney man
charged with inciting terrorism

See also: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/625 Neo-Janissaries:
Roche pleads guilty in al-Qaeda plot to bomb Israeli embassy

See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/592 UN
Votes: Islam is incompatible with democracy 403 to 267


See also: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/146 Gang Rapists
Defense: Cultural Relativism

See also: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/33 The Mufti of
Australia Calls for Jihad: Oz was Muslim Land

See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/23
The Agenda of Islam: A War Between Civilizations

See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/khilafism/message/2
The Clash Of Civilizations And The Great Caliphate



__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]