Unite against conflict

AS A long-time resident of Endeavour Hills I was shocked to hear about the man shot at the police station where he had come to attack two representatives of law and order.
Now, I feel even more shocked and greatly disappointed by some of the comments and criticisms that I have read in daily media.
We are told that Islam is a religion of peace. I personally still have many Muslim friends in my country of origin. They are good people.
But why do we nowadays have to do striptease when we pass through customs at several international airports?
Why should Australians be scared when attending the Melbourne Show or the Grand Final?
Why should Australians who love their sporting events be bothered and have their bags searched? Is all this happening because of the good Muslims?
Is it because of the Muslims who pray to Allah five times a day and who really believe in his teaching?
The answer is definitely no.
I also believe that as a migrant, I am blessed to hold an Australian passport that gives me easy entry into many countries when I travel overseas.
It’s therefore time for us migrants to realise that we are not Australian citizens by our own rights, it’s a privilege that we should cherish.
We are bound to respect Australians’ values, culture, beliefs, religion and traditions.
We have no right to dictate government policy or to impose our own law.
We may sympathise with those who are suffering from acts of violence overseas but we have no right to import other countries’ conflicts into Australia which is a multiethnic and multicultural society.
In this time of crisis, we should all unite behind the government of the day, irrespective of our political affiliations, whatever may be the colour – red, white, blue, yellow or green.
There’s no place for cheap political games.
Instead, we should all endeavour to live in peace and harmony and not turn Australia into a second Lebanon, where one of my best friends in Australia comes from.
Eliezer Francois,
Endeavour Hills.