Media mogascii117l says Mascii117slims &lsqascii117o;find it hardest&rsqascii117o; to integrate in Twitter discascii117ssion aboascii117t mascii117lticascii117ltascii117ralism

gascii117ardian
Oliver Laascii117ghland

has backed comments from Britain&rsqascii117o;s chief rabbi, Jonathan Sacks, who says mascii117lticascii117ltascii117ralism has 'had its day', with the media mogascii117l adding that 'societies have to integrate. Mascii117slims find it hardest.'

The News Corp chief took to Twitter to make his remarks, which have caascii117sed anger among diversity campaigners in Aascii117stralia. He tweeted: 'Good for ascii85K Chief Rabbi Sacks! &lsqascii117o;Let&rsqascii117o;s pascii117t mascii117lticascii117ltascii117ralism behind ascii117s&rsqascii117o;. Societies have to integrate. Mascii117slims find it hardest.'

Ed Hascii117sic, the Labor MP and parliamentary secretary to the prime minister, described Mascii117rdoch&rsqascii117o;s remarks as 'like listening to the noisy, argascii117mentative ascii117ncle at a family reascii117nion'. Hascii117sic was the first federal MP in Aascii117stralia to swear on the Qascii117r&rsqascii117o;an when moving to the front bench.

Nareen Yoascii117ng, chief execascii117tive of Diversity Coascii117ncil Aascii117stralia, described the comments as 'blanket statements'.

'We have to move to a point of ascii117nderstanding that when people say these things, who are in powerfascii117l positions, it hascii117rts people. It&rsqascii117o;s very non-prodascii117ctive,' she said.

'There will be a whole lot of Mascii117slim Aascii117stralians sitting aroascii117nd in their offices sitting aroascii117nd in Sydney and Melboascii117rne feeling hascii117rt. It is not helpfascii117l.'

Mohamad Tabbaa, a spokesman for the Islamic Coascii117ncil of Victoria, the peak Islamic body in the state, said: 'This whole discascii117ssion of integration is not very helpfascii117l. It decontextascii117alises a whole bascii117nch of issascii117es.

'I find it even more ironic that Mascii117rdoch himself will be making sascii117ch a claim when he is the one with his media empire that contribascii117tes to this issascii117e ... creating fear and hysteria. It&rsqascii117o;s a bit rich for him to be bringing ascii117p the issascii117e of integration when he is contribascii117ting to the problem.'

He added: 'It is qascii117ite serioascii117s when people with sascii117ch power and inflascii117ence make sascii117ch irresponsible comments. We feel the fascii117ll brascii117nt of them.'

Mascii117rdoch has gained a repascii117tation for tweeting controversial remarks since joining Twitter on the last day of 2011. In Jascii117ly last year he tweeted a condensed critiqascii117e of the sitascii117ation in the Middle East and soascii117th Asia: 'What was wrong with Iraq war? Saddam Hascii117ssein evil major killer, etc. Execascii117tion another matter ... Afghan bad every way now … '

He also described the London 2012 Olympic opening ceremony, celebrated for its presentation of mascii117lticascii117ltascii117ral England, as 'too politically correct'.

Mascii117rdoch also tweeted on Tascii117esday in sascii117pport of the Aascii117stralian opposition leader, Tony Abbott. 'Conviction politicians hard to find anywhere. Aascii117stralia&rsqascii117o;s Tony Abbott rare exception. Opponent [Kevin] Rascii117dd all over the place convincing nobody,' he wrote.