A right-wing senator in Australia has provided a much-derided, victim-blaming response to the massacre that occurred Friday at two mosques in the country.
Forty-nine people are now confirmed dead after a gunman opened fire as members of the mosque practiced their Friday prayer, known as Jumu’ah. Sen. Fraser Anning (I-Queensland) took it upon himself to release a lengthy press statement that condemns the attacks before quickly shifting focus to blame the victims.
“I am utterly opposed to any form of violence within our community, and I totally condemn the actions of the gunman,” Anning said. “However, whilst this kind of violent vigilantism can never be justified, what it highlights is the growing fear within our community, both in Australia and New Zealand, of the increasing Muslim presence.”
Anning goes on to say that the “left-wing politicians and media” will attack gun laws or nationalists for the shooting, calling it “cliched nonsense.” The real cause, according to Anning, is New Zealand’s immigration policies that have allowed “Muslim fanatics” to enter the country.
“Let us be clear, while Muslims may have been the victims today, usually they are the perpetrators,” Anning said. “World-wide, Muslims are killing people in the name of their faith on an industrial scale.”
Anning concluded his rant by saying, “just because the followers of this savage belief were not the killers in this instance, does not make them blameless.”
Anning quickly received a backlash for his statement and for tweets he sent about the incident. As The Guardian reports, politicians rushed to condemn Anning’s statements.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called Anning’s remarks “blaming the murderous attacks by a violent, rightwing, extremist terrorist in New Zealand on immigration are disgusting.”
Former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull called Anning’s comments “contemptible.”
“He is a disgrace to the Senate and what is worse, by spreading hatred and turning Australians against each other, he is doing exactly what the terrorists want,” Turnball said.
Sajid Javid, the United Kingdom home secretary, said Anning’s statements “fans the flames of violence and extremism.”
Anning’s full comments below:
I am utterly opposed to any form of violence within our community, and I totally condemn the actions of the gunman.
However, whilst this kind of violent vigilantism can never be justified, what it highlights is the growing fear within our community, both in Australia and New Zealand, of the increasing Muslim presence.
As always, leftwing politicians and the media will rush to claim that the causes of today’s shootings lie with gun laws or those who hold nationalist views, but this is all cliched nonsense.
The real cause of bloodshed on New Zealand streets today is the immigration program which allowed Muslim fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place.
Let us be clear, while Muslims may have been the victims today, usually they are the perpetrators. World-wide, Muslims are killing people in the name of their faith on an industrial scale.
The entire religion of Islam is simply the violent ideology of a sixth century despot masquerading as a religious leader, which justifies endless war against anyone who opposes it and calls for the murder of unbelievers and apostates.
The truth is that Islam is not like any other faith. It is the religious equivalent of fascism. And just because the followers of this savage belief were not the killers in this instance, does not make them blameless.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article labeled Anning as a senator from New Zealand. He is from Australia.