A NORTHERN Grampians Shire councillor has defended his actions in sharing several posts deemed to be of a discriminatory nature on his Facebook page.
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Cr Wayne Rice said the posts shared on his Facebook page were not intended to be discriminatory.
One of the posts shared by Cr Rice several days ago was via ‘Stop the Mosque in Bendigo’, which urged people to list their Christian faith on the upcoming census.
The post reads: ‘One million Muslims will tick their box, 10,000,000 Australians will leave it blank, then wonder why a mosque is being built in their neighbourhood!’.
The post has since been removed from Cr Rice’s Facebook page.
Cr Rice said the intention of the post and others was to oppose some Islamic beliefs, particularly those supporting Sharia Law.
“I was alerted to complaints that had been made regarding the posts via the media,” Cr Rice said.
“As soon as I was made aware of the complaint, I contacted the mayor to discuss it with him.
“Unfortunately we all read things and interpret things differently and I think that is the case right now.
“I have never said ban all Muslims, or anyone from any country for that matter, but I certainly don’t condone the beliefs of those who support Sharia Law.”
Cr Rice said his concerns with Sharia Law related to arranged marriages of girls as young as nine and rape not being recognised as such unless it was witnessed by another man.
“I am not racist by any means, but any religion that condones beheading, arranged marriages of young girls that lead to acts of pedophilia and rape, I certainly don’t condone that,” he said.
“These are acts that quite simply, I don’t want to see happen in Australia.”
Cr Rice said he had also been disappointed with the way the matter came to light, via a regional media outlet.
“I am really disappointed that people who were offended by my sharing of these posts didn’t make contact with me in the first instance,” he said.
“No phone call, no email, no visits to my home, no-one even replied to me on Facebook about it.
“But to get me into a trial by media is really disappointing.”
Cr Rice met with Northern Grampians Shire Mayor Murray Emerson on Thursday after it came to light he had been sharing the nationalist and anti-Islamic posts on Facebook.
Cr Emerson said council had taken a dim view of the shared posts.
“Council does not condone in any way, racist or radical remarks made by anyone in our community, least of all by members of the council itself,” Cr Emerson said.
“Unfortunately, some comments made by people expressing a personal opinion via social media can be damaging.
“I, as the mayor, have spoken to Cr Rice about his Facebook activity and have given him some specific advice. As a result of this, we are endeavouring to get the best result, primarily for members of the Northern Grampians Shire community.
“It is important to note that Cr Rice’s views do not, in any way, reflect those of other councillors or council staff members.
“We understand that some members of our community will rightly be very upset by these comments. We will need some time to get to the correct outcome. Anyone with concerns about this matter is welcome to call me to discuss further.”
Cr Emerson said he was concerned what impact the posts might have on future investment in the shire.
“In our situation here at the Northern Grampians Shire, we will be looking for 350 employees soon for the hydroponics facility in Stawell,” he said.
“Some of those people will have to come from other places. It makes things very difficult when comments are made about race, religion or any relative point that may offend.
“We certainly don’t want to be seen as a racist of radical organisation at the Northern Grampians Shire.
“I also want to make it clear that these are not the opinions of the Northern Grampians Shire Council. We accept all races and treat everyone the same.
“On behalf of the shire, anyone who has been offended by any comment attributable to us, we sincerely apologise.”