SYDNEY: Leaders of Australia s Muslim community on Monday called for unity under new mufti Sheikh Fehmi Naji El-Imam after his controversial predecessor stepped down. The outspoken Sheikh Taj Aldin Al-Hilali, who sparked a firestorm last year when he referred to immodestly-clad women as uncovered meat , was re-elected Sunday by a gathering of imams but opted not to accept the post. The Australian Federation of Islamic Councils paid tribute to Al-Hilali, and urged support for the Melbourne-based moderate Fehmi, who is 79. [Al-Hilali] has done tremendous work, but now there may be a need for everybody to throw their weight behind Sheikh Fehmi and let him do his work, federation president Ikebal Patel said. Although the Sydney-based Al-Hilali enjoyed strong grassroots support, his no-holds-barred comments placed the Islamic community under intense pressure to replace him. The Egyptian-born cleric courted controversy earlier this year when he said Muslims had more right to be in Australia than European settlers who arrived here as convicts. He also likened Prime Minister John Howard to former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. A former spokesman for Al-Hilali, Keysar Trad, said his ex-boss may have been the victim of political pressure. Over the past few years, our political leaders have been far more Machiavellian than they used to be, Trad said. If something can be misinterpreted or carry ambiguity, they will go for the worst possible spin, so the mufti has decided to step down and let someone else take the pressure. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer on Monday welcomed Al-Hilali s departure, saying he had done a bad job as the leader of Australia s Muslim community. I know many Muslims who have been embarrassed by him and have felt he hasn t done Islamic Australia any good at all, Downer told Sky News. But the new mufti defended Al-Hilali, saying he had been misunderstood. Maybe sometimes you may let your tongue go too far, the Lebanese-born Fehmi told a press conference in Melbourne. I know that, but still, maybe he didn t mean to harm others but the way he put it sometimes didn t sound to others as pleasant as you want. The director of the Islamic Council of Victoria, Waleed Aly, called the new mufti, who came to Australia in 1951, a very gentle soul . I think what you will find is someone who is slightly less high-profile in the role than previously, he told the ABC. The president of the Islamic Council of Queensland, Suliman Sabdia, welcomed the naming of Fehmi as the community s new public face. I think his comments after his appointment were very encouraging - he said that in his period, which is only for two years, that he hopes that the Australian people and government will give Muslims a fair go, Sabdia said.
