MP ridiculed over 'Islamic' cover-up
Federal Liberal MP Luke Simpkins has become the target of social media scorn after a high-level intervention to ensure ‘Islamic’ stickers were removed from the Leederville Train Station pedestrian overpass.
In a bizarre case of mistaken identity, the stickers were in fact spruiking a local nightclub – a fact lost on Mr Simpkins when he boasted on his Facebook page of having them painted over.
On November 5, Mr Simpkins wrote: “Last week I noticed black disks (sic) that appeared to be Shahada symbols. Thanks to the Transport Minister and his adviser for getting them painted over quickly after my call”.
The post included pictures taken from some distance of two “discs” displaying white cursive writing against a black background.
The Shahada, a declaration of Islamic faith which translates to “There is no god but Allah and Mohammed is his prophet” is commonly displayed written in white Arabic writing on a black background.
The Shahada flag was brandished by Sydney siege gunman Man Haron Monis last month in what Muslim leaders slammed as a desecration of the phrase.
It was not until this week that fans of Speakeasy, the bi-monthly Australian music showcase at Villa nightclub, noticed Mr Simpkins’ post and recognised the “discs” as Speakeasy stickers.
The MP’s Facebook page was yesterday bombarded with ridicule.
“Thanks for fighting the good fight in WA on all of Australia’s behalf. We really do need to crack down on ISIS promoting nightclubs in Australia,” wrote one user.
“Speakeasy is a Shahada symbol? Wow, You sir are a complete idiot,” posted another.
Pierce Ericson, event manager at Metric Promotions which runs Speakeasy, confirmed the images in Mr Simpkins’ post were Speakeasy stickers which had been in circulation two to three years ago.
“We’ve been discussing this in the office this morning. The fact that (Mr Simpkins) felt the need to cover it up purely because it was ‘Islamic’ is bothering us a little bit,” he said.
Ikebal Patel, immediate past president of the Federation of Islamic Councils, said it was a “sad case” if Mr Simpkins wanted the stickers painted over because he thought they were Islamic, rather than merely graffiti.
“If in this case the federal member basically wanted them painted over because he thought they were the Shahada then it does make you wonder if we are getting too carried away by world events,” he said.
“The Shahada itself is a very profound symbol and statement within Islam. Sure, people are abusing that right now for political gain and we all have issues with that.”
In a statement to thewest.com.au, Mr Simpkins said the images had been reported to him as containing Arabic writing but couldn’t get close enough to make sure.
“I later drove up the freeway and had my passenger take the photographs,” he said.
“Obviously it is illegal to park on the freeway and reckless to hold a camera over the freeway.
“Therefore based on the photographs that looked like Arabic writing, I referred the matter to the minister’s office saying that there was vandalism and it appeared to be Arabic writing like the Shahada flag.”
Mr Simpkins said he was not familiar with bars, clubs and events in Leederville “and yet the social media abuse assumes I should have been”.
“I am nevertheless glad that the vandalism has been cleaned up although it appears that others are not happy with that either,” he said.
A spokeswoman for Transport Minister Dean Nalder said any reports of vandalism on transport infrastructure he received were passed on to Main Roads WA for “swift action”.
“Main Roads WA appropriately investigated and acted on the concern, concealing and then repainting the section of the bridge that was illegally defaced,” she said.
In 2011 Mr Simpkins warned Australians were unwittingly taking the first steps towards Islamic conversion by eating Halal meat.
