ISLAMIC scholars are urging a rethink on the fight against homegrown extremism as the Rudd government stands accused of failing to match its tough talk on counter-terrorism with action.

The Rudd government should urgently boost funding for high-quality Islamic studies courses, moderate Muslim community groups, and police liaison teams to counter home-grown extremism, a leading Australian Islamic expert says.

Such measures offered the best hope of blunting the potential radicalisation of hundreds of Muslim students who come to Australia to study each year. They would have a hugely positive impact on Australian Muslims, said Ameer Ali, vice-president of the Regional Islamic Council of Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Dr Ali's call follows a blunt warning by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute that the government had failed to match its tough talk on countering local extremism with the resources needed to deliver a solution.

Attorney-General Robert McClelland warned in March that a terrorist attack in Australia had "as much prospect of emanating from disgruntled and alienated Australian youth as it does from an overseas terrorist organisation". Government concerns about extremism were again raised by the Attorney-General's Department in the May budget portfolio statement to "develop and progress" moves to reduce the risk of resort to violent extremism.

Despite the warnings, no new funding was provided to the Attorney-General's Department for programs to counter local extremism, ASPI's research programs director Anthony Bergin says in a new report.

"At this stage it's not clear what direction the Australian government's counter-extremism policy will take," he says. "It's unclear, for example, what the Attorney-General's Department's new body of counter-extremism work will look like or when it will commence. It's disappointing that the Attorney-General's Department was given no new funding to advance their counter-extremism work in this year's budget."

Australia's growing Muslim population numbers more than 300,000.

ASIO said in its latest annual report it was "aware of a significant number of Australians" who hold or have held extremist views, Dr Bergin said.

"Some of these Australians have shown a willingness to put these views into action - some have travelled overseas to train with terrorist groups or engage in jihad activities."

Mr McClelland said the government was committed to countering home-grown extremism and had looked to Britain and Singapore for possible models.

"Deradicalisation and rehabilitation strategies will necessarily be considered as part of this work," Mr McClelland told The Australian.

The Australian Federal Police had also developed a national community engagement strategy to "establish, maintain and enhance" relationships with the (Muslim) community," he added.

Speaking from Perth yesterday, Dr Ali, a Murdoch University academic and former chair of the Howard government's Muslim Community Reference Group, said university courses offering a "critical analysis" of Islamic studies should be used to counter home-grown extremism and act as a moderating influence on foreign students.

"These students are coming from a particular mindset.

"If we don't train these students to think critically they'll just continue to believe what they believe," he said.

"And we have to target the funding to train the trainers, the teachers at Muslim schools."

yadda -

I trust Obama is aware of this religious intolerance.