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Canberra Today 16°/18° | Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Macklin / There’s a silver lining in the ISIS contagion

Modern Tale dpiTHE torture and vicious killing that ISIS has visited upon the world is vile and reprehensible. And it will continue.

But as we confront a new year with its inevitable travails and tragedies, perhaps it’s worth taking a glimpse at the other side of the coin, for nothing is ever all bad; invariably there’s a silver lining. And this certainly applies to ISIS, both in the big picture and in our own neck of the woods.

Robert Macklin
Robert Macklin.
On the big stage, the Islamists have spread their contagion from the Middle East, that crucible of hate, to Europe, Asia, Africa and North America. Indeed, not even distant Australasia has been spared the symptoms of the virus. But its very universality holds the key to one of its unintended virtues – for it has drawn together nations that would otherwise be rubbing each other up the wrong way, with potentially disastrous consequences, into a shared struggle against a common enemy.

Each time terrorist outrages take place in France, Britain, Russia, China, Indonesia, Australia and the US their governments are forced to put aside their silly nationalistic squabbles to confront the common foe. And no country will be the bigger beneficiary of this movement than Australia. For the truth is that since colonial times we have been prey to a racist defence policy – our notional enemy in the ADF’s war games has been either China or Indonesia depending on the fashion of the day. And that was never going to change until the advent of ISIS.

As it happens, both Indonesia and China are extremely vulnerable to the ISIS virus – Indonesia through its 95 per cent Muslim population; and China via its 160 million Muslims of the northwest. Both are in the early stages of the ISIS contagion, but its spread is inevitable. And as we work together to battle the disease, new bonds of co-operation will temper that nationalistic nonsense so beloved of warmongers everywhere.

At the political level, the ugly face of intolerance a la Donald Trump and Tony Abbott will stand in stark contrast to the humanity and decency of the Angela Merkels and Gillian Triggs. Even Abbott’s replacement by Malcolm Turnbull suggests that in the end good sense will win out over stupidity. And if in the process the whole notion of religious faith over science and reason is called into question that can only be a step in the right direction.

Of course, it’s easy enough for an Australian, blessed with the bounty of our great continent, to find a silver lining to the world’s travails. Undoubtedly, the battle will be hard fought with terrible casualties on both sides. However, the signs are hopeful. The world is shrinking; economic co-dependence is becoming irreversible; and as education routs the dark corners of ignorance, there are surely grounds for optimism.

That we were able to secure the agreement on action against climate change in Paris, the same city that suffered two of the most shocking terrorist atrocities, was deeply significant. It was a long and tortuous road and we aren’t out of the woods yet. But the good guys are having a win or two. Maybe we’re on a roll.

robert@robertmacklin.com

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Robert Macklin

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