1" " , , December on the hostages in rapid succession. 15, 2014 – “Take the shot” The result – a much higher casualty figure.

By Dr. John Bruni, for the Observatory of the Black, Gulf and Mediterranean Seas (OBGMS), Paris In the end, the NSW and supporting Saturday 20th December 2014 Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers did the best they could under the circumstances ix days after the Sydney Siege, a they were given. Trying to talk Monis down sense of calm has returned to netted the release of some of the hostages S . But even before this tragic and ultimately defused the situation enough episode, the first of its type on Australian to limit the potential carnage that could have soil, there was an eerie sense of inevitability taken place. For this cool-headed approach, that we, as a nation, will at some point in the police should be commended. time confront the worst of all our fears – a terror attack. We did, and we came out of But, there are those in the community who this crisis stronger and perhaps more united. are not so convinced.

There are of course always the critics. Their Some of the more vocal critics say that had target – the (NSW) Police Monis been taken out as soon as he had been and its handling of the situation. The positively identified might have saved the hostage-taker, Man Haron Monis, was two hostages who were killed in the siege. clearly seen any number of times pacing in This of course is playing ‘hypotheticals’ front of the Lindt café’s plate glass after the fact. None of these critics were on windows, sufficiently away from the the ground; were part of the police command hostages. So why wasn’t the shot taken? and control structure; or had any real knowledge of the complexities involved Following are some points of consideration: when dealing with hostage situations in political context. ‘Going hard’ • The NSW Police had no way of might be something that people see on real- knowing whether the backpack life American news footage or in Hollywood Monis had on him was not an movies, but it has to be remembered that as explosive. pro-American as most Australians are, and • Shooting through plate glass windows might have shattered the as ‘Americanised’ as we may appear to glass into the café, potentially those living outside of the Anglosphere, we leading to numerous fragmentation in Australia are not Americans. Therefore, injuries that could have been fatal. injecting an American-style solution on to • The sniper’s bullet may not have an Australian cultural and political context, found its mark. It may have just is neither easy nor wise. The political wounded Monis, which in turn may have caused him to use his weapon fallout, had the police aped American

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‘decisiveness’ and failed, would have sent back to , Australia, the country that gave shockwaves throughout the Australian Monis asylum, also gave him the benefit of policing establishment and would have the doubt and condemned Iranian authorities demoralised their special forces at a time for wanting to persecute this individual. when the country needs them on heightened Moreover, allowing Monis to be extradited alert. So in hindsight, it was better they back to Iran would have been in acted in a considered manner. While the contravention of the Refugee Convention. loss of mother of three, Katrina Dawson, and So Australian authorities were bound by two Lindt café manager, Tori Johnson, is not to external factors that they could not escape: be in any way minimised, we have to remind (a) being a good ally and (b) being a good ourselves that at anytime, things could have international citizen. been much, much worse. Monis after all had taken 17 people hostage. Monis went on to become a self-styled healer and occultist. He lured women into However, there were other aspects to this his orbit and sexually assaulted them. By the case that left a lot to be desired. time of the Sydney Siege, Monis had wracked up over 40 sexual assault charges. Monis was a known felon. He came to He was even charged as an accessory to his Australia as an asylum seeker from Iran in ex-wife’s murder. So Monis was not just a 1996. He was granted political asylum in felon, he was a violent felon with most of 2001. At that his violence directed at women. During his time, the time in Australia, at some point, it is Australian assumed he became politically radicalised. government Although originally a Shia, he changed to simply and began publicly protesting followed their against the injustices of Western senior alliance intervention in the Middle East. His actions partner – the were focussed and extremely tactless. He United States sent (and it has been stated that he even – which did hand-delivered) letters to the families of not have a Australian service personnel who were nuanced killed in action overseas. approach to Iran. As far as we can tell there was no Washington connection to any Islamist group, individual was locked in a ‘cold war’ with the Iranian or cause within Australia or overseas, that government and Canberra ‘band wagoned’ prompted Monis to undertake the dramatic with Washington. In 2000, when the Iranian Sydney Siege. He was a ‘lone wolf’, and to government asked for Monis to be extradited most Australian authorities – invisible. The

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NSW judiciary had recently introduced laxer • The police can catch a felon and put conditions of bail. So, while Monis was him/her behind bars, but if the awaiting sentencing, he was released into the supporting judiciary cannot properly weigh up the evidence and release a community by a magistrate in whose felon who then re-offends, or, in the considered opinion Monis would pose no case of Monis, commits a threat to threat to public safety. national security, it is the judiciary that has failed. In summary, from the available evidence on • Mental illness is something that is Monis so far, the following points can be getting more traction in the surmised: Australian political vernacular due to public awareness campaigns being

launched by groups such as Beyond • There must be a better way of vetting Blue. But the dark underbelly of asylum seekers entering Australia. mental illness, where the person who Not all asylum seekers are genuine suffers a psychotic break and or nice people who deserve a second commits a violent act because of chance. Some are in fact criminals, some deeply held delusion, is still others perhaps harbour ill intent relatively taboo. Better ways of toward elements within the identifying people prone to this are Australian community, or public needed. Monis was not well safety as a whole. psychologically. His behaviours and • The social good, civic order and propensity to commit sexual assaults, public safety must always come should have alerted someone. before international obligations. It is nice being considered a good ally It is generally assumed that a person with a and a good international citizen, but mental illness has deficiencies so profound, not at the expense of domestic security. People choose to come and that they cannot operate with any degree of live in Australia because it is safe to internal coherence and logic and can do so. Those wanting to maintain the therefore not be held responsible. On chaos and violence of their home December 15, 2014 Monis was sound of countries should not be considered mind. He had a plan. He took a gun through worthy candidates for residency in inner city Sydney, took hostages and Australia, under any circumstance. brought Australia’s commercial heart to a • Foreign governments with oppressive systems are politically halt for two days. While thankfully the unsavoury and we may not want to action of a rank amateur and as such cannot deal with them at any level, but they be considered a true act of terrorism, it was are not always wrong in their nonetheless an act of terror which will assessment of their nationals. remain with Sydneysiders and fellow Arguably Iran had a case to be made Australians for some time to come. against Monis in 2000, but for political reasons, Canberra chose to ignore this. – Views expressed in this article are not necessarily those of SAGE International –

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Images Accessed: 21/12/2014

Man Haron Monis image http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/031 38/man_haron_monis_2_3138685k.jpg" " "

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