Inside the Islamophobia envoy’s private briefings to parliament

The special envoy to combat Islamophobia, Aftab Malik, is about to produce his report on tackling Islamophobia in Australia, despite having had no dedicated staff of his own and amid criticism from community groups regarding the focus of his work. 

Malik’s report was foreshadowed in July by a series of briefings to federal MPs in Canberra. He invited every federal member of the upper and lower house, but only a relatively small selection of members attended, including Greens Senator David Shoebridge, independent Senator Fatima Payman, Small Business Minister Anne Aly, Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil, newly elected Labor member for Calwell Basem Abdo, shadow attorney-general Julian Leeser, Skills and Training Minister Andrew Giles, independent MP Zali Steggall, Liberal Senator Paul Scarr and Assistant Citizenship Minister Julian Hill, as well as their staffers. 

Anti-Palestine racism and Islamophobia

Several sources privy to the briefings told Crikey that in one session, Malik didn’t mention the conflict in Gaza until prompted by an MP, and said he drew a distinction between anti-Palestine racism and Islamophobia and that he was responsible for the latter.

Malik told MPs that this position was drawn from a public statement by Australia-Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni — a claim he reiterated even after it was pointed out by one MP that Mashni believed there was a direct link between the two (a link also made by the Islamophobia Register).

Mashni told Crikey that he had been consistent both in private and in public, as well as in his direct dealings with Malik, and provided Crikey with screenshots of personal exchanges with Malik in which he implored the Islamophobia envoy on several occasions to consider the link between Islamophobia and anti-Palestine racism. 

“The rise in Islamophobia is absolutely linked to anti-Palestinian racism and the genocide in Gaza,” Mashni told Crikey. 

“Any suggestion to the contrary is absurd and any report not addressing this intersection should be treated with the same disdain afforded the Segal report [into antisemitism].” 

Malik began his briefings with an explanation of his philosophical perspective, with reference to historical Western philosophy, explaining that he had more of a Lockean and optimistic political outlook relative to the likes of Thomas Hobbes. 

The envoy encouraged MPs to engage with Muslim members of their communities — because they would find that “none of them would know about the five rulings of Sharia law” — and emphasised that Muslims weren’t interested in taking over Australia with Sharia law. Concern over Muslims seeking to bring Sharia law to supersede Australian laws is a common right-wing talking point and one that was raised at the most recent federal election. 

At the briefings, Malik made remarks stressing that his remit was focused on Islamophobia and that he wasn’t responsible for “everything coming out of the Gaza conflict”, in addition to not being responsible for “the cost of living” or “the ozone layer”. 

A photo of one of Malik’s slides from the briefing, titled “What are Australian Muslims saying?” gave an insight into the nature of the community consultation undertaken by the special envoy. One heading asked what success looked like, with “government accepts recommendations”, “change media landscape” and “cultural shift” the items underneath.

Malik also said he wasn’t “on a crusade” against free speech. One source in the room expressed to Crikey that they found the remark inappropriate. (The Crusades were a series of religious wars between Muslim and Christian empires in the Middle Ages, predominantly concerned with claiming control over Jerusalem and the surrounding territories.)

Dedicated staffing

Asked in the briefings about his staff, following reports in The Canberra Times that Malik’s office remains empty almost a year on from his appointment, the envoy said he shared staff seconded from Home Affairs, before saying he would provide further details on notice as to the nature of the work those staff do. 

Multiple sources familiar with the machinations of the office and recruitment for it told Crikey there were difficulties in recruiting from the Muslim community in the lead-up to the federal election, owing to fears a Dutton-led Coalition government would abolish the office. The former opposition leader has a long history of antagonistic remarks about the Muslim community, having previously called Lebanese immigration to Australia a “mistake”, and last year suggested banning refugees from Gaza.

Malik confirmed he had been provided “secretariat, strategic communications and procurement support by the Department of Home Affairs”. 

A Home Affairs spokesperson told Crikey that the envoys to combat antisemitism and Islamophobia worked “independently of one another”. 

“This includes their recruitment of staff, separate to the secretariat and other services provided by the Department of Home Affairs where required, to ensure all work undertaken complies with appropriate Commonwealth rules and guidelines.”

The spokesperson also confirmed that antisemitism envoy Jillian Segal recruited dedicated staff for her office in December 2024, five months after commencing in the role. 

Malik’s claims

Malik told Crikey he aimed to provide the government with recommendations to address Islamophobia soon, but strenuously denied the premise of questions put to him in respect of remarks made in the briefing.

“I extended an invitation to all parliamentarians for internal briefings on my work and my strategy to combat Islamophobia. The briefings were designed to provide context to my work and assist them with understanding the problem of Islamophobia in Australia. It is highly disappointing that such an incorrect account of those briefings has been conveyed.”

“The questions are highly inaccurate and appear to be deliberately misleading,” Malik said. 

“I look forward to providing a true picture of my work to combat Islamophobia when I release the recommendations in the coming weeks,” Malik said in a statement to Crikey. 

Malik was quietly appointed special envoy in late September 2024, a number of months after the high-profile announcement of his antisemitism counterpart in Jillian Segal. He was not the government’s first choice for the position, with Guardian Australia reporting up to four others were considered for the position, including school principal Ali Kadri and high-profile supporter of Labor frontbencher Tony Burke, Jamal Rifi.

Leaders in the Muslim community, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Crikey they worried the report would simply be another call for research and interfaith dialogue, in contrast to concrete policy proposals as outlined by Segal’s antisemitism report.