1st International Symposium on Liberty and Islam in Australia Melbourne 7 ~ 10 March 2014  

 

Welcome to SION 2014 

 

From China to Iceland and from New York to Sydney, Islam is spreading. Since the 7th century this unique theocratic ideology, veiled in religious veneer, has conquered people and nations. No other ideology spawns discrimination, division and violence on a global scale. People are looking for information, perspectives and better policies. This symposium offers insights and answers.

 

 

Learn, discuss and network with leading non-Muslim scholars on Islam and seasoned civil rights activists from around the world. The event takes place in Melbourne on the Labour Day weekend.

 

 

 

Pamela Geller – The founder, editor and publisher of AtlasShrugs.com, president of the American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI) and Stop Islamization of America (SIOA). She has led human rights awareness campaigns in the U.S., Europe and Israel on behalf of victims and potential victims of honor killing, for the rights of apostates from Islam and to support freedom of speech. The Queens Village Republican Club, the oldest Republican club in America, honored Pamela Geller as the “American Patriot of the Year” in 2013 and the Creative Zionist Coalition gave her the Queen Esther Award for Jewish Heroism in the same year. 

Pamela lives in New York.

 

Robert Spencer – The US-based director of Jihad Watch, a program of the David Horowitz Freedom Center and author of thirteen books on Islam, including two New York Times  bestsellers. He has led seminars on Islam and jihad for the United States Central Command, United States Army Command and General Staff College, the U.S. Army’s Asymmetric Warfare Group, the FBI, the Joint Terrorism Task Force, and the U.S. intelligence community. He is a weekly columnist for PJ Media and FrontPage Magazine, and has written eleven monographs and well over three hundred articles.

 

Dr Mordechai Kedar – Israeli scholar of Arabic and Islam, a lecturer and the director of the Center for the Study of the Middle East and Islam at Bar-Ilan University, Israel. He specializes in Islamic ideology and movements, the political discourse of Arab countries, the Arabic mass media, and the Syrian domestic arena. Dr Kedar served for 25 years in IDF Military Intelligence and is author of numerous monographs, articles, op-eds and books. He regularly appears on Arab language TV stations defending Israel.

 

Dr Ashraf Ramelah – Founder and president of Voice of the Copts, a human rights nonprofit organisation with offices in Italy and the United States. A native of Egypt, Dr. Ramelah is dedicated to the Coptic cause and believes his life’s mission is to speak up for the oppressed Copts unable to speak out for themselves. When not meeting with politicalfigures , Dr. Ramelah spends his time giving talks about the Coptic issue and explaining to the West the oppression of the Copts in Egypt. Dr. Ramelah was invited to address the European Parliament (2010) and was keynote speaker in the Italian Parliament (2011) on the issue of Coptic persecution in Egypt.

 

Simon Deng – The victim of child slavery, Simon is now a human rights activist living in the United States. He is a native of the Shilluk tribe in southern Sudan and spent several years as a domestic slave in Sudan. Simon now travels widely addressing audiences which range from the United Nations to school students. His speeches focus on education about Islam and the anti-slavery movement.

 

Anders Gravers – A seasoned political activist from Denmark, chairman and founder of Stop the Islamisation of Denmark and leader of Stop Islamisation of Europe. Despite death threats, violent attacks and harassment from Neo-Nazis and Islamic extremists, Anders continues to fight for freedom of speech and to stop the further Islamisation of Europe and his native Denmark.

 

Gavin Boby – UK planning attorney and director of The British Law and Freedom Centre, an organisation assisting community groups (pro bono) faced with inappropriate planning applications for mosques in their neighbourhood. Gavin has spoken in the EU, parliament, Canada and Australia in 2012. His written monograph is titled “Life without Politicians.”

 

Dr John Perkins – An economist with qualifications from universities in Melbourne and London. John has gained his doctorate at Monash University and is a member of various Australian free-thought groups including Humanists, Rationalists, Atheists and Skeptics. He has been motivated, since September 11, 2001, by a deep concern as to the direction in which we are heading, in particular under the influence of Islam.

 

Bernard Gaynor – A Queenslander who served in the Australian Army from 1997 to 2014. He reached the rank of major and was deployed to Iraq three times, also serving briefly in Afghanistan. Bernard was awarded the United States Meritorious Service Medal in 2010. He faced disciplinary action in 2013 after publicly expressing concern about Islam. Bernard is critical of modern thinking and quick to defend Australia’s way of life. He is active in politics and an outspoken social and political commentator.

 

Michael Burd – A vocal member of Melbourne’s Jewish community whose letters in support of Israel and Jewish Human Rights often appear in Australian newspapers. He is a retired rag trader who spent 25 years manufacturing clothing out of India and Pakistan. Michael has an intimate understanding of the mindset of Muslims and Hindus. He is a passionate Zionist advocate  and a critic of the Jewish community representatives’ views  on multiculturalism and asylum seekers.

 

Bill Muehlenberg – Born in America, Bill now calls Australia home and lectures in theology, apologetics and ethics at several Melbourne theological colleges. He holds a BA with honours in philosophy (Wheaton College, Chicago), an MA with highest honours in theology (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Boston), and is completing a PhD in theology at Deakin University. He continues an independent ministry in pro-family activism and leads the apologetics/ethics ministry CultureWatch.

 

Kirralie Smith – Founder and director of HalalChoices. Kirralie holds a BA in Theology and lives with her family in coastal New South Wales. What started as an attempt to put together a shopping list for her family led to two years of research into halal certification schemes in Australia; as well as our most comprehensive resource concerning these tax-like schemes now imposed on the majority of our food products.

 

Babette Francis – Born in a now islamised part of India, Babette has an in-depth understanding of Islamic religion and law. She is the national and overseas coordinator for Endeavour Forum, Australia’s leading pro-life, pro-family lobby organization. Babette is a prolific writer and speaks passionately about life and family around the world. She has been lobbying at the United Nations since 1980.

 

Debbie Robinson – President of Q Society of Australia Inc and a fierce lobbyist for Liberty and Australian values. Witnessing a violent anti-Israel rally in the streets of Melbourne led Debbie to question the source of hatred and aggression she saw that day. Realising that the freedom of the Western World is also at stake, Debbie now dedicates her time to raising awareness about the true nature of Islam.