Patrick Carlyon

Melbourne, August 08, 2009 – MANY Muslim women and children, fearing reprisals after this week's alleged terrorist plot was revealed, are said to be too scared to leave their Melbourne homes.

As Somali leaders expressed fears of community anger, reports emerged  of women wearing hijabs being abused and threatened on Melbourne streets.

Somali Community in Victoria president Abdurahman Osman, who branded police terrorists for their raids on 19 houses on Tuesday morning, spoke of a Muslim woman being harassed in Heidelberg.

Mr Osman blamed the police for a potential backlash and said he would counter the labeling of all Somalis as terrorists.

"What I'm afraid of is that some of my people could be killed, some of them could be harmed," Mr Osman said.

One woman reportedly fled abuse by taking refuge in a shop in Sydney Rd, Coburg.

On Tuesday, a teenage girl was abused as a "terrorist" on her way home from school.

A car swerved dangerously close to her on Bell St, Preston, a family friend said.

"Abuse against a Muslim man, I can understand. But against a 15-year-old girl, this is unacceptable," said Awes Amin.

Islamic Women's Welfare Council of Victoria executive director Joumanah El Matrah said some women would stay at home for up to a month until public anger eased, as many did after the September 11 attacks and the Bali, and London Underground bombings.

Many women are reluctant to report incidents.

"A lot of these types of attacks are quite sudden and . . . because of the nature of the attacks, nothing can be done about them," she said.

"We're worried it's going to become an established trend and that women will get used to hiding at home."

Islamic Council of Victoria vice-president Shereen Hassan said it was a difficult time for Muslim women.

"When things like this happen, I just want to stay under my doona all day," she said.

Mr Osman said Somalis living in Australia rejected militant rebel group al-Shabaab for its random slaughter of innocent people in Somalia.

Keyse Hussein, a patron of Mr Osman's Flemington cafe, said most Somalis believed police used excessive force in the raids

Source: Herald Sun

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