Updated ,first published
The navy’s former most senior Muslim officer has been sacked from the Advisory Board of Multicultural NSW over reposts on LinkedIn about Israel and ISIS.
Captain Mona Shindy was appointed to the advisory board in December, but the acting CEO for Multicultural NSW informed her on Thursday that the governor had accepted a recommendation from Minister for Multiculturalism Steve Kamper that she be removed.
Shindy, the first strategic adviser on Islamic cultural affairs, was due to be announced as a new board member in December, but that was delayed due to the Bondi terrorist attack, according to emails seen by this masthead.
A spokesperson for Multicultural NSW confirmed the decision, saying it was because Shindy “platformed misinformation and conspiracy theories on her social media”.
“As such the NSW government felt her ability to promote unity as part of the Multicultural Advisory Board was no longer tenable,” they said.
The decision was related to two posts on the social media platform LinkedIn that Shindy reposted, but did not write herself.
Shindy left a comment under one saying “Cfbr”, which stands for “commenting for better reach”. She also apologised for her actions in the first of two letters sent to Kamper.
“I wish to reaffirm that to the extent that people have been offended or are upset by my conduct, that it wasn’t my intention. So, for any hurt I have unintentionally caused, I apologise,” she wrote.
In her first letter to Kamper, before his decision, she said after the matter was raised with her on January 21, she “sought very much in good faith to understand the views being put to me”.
“I did accept the argument presented by government officers that at a time of heightened sensitivity and fear, extra care and restraint from posting on sensitive topics might be best.”
She said she had made the first repost to “show concern at the suffering of innocent civilians”. She added the second repost was done not as “an indication of support or agreement” but because “I thought it was interesting that some people have such ideas”.
In a letter on Thursday after she was informed of her removal, Shindy criticised Kamper and said his decision had “fundamentally undermined the statutory objectives of Multicultural NSW”.
“The approach taken in my case has not strengthened cohesion; it has fractured trust not only for me but will do so for many Muslims who call this state home,” she wrote.
“You have applied to me an exceptional and punitive standard – one not applied to others – that sits well beyond the limits of fairness, proportionality, or justification.
“To exclude people of my background and experience now is not only short-sighted; it is profoundly damaging to the social fabric you are charged with protecting.”
Multicultural NSW is a state government body that runs programs intended to promote social cohesion and multicultural harmony.
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Mostafa Rachwani is a Parramatta reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald. He was previously the Community Affairs reporter at Guardian Australia.Connect via email.
