Two years ago the Victoria State Parliament passed the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act to discourage racial and religious hatred and prevent inter-racial violence. This law is now being used to silence Christian education on matters relating to Islam.
In March 2002, just months after the above law was enacted, a seminar on the teachings of Islam was arranged for Christians. Pastor Daniel Scot was the speaker. The meeting was attended by three Muslims who reported back to the Islamic Council of Victoria and they have now begun proceedings against Catch the Fire Ministry, Pastors Scot and Daniel Nalliah. The Islamic Council claim that the defendants were in breach of the above law in that they vilified the Islamic faith.
Freedom of expression
The respondents' defence is that the seminar was in pursuance of religious faith and was a bona fide religious activity. They claim that the contents of the seminar were in the public interest and they were exercising their right to hold opinions without interference and their right to freedom of expression.
