Latest news with #BlacktownCityCouncil
ABC News
02-05-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
NSW Police investigate 'offensive graffiti' sprayed on walls at mosque in Sydney's west
Federal ministers have condemned the vandalism of a mosque in Sydney's west sprayed with what police have called "offensive graffiti" targeting the prime minister and migrants. NSW Police has confirmed it is investigating the attack after the Rooty Hill Masjid at Mount Druitt was defaced with the phrases "No migrants", "Hamas Albo", and "Albo liar" in black spray paint. Graffiti removalist crews from Blacktown City Council were first alerted to the vandalism about 11:10am on Friday and were in the process of erasing the paint as dozens of worshippers arrived for midday prayers. NSW Police say they are investigating the attack. ( Supplied: Blacktown City Council ) Just a few hundred metres down from the mosque, resident Ahmed Khanan's house had also been defaced with the same words sprayed on a fence. The council told the ABC it was the second time the home had been vandalised. On Thursday, graffiti removalists were called to the home after similar remarks were painted on the same fence. Mr Khanan's family has lived at the home for more than 25 years and said while his residence had been graffitied years earlier, it had never been politically motivated. He labelled the vandalism as "quite hateful" for the local community. Local resident Ahmed Khanan says the community does not tolerate hate. ( ABC News ) "Historically, Mount Druitt's been targeted, especially because we have quite a lot of migrant families, especially Muslim communities … but nothing like this, to be honest," Mr Khanan said. "It's a bitter pill to swallow for the community but we're just going to have to grow from it. "We don't obviously tolerate hate and we'll stand firm in the community to have a look at this together and we're going to grow." It's not the first time that Mr Khanan's family home has been graffitied. ( Supplied: Blacktown City Council ) Actions 'are criminal' In a statement, the Member for Chifley Ed Husic labelled the vandalism as "disgusting", and said the actions were "not only un-Australian, they are criminal." "Australians of all faiths should expect to worship free from fear and intimidation. They have no place in our society at any time, but especially during an election," the minister for industry and science said. "This is a great mosque that does great work helping others in the community. They don't deserve this treatment and damage to their property." Crews from Blacktown City Council removed the graffiti on Friday. ( ABC News ) Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke also denounced the behaviour. "Vandalism in the form of hate speech at a place of worship has no place in Australia and is condemned without reservation," Mr Burke said in a statement. NSW Police said it was "important that the community and police continue to work together to make NSW a safer place for everyone". "The NSW Police Force takes hate crimes seriously and encourages anyone who is the victim of a hate crime or witnesses a hate crime to report the matter to police." The graffiti has since been removed.
Daily Mail
27-04-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
New curfew rule to keep cats indoors 24/7: What you need to know
Cat owners could be faced with new laws forcing them to lock up their pets or risk hefty fines. Fifteen NSW councils have signalled their support for changes to feline management laws in submissions to a parliamentary inquiry that is in its final stages. The inquiry is examining whether current containment laws for pets, desexing programs and council management resourcing have been effective in controlling feral cat populations. Blacktown City Council sought the power to implement round-the-clock cat curfews, as well as further resources and funding, from the state government. 'We again recommend amending the Companion Animals Act to prevent cats from roaming i.e. 24-hour cat curfew across NSW,' one submission from the council read. 'We recommend councils or other animal welfare entities be provided with funding for large scale incentive programs including desexing, microchipping, registration and subsidised cat containment initiatives.' Lake Macquarie Council in the Hunter region also pushed for cat curfews and funding for desexing programs. Narrabri Shire Council, in northern NSW, wanted the power to euthanise feral cats. The Companion Animal Act currently prohibits individual councils implementing cat containments and curfews. The councils said such powers would give them greater ability to control feral cat reproduction. Northern Beaches, Willoughby City and Shoalhaven City are also among the councils who have suggested they would amend their cat ownership regulations in the Act amendments are approved. Blacktown City Council said they wanted to ensure the council was preserving Australian wildlife. 'Council's Blacktown Animal Rehoming Centre is inundated with cats and kittens all year round,' a spokesman told the Daily Telegraph. He said local cats were breeding uncontrollably. Advocacy director for the Invasive Species Council, Jack Gough, said Australians needed to change their perspective on cats. 'Cats are out killing millions of our native wildlife every day,' he said. 'People want action, councils want action. Right now there are no rules about cat containment, it's a free for all, cats can roam and no one can do anything about it.' Earlier public submissions to the inquiry included accounts written by concerned local wildlife advocates. 'I live in an area bordering the Royal National Park, south of Sydney, which has particularly rich bird life,' one woman wrote. 'Both next door neighbours own pet cats, and neither are kept inside either during the day or at night. This is a big problem. 'We have worked hard to make our property a haven for birds, particularly small birds like fairy wrens, and whipbirds but the neighbours' cats stalk the birds in our garden and there's nothing we can do about it.' Another suggested harsher rules would help educate the public on the dangers cats pose to native animals. 'Implementing a curfew on cats is the first step in changing the general public view to be more aware of the damage cats cause to the native wildlife,' he wrote. Cats kill about 300million native animals each year in Australia, according to the Invasive Species Council. An estimated 1.6million cats live in NSW, while there are a total of 4.9million in the country. Some submissions from the public, however, said it would be unjust to force owners to lock up their pets. 'I am very concerned about the cruelty to cats in our community and it is easy to see that blaming them for the killing of wildlife encourages this cruelty,' one woman wrote. 'Research has shown that cats are not the biggest threat to wildlife, that in fact human activity is the leading cause of extinction.' 'We must prioritise caring for cats kindly, humanely and never forgetting they love their family, their friends - the bonds they build are strong, breaking up a loving family is not on,' another submitted.
