SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: IT IS the tale of two schools. The Camden residents' group that fought a Muslim society's proposal for a school in rural Camden has welcomed a Catholic organisation's plans to build a school nearby because "Catholics are part of our community".
The president of the Camden/Macarthur Residents' Group, Emil Sremchevich, said the Catholic school plan "ticked all the right boxes", even though he is yet to see its development application.
"Catholics are part of our community so we should be supporting it on this basis alone. We have to welcome them," Mr Sremchevich told the Herald. "To become part of a community, you need to live in the community. You can't just turn up."
The Quranic Society said Mr Sremchevich's comments were racist but he rejected that tag. "Why is that racist? Why is it discriminatory? It's very simple: people like some things but don't like other things. Some of us like blondes, some of us like brunettes. Some of us like Fords, some of us like Holdens. Why is it xenophobic just because I want to make a choice? If I want to like some people and not like other people, that's the nature of the beast." Mr Sremchevich was among those who applauded a Camden Council decision in May to reject the Quranic Society's application to build a 1200-student school at Burragorang Road, Cawdor. The council said it was refused "on planning grounds" but one resident, Kate McCulloch, said Muslims would not fit into the Camden community. Catholics Welcome, Muslims Not >>> By Sunanda Creagh, Urban Affairs Reporter | September 9, 2008
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