You can protest, you can protest peacefully, but keep things civil.

Anti-Muslim protests represent a fringe of our society that's seeking to promote hatred and division.

No-one wants to see violence of any kind on our streets, certainly not any violence that's justified by extreme nationalist ideas or that targets people because of their religion.

We have a natural constant craving for leadership. Democracy is always a fragile and imperfect achievement. Yet a distinct feeling of malaise in our political culture lingers. There is something missing from our public debates.

You can protest, you can protest peacefully, but keep things civil.

We know that a large majority of the Australian society is extremely comfortable with a multicultural society, that we accept that living in a democracy means having a freedom to practise your religion within the limits of the law.

If anyone has engaged unlawful activity, they should be held to account with the full force of the law.