Sydney Council Rejects Lakemba Mosque Adhan Proposal, Community Vows to Revise Plan

IQNA – A proposal to broadcast the Muslim call to prayer once a week from Lakemba Mosque has been turned down by the local council, but community leaders say they remain committed to finding a way forward.

The Canterbury-Bankstown Council recommended rejecting the Lebanese Muslim Association’s (LMA) $22,690 plan to install four loudspeakers on the mosque’s 20-metre minaret.

The proposal sought to project the Adhan every Friday for up to 15 minutes, joining the soundscape of a suburb where church bells already ring in other areas of Sydney.

The decision followed a public consultation from March 19 to April 8. Out of 329 submissions, all but one opposed the plan. Concerns cited by the council included noise impact, possible breaches of height limits, and questions over precedent, according to Sky News.

The LMA said that while the outcome was disappointing, it would review the feedback and submit an amended application.

Secretary Gamel Kheir noted that what began as a routine planning process had drawn intense opposition, some of it laced with hostility. He said the mosque had received death threats and abusive messages, describing some of the objections as “purely based on Islamophobia.”

Kheir said the rhetoric often echoed unfounded claims that “Muslims are taking over the place” or linking the call to prayer to terrorism. He pointed out that many opponents live outside Canterbury-Bankstown and that church bells in other Sydney suburbs have not provoked similar controversy.

Security at the mosque has been increased, including extra CCTV cameras, following the threats.

According to the LMA, the call to prayer would be limited to midday prayers on Fridays, never at night, and was intended to “foster a sense of unity and shared faith” for local worshippers.

While the council’s planning panel accepted that loudspeakers were permissible under the mosque’s zoning, it cited “significant noise impacts” as the reason for rejection.

The LMA says it is willing to provide additional noise assessments and consider adjustments so the Adhan can be introduced in a way that meets both community needs and council requirements.

Source: Agencies