France has been attacked twice in less than a year, while the Lindt Café siege in December 2014 is still fresh in the minds of Australians.

France & Australia – under terror attack

Charlie Hebdo in January and Bataclan concert hall among others in November - Paris is under terror attack twice in one calendar year. One may start wondering if there is anything about the city that makes it more susceptible to such attacks. One may also wonder if Australia may be able to learn from the carnages in France.

France & Australia – multicultural society

France has banned the burqa as well as any prominent religious expression in the judiciary, government and schools. Australia, on the contrary, has repeatedly rejected appeals to ban such religious expressions, allowing each faith its own space. However, both being a multicultural nation accommodate different faiths for coexistence.

France & Australia – data based on religion

France does not collect any data based on religion and ethnicity. That is why it is not possible to calculate how many Muslims live in France. Nevertheless, it is estimated that France accommodates the largest Muslim population in Europe ataround five million.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics recorded 3,404,000 Muslims in Australia in 2006. Islam, one of the major religious affiliations in the country, was 1.7 percent of the total population.

France – discrimination for Muslims

Deakin University academic Greg Barton says there is discrimination against Muslims in terms of employment in France. Many Muslim youths change their name just for equal opportunities in big cities in the country, where more than 30 percent of the unemployed consists of youths.

France – Muslims in jail

While Muslims consist only 7.5 percent of the entire population in France, at least half of the prisoners in the country are Muslims. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, prisons are very likely used for radicalisation.

France & Australia – radicalised youths

The rate of radicalisation is almost the same in Australia and France. France has contributed around 2,000 radicalised Muslims who fight alongside Islamic State militants and other extremist forces in the Middle East. The number for Australia is around 700. While there is a difference in the number, it is almost the same percentage when compared to the national population for each country.

“We've got to keep on doing what we do well – our social cohesion and multiculturalism are working, and are success stories,” Barton said. “But there is something to do with the way ISIS sets up social networks and recruits people.”

France & Australia – attack on ISIS

According to AAP, Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull asked U.S. President Barack Obama to opt for military action against ISIS, indicating Australia’s contribution to the cause in Syria. France, on the other hand, retaliated with air strikes in Raqqa, ISIS’ self-declared capital.

Both France and Australia are a part of the U.S.-led coalition against ISIS in Syria and Iraq.

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