Former US President Barack Obama has issued his first official statement since leaving the Oval Office nine days ago, to respond to President Donald Trump’s temporary travel ban on people from several Muslim-majority countries.
Obama said he “fundamentally disagrees with the notion of discriminating against individuals because of their faith and religion.”
“President Obama is heartened by the level of engagement taking place in communities around the country,” spokesman Kevin Lewis said on his behalf.
“Citizens exercising their Constitutional right to assemble, organise and have their voices heard by their elected officials is exactly what we expect to see when American values are at stake.
"With regard to comparisons to President Obama's foreign policy decisions, as we’ve heard before, the president fundamentally disagrees with the notion of discriminating against individuals because of their faith and religion."
In a statement released yesterday, President Trump said the executive order, which bars citizens of seven nations from travelling to the US for at least 90 days, was "not about religion".
"This is about terror and keeping our country safe. There are over 40 different countries worldwide that are majority Muslim that are not affected by this order," he said in a statement issued Sunday evening, US time.
Obama's statement comes as a 15-year-old schoolboy from Melbourne claims to be the first Australian affected by Trump's travel ban.
Pouya Ghadirian, who was born and raised in Melbourne and holds dual Iranian-Australian citizenship, was refused a non-immigrant tourist visa at the US Consulate office in Melbourne.
He had been planning on travelling to the United States as part of a school trip, where he would visit Orlando, Washington and the US Space and Rocket Centre.
“They were a bit shocked and they didn’t know how to handle it. They said they had terrible news,” Ghadirian told AAP.
“They said it was the first time it had happened in an Australian embassy. I was really and upset when I found out that I couldn’t go and had been looking forward to it for around a year."
Top Comments
I have a huge amount of respect for Barak Obama, but he should be a bit careful not to let his spokesman refer to him as president when he no longer holds office. As a private citizen, of course he's entitled to a view on politics, just like anybody else, and that's how people should respond to his comments.
Barack Obama needs to remember he's had his day, his time has finished and he needs to just shut up and butt out. He's calling for Americans to exercise their right to free speech and protest against something that's temporary and has nothing to do with him. Two things about this piss me off: he knows full well that the American left is, for the most part, incapable of protesting peacefully, therefore, he's inciting rioting. Secondly, he also knows that the seven countries on the list were chosen in 2015 by his administration. The new president is simply ratifying Obama's proposal.
No one should simply "shut up and butt out" when things like this are happening. How is this ban helpful or useful, and how is it not discrimination? Why has Trump conveniently excluded Muslim-majority countries he does business with, even though several of the 9/11 bombers were from Saudi Arabia? Why have a temporary ban now, when there is not a crisis situation in the US? It will only encourage more ill will and home-grown terrorism.
I'd suggest as an American citizen it has everything to do with him
Remember the time in 2011 when President Obama placed a six month ban on Iraqi citizens entering the US for six months and Republicans clogged the streets and the airports, inconveniencing innocent citizens, causing them to miss family weddings, funerals etc? No, neither do I.
The Republicans and right-wing were obstructionists and constantly attacking Obama throughout the past 8 years.
They should expect the same in return.