AUSTRALIAN MUSLIMS MORE DEVOUT THAN INDONESIANS

Abu Bakar Bashir has apparently been invited to visit Australia:

The hardline Indonesian cleric, who is believed by the West to be the spiritual head of the al-Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah, said many of Australia's Muslims were more devout than their Indonesian counterparts and had sought him out.

A visit looks unlikely, however:

Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone would not comment on the issue yesterday saying any request by Bashir to enter Australia would be processed by the Immigration Department.

But a spokeswoman for the department said Bashir's criminal convictions mean he would not pass the character test applied to prospective visitors to Australia.