Violence against Indians in Australia controversy

In 2009 there were several reports of violent attacks and robberies on Indian students in Australia, particularly Melbourne. In the 2007-08 financial year there had been nearly 1,500 assaults and robberies on persons of Indian origin in Victoria. Police stated that while they considered some of the attacks may have been racially-motivated, they are more likely part of a broader issue of escalating street violence in Australia. The frequency and ferocity of the assaults garnered significant worldwide attention, with the Indian government making formal protests to the Australian government.

Background

From 2004 to 2009 the number of Indians studying in Australia rose from 30,000 to 97,000. A large proportion came from poorer, rural parts of India, with many seeking permanent residency. The cost of living in many major Australian cities made it necessary for many of these students to live in cheaper, more distant, and less safe suburbs, which had placed them at greater risk of encountering violent crime.

In 2007-2008 international education contributed A$13.7 billion to the Australian economy, measured through all categories of export earnings, including tuition fees, living expenses and tourism associated with visits from relatives. In 2006 India was second only to China as the largest source of students in Australia. International study agents in India reported that several Indian students who had been admitted to Australian universities are reconsidering their plans.

Assaults

Students using public transport late at night found themselves at risk of assault and robbery on trains and at railway stations in Melbourne's western suburbs. Several assaults were carried out by gangs of youths, some armed with baseball bats and golf sticks, and had used racial epiphets. Many victims considered the response by the police and transit authorities to be inadequate, and had consequently organised themselves into their own protective groups to deter victimisation. Sydney students interviewed by ABC's AM programme stated that their attackers were from a range of ethnic backgrounds, where some are described as being of Lebanese or Middle Eastern descent.

Protests

The Federation of Indian Students in Australia claimed the attacks were motivated out of racism and were not being sufficiently addressed by the Australian government, and staged a protest opposite Federation Square in Melbourne. There were allegations that police hit a protester's leg with a baton, and stomped on another student's chest, and that a police officer's hand was bitten. The Victorian Police justified the action, claiming that several non-Indians had joined the protests, and to the consternation of the protest organisers, had hijacked the demonstration and used violence to pursue a separate agenda. In April 2009 a protest took place in Melbourne over attacks on taxi drivers. On 8 June, approximately 300 Indian students staged a protest in Sydney late into the evening in response to an alleged assault, claiming they are considered "soft targets".

Indian reaction

India's High Commissioner, Sujatha Singh, met with Victorian State Premier John Brumby to express her government's concerns over the violence. The issue has been raised in diplomatic talks between Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Domestically, the Indian government declared that it would formulate a policy to deal with racial discrimination against Indians abroad. As part of the initiative to create an institutionalised mechanism to prevent racist attacks on Indians abroad, Vayalar Ravi, the head of the overseas Indian affairs ministry, has been tasked to protect the Indians in Australia. Ravi has called for a report on these incidents from the Indian High Commission in Australia.

Members of the Indian far-right Shiv Sena and student protesters held a demonstration outside the Australian High Commission in New Delhi, where effigies of Kevin Rudd were burnt. Shiv Sena MP Manohar Joshi warned that Australians living or travelling in India could face revenge attacks if Indians living in Australia continued to be targeted in hate crimes. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad, said it would consider an Australian boycott over the bashings if authorities did not do more to protect Hindus in Australia. Indian student organisations called on the Indian government to declare Australia an "unsafe destination for Indian students".

Left-wing politicians and organizations in India have also offered commentary on these incidents. Sitaram Yechury, a member of parliament representing the Communist Party of India (Marxist), has written that both sides of the debate have points. Economic crises and downfalls often cause rising fascism and racism against minorities, such as the rise of Nazi Germany, the Great American Depression, as well as economic downturns in India itself resulting in racist-like violence between various ethnic groups and ultra-nationalist parties in the country. Yechury indicates that the racism directed against Indians in Australia can be explained in this broader context. The left-wing All India Students Federation has also protested against the racial attacks by conducting a candle march at the India Gate, and demanded "stringent action against those behind the brutal attacks on the innocent students"..

The National Students Union of India (which is backed by the centrist Indian National Congress) met the Minister of State of External Affairs, Shashi Tharoor and demanded that the Centre should prevail upon the Australian government to ensure that such incidents do not occur again.

A number of Indians have blamed the Indian media for allegedly blowing the issue out of proportion, noting that their coverage could overcast the real issues faced by students. Others have identified incidents of prejudice in Indian society and have thus questioned India's authority to condemn racism in other countries.

Bollywood's largest labour union declared that its members would refuse to work in Australia until attacks on Indian students there are stopped. Dinesh Chaturvedi, the general secretary,of the Federation of Western India Cine Employees Association has declared that their associates have been instructed not to shoot films in Australia as "the situation is not normal over there".

In response to the issue, Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan turned down an honorary doctorate from the Queensland University of Technology. Fellow Indian actor, Aamir Khan, has condemned the attacks, stating that, "Most disturbing to hear about racist attacks on Indians living in Australia. Quite a shame.While this doesn't mean that all Australians are racists, the frequency and seriousness of such attacks, I think, calls for an extra ordinary reaction from the Australian authorities, and while we want action to be taken by authorities in Australia, equally we should remember all the various crimes against foreigners who visit India."

Australian reaction

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has expressed regret for the attacks and declared that the perpetrators will be brought to justice.

The former head of its elite Special Air Service (SAS) regiment and now National Security Adviser, Duncan Lewis, was charged with leading a taskforce to examine the attacks on Indian students. Lewis chaired the task force’s first meeting and would coordinate Australia’s response to the assaults. The Victorian government is also considering enacting hate crime legislation that would consider prejudicial motivation as a factor in sentencing.

Reaction from the Australian population has been generally sympathetic to the plight of the students. The Australian foreign editor Greg Sheridan criticised as "pathetic" the response from a Victorian government ignorant to the serious economic and human dimensions of the assults. An editorial in the Geelong Advertiser suggested that education institutions should take more consideration of safeguarding student safety, and other factors including inadequate policing numbers and liquor licensing should be addressed. Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt criticised the automatic labelling of Australia as a racist country as unfair, noting comments from foreign victims of crime that their attackers were foreigners themselves.

Yadu Singh, a Sydney cardiologist, who heads a Sydney Indian Consulate committee that assists Indian students, labelled the Indian press' reporting of the incidents as "irresponsible". Dr Singh believed Australians were "outraged with the way Indian media" was smearing the country. He went on to say that other Indians he had spoken to said they are not suffering and that they are doing well in Australia. He also expressed fear that the Indian media reports might lead to backlash against other Indian Australians. Chief executive of Primus, Ravi Bhatia, said the Australian government has shown "excellent sensitivity" towards the issue by announcing a slew of measures like Harmony march, reforms in the state sentencing law and setting up of Task Force to deal with attacks on Indian students.

Other

China has also expressed concern over student safety in Australia. According to official figures, more than 130,000 Chinese students are currently studying in Australia.

New Zealand has responded to these attacks and subsequent incidents. The education sector in New Zealand has moved to distance itself from attacks on Indian students, saying they were "totally different societies". The Chief Executive of Education in New Zealand, Robert Stevens, has stressed to prospective students from India that New Zealand "is a different country from Australia - in the nicest possible way,", and is striving to market New Zealand to Indians in this manner. Education authorities in New Zealand are hoping recent attacks on Indian students in Australia will make New Zealand a more attractive option.

See also

• Crime in Australia
• Gangs in Australia
• Indophobia

External links

• Racial Attacks Trouble Indian Students in Australia - TIME
• 'Curry bashing' draws more protests from Indians in Australia
• Indian Students Claim Epidemic of Racist Violence in Australia - Voice of America