Mega Australian Attack

Attack on Indians in Australia a very
serious matter: India

PTI, Oct 26, 2009, 09.58pm IST
BANGALORE: India on Monday reacted strongly to yet another attack on Indians in
Australia, terming it a "very serious matter" and said measures are needed for the
community's safety there.

A Sikh was punched in his head by a group of Australians who also removed his turban while
he was sleeping at a bus stop in Melbourne.

"Certainly, this matter of attack on people of Indian origin in Australia is a very serious
matter and government of India is very concerned over this matter", external affairs ministry
spokesperson Vishnu Prakash told reporters here.

"The matter has been taken up at the highest level with the Australian side", he said, adding
"measures have to be taken to put an end to this".

Recalling that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had earlier this year spoken to his Australian
counterpart and external affairs minister S M Krishna visited that country in August, Prakash
said "we were assured that Australia follows the policy of zero tolerance".

He said measures had to be taken to "put an end to this ( attacks)" but hastened to add that
Australia had indeed initiated a number of steps like increasing police presence, patrolling
and better lighting in some areas and having mechanisms to interact with Indian students.

Prakash noted there are 90,000 Indian students studying in hundreds of colleges in Australia
where there was a quarter million of people of Indian origin. So, education and immigration
agents are encouraging the process. The role of some of these agents have to "improve" and
"this aspect is being looked into", he added.

Australia has said that by next year, it would audit all the educational institutions to improve
"gaps" in the system, the spokesperson added.

There have been reports about attacks on Indians in Australia for past couple of weeks. It was
labeled racism both by Indians and the media. Now even Australian Police dept have
admitted its racist attack. Indians in Australia and back home are enraged. They have even
retaliated by holding protests and attacking other nationals. One just hopes this is not another
Cry Wolf instance and the sense would prevail before the racism issue gets blown out of
proportion and student community gets polarized on campuses all over the world.
Petty crime is an urban reality in all cities all over the world. Harris Park in Sydney seems to
be yet another crime infested areas and unfortunately many Indian students live in that
locality. It would be better if overall crime rate is taken into account rather than just focusing
on attack on one particular community and coloring it to be racism issue. Media, Police
dept, Australian government and Indian government must really trudge carefully.
Indian student community is spread all over the world. And thanks to globalization most
universities have students of all nationalities. Even if locals attack foreign students it is more
because of lack of education and job opportunities for the local poor communities. Crime
rates are going up precisely for the similar reasons. Tag of racism will only complicate,
polarize and sow seeds of hatred. Urban realities are different now. Racism is pass. It is
better to look deeper into reasons of crime.
Via The Sydney Morning Herald
9 Responses to Attack on Indians in Australia: Is it Racism?
1.
Jaiyant Cavale said on Thursday, June 11, 2009, 22:45
Indians have always used the Race Card to attract attention. This time around
however, they have become notorious. The world finally gets to see to what extent
these uncouth people can go to.
2.
Raymond said on Friday, June 12, 2009, 4:24
Hi Jaiyant,
Its really sad that you think like that, but its not what you think is important. If you are
following up on the news and the developments in Australia then you will get to know
the real story.
These attacks are not random, but it is also not about race it is about a bunch of people
who are taking these attackes to the front doors of the indians living in Aus.
I have studied in Aus and did not have a single incedent of this kind, but physically
attacking people is not what Aus stands for and it is basically sending a wrong image
to people.
Indians dont need to grab the world attention, and we have the brains to understand
when things are wrong and when it id done to our fellow men.
3.
Jaiyant Cavale said on Friday, June 12, 2009, 13:30
Well any violence needs to be condemned. But any distortion of facts (like Indian
media is doing so) needs to be condemned as well.
to people.
You said it yourself Raymond.. It is a reality that has been distorted by Indian media
and sensationalize and racialize the issue. It is doing more harm to Indians than good.
I can give you accounts of several incidents perpetrated by Indians in India against
Whites and Blacks. (many rapes and murders happen against foreign nationals). Do
they scream Racism at every instance?
Crime exists everywhere and outsiders need to maintain a low profile or assimilate
with the local culture. One cannot be loud and brash and expect to be ignored by
thugs at night.
4.
Chor said on Sunday, June 14, 2009, 18:52
You blaming Australians for Racial Attacks? Why not blaming Kashmeeri Muslims
for killing Kashmeeri Pandits and driving them out of the valley? Why you still allow
city names like Aurangabad which means long live aurangzeb the killer of
Hindus? Leaving your own house cleaning you are going ahead blaming Australians!
just cos those poor people cant come here and vote? SHAME ON You all
AUSTRALIA BASHERS Chor
5.
Jaiyant Cavale said on Sunday, June 14, 2009, 22:41
Hey Chor, we are standing by Australians when they need support. We are supporting
Australians.
http://trendsupdates.com/indian-protests-is-race-card-being-used-too-often/
6.
Madhuri Katti said on Sunday, June 14, 2009, 22:50
Thanks Chor for the comment. But I hope you are not talking about the article. I have
clearly stated that racism is a non-issue here but being made into one by media and
others.
7.
Caroline said on Wednesday, June 24, 2009, 11:54
hey jaiyant,
its good that you are supporting austrailians. But dont you think that the video which
was shown on televisions was very unjust. Beating up people like this for no ryme n
reason.was it just???? But one thing is true that we indians have this bad habit of
being in lime light n thats the reason that we catch up little topics to get publicity.
8.
Ravi said on Wednesday, July 8, 2009, 15:47
Hai everybody,
Since i have never been outside india i cant really comment upon the general
behaviour of the people in australia. But what i feel is first off all we need to stop
racial behaviours inside india. I have seen lot of people throw racial comments over
the south indians .treating them like an outsider and not giving helping hand if any
south indian is in need of help out of his state. It is not only with the south indians but
it is true all over india with haves and have nots. CONCLUSION Still people dont
allow a SC/ST inside their house or even they dont have the previlege to enter a
templewe need to wake up first and then blame others.
9.
Matt said on Saturday, June 12, 2010, 14:16
Great article! As an Australian perhaps I could be seen as biased, but I do not think
there would be much racial motivation behind the attacks. Many Australians, it is true,
are racist to an extent. But this is because of ignorance rather than any actual deeply
held dislike to a certain group. Most couldnt care one way or another.
Also, if you look at the statistics, only about 80% of Australians are white/anglo
saxon. With such a diverse group, it is hard to connect the charge of racism to all
attacks.
Anyway, great article, and I hope people from the Indian subcontinent continue to
visit and emigrate here to enrich this nation.

Attacks on Indian students the product of a racist society
.
Allyson Hose 29 January 2010

Thousands demonstrate against racism in 2009
The rising numbers of horrific attacks on Indian students in Australia are the most
recent manifestations of the racism that always fuels Australian capitalism. Escalating
violence has had terrible consequences for many Indian students whove been
targeted, then beaten and maimed. Recently one young man, Jaspreet Singh, was set
on fire. The most vicious attack so far left Nitin Garg, a university graduate and young
worker, dead murdered on his way to work on 2 January this year.
The government and the authorities have known about the rise in attacks on Indian
students for a long time. Long enough to have taken some action in support of
international students and, perhaps, avoided Nitin Gargs tragic death. Victorian Police
figures reveal that 1082 people of Indian descent were victims of a crime in the twelve
months to June 2007. This figure rose to 1447 people in the twelve months to July
2008. Looking at the numbers, the Sydney Morning Herald noted that Victorian
Indians are 2 times more likely than non-Indians to be beaten up or knifed.
But the police and the government unconcerned about the fate of a few foreign
students but very concerned about preserving Australias $A15 billion international
student market have kept insisting that Australia has no problem with racism. In
July last year, Immigration Minister Chris Evans described the Indian medias reports
of racist attacks in Australia as hysterical and insisted that were a multicultural
society and we dont have racist attitudes to people.
Such lies have been parroted again and again by politicians, even in circumstances
that youd think deserve just a dash of compassion. Four days after Nitin Garg was
murdered, Julia Gillard was blithely downplaying the attack in the media, saying, In
big cities around the world we do see acts of violence from time to time
At the end of January Kevin Rudd was still refusing to respond to questions about
Australias racism, saying at a press conference Regrettably, there have been some
incidents recently, lets accept that, but lets put it into context
The message, and the context, is clear. Injured or murdered Indian students dont rate
highly enough to be acknowledged or mourned they will be painted as random
casualties, deserving only grudging recognition in a ten-second sound bite.
The Australian media has begun to demonstrate its own capacity for hysteria as the
failure of the governments strategy of downplaying the racist attacks becomes clearer
each day. Their hysteria is not about the waste of human life however, its about the
potential loss of profits in the education sector if international students, scared off by
racism, stop buying their education in Australia.
Australias billion-dollar international student market, the countrys third-biggest
export earner, has already taken a hit. From July to October 2009, there was a 46 per
cent drop in Indians applying for student visas for Australia compared to the same
period in 2008. Student visa applications to Australia from all countries (including
India) fell by 26 per cent from July to October 2009.
Australias Tourism Forecasting Committee says that the number of Indian students
studying here is projected to fall by about 20 per cent this year. The committee has
blamed the rise in attacks for the drop in student numbers, with chairperson Bernard
Salt saying the downturn is expected in response to concerns that the Indian
community have had about safety.
The great irony is that its the same people who rely upon racism to run society who
are now worried about its impact on the profits flowing into Australia from
international students. Rudd and Gillard are happy to play the race card to justify their
war on terror, their refugee policy or their Intervention into Aboriginal communities
in the Northern Territory. Racism in itself isnt an issue for them they simply want to
be able to scapegoat various groups when it suits them, then move on smoothly to the
next target.
Thugs on the street are targeting Indian students on a day-to-day basis, but the
message coming from the top of society is that its fine to scapegoat and engage in
racist violence. The Australian government will make mealy-mouthed statements,
dressed up in euphemisms, and nothing will change.
Or theyll do as the Victorian government has done and recruit idiots like Shane Warne
to help soothe tensions, then use the racist incidents as an added justification for
increasing police powers to routinely target and harass young people, particularly
those who are not white.
The appalling response of the police and the government to the racist attacks against
Indian students clearly demonstrates that a solution to racism in Australia can never
include any portion of the bile that our leaders spew out to the media. Denying the
racism that exists, covering it up, attempting to spin the debate using inarticulate
sports celebrities, or looking to reactionary solutions such as increased policing will
never stop the racist outrages that occur regularly in Australian society. The only way
to do this is to follow the example of Indian students themselves to confront racism,
protest, and organise to defeat the racists.

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2009-06-01 16:29

THE RECENT attacks on Indian students studying in Australia have attracted global attention. This rabid
cultural and racial menace has attracted worldwide condemnation. One Sravan Kumar Theerthala was
hit with petrol bottles by some unidentified teens while he was reading book in his house at Melbourne.
Baljinder Singh, another student from India studying in Melbourne, was robbed and stabbed in his
abdomen. Both are struggling for life in hospitals. Sravans condition is reported to be very critical, he is
still in coma.
In a separate incident, four students were attacked and burgled by racist elements in Australia. One
Suketu Modi, a businessman from Surat, was attacked in train by a group of students when he had gone
there for IT business. According to students organisations, these racist attacks have been taking place
in Australia for quite some time; most of them went unreported. According to a report, about 20 racial
attacks on Indians have taken place last month in Sydney alone.
CONCLUSION Australia, interestingly, is not the only country where rabid faces of racism have been
raising heads. Such dastardly incidents have been taking place in countries like UK, Germany, France
and some African and Gulf countries.
This incident has raised a very perturbing question, which every one of us would like to ponder about
and like to find consolable if not acceptable answers.
Reasons of such attacks: It is too simplistic a proposition to categorically brand them as acts of
criminal or opportunistic activities as uttered by Australian High Commissioner and DCP Melbourne, John
McCarthy. The former has, however, not denied that some racist elements might have been involved in
what he called Shameful criminal acts.

If not the global society, Indian civil society must quest reasons behind it; after all why Indians are
being attacked everywhere? It seems that the existence of these vestigial racial elements even in
cultural, plural societies does have other hidden reasons apart from ostensible causes. Chagrin does not
prevail in Australia; and even Australian media lamented only after vociferous diplomatic and societal
protests at home.
Economic: India has written stories of astounding success in economic fields; thanks to flooded brilliant
young brains in fields of science and technology, management and other frontier areas. Our IITs, IIMs,
and plethora of business and other schools have produced best brains in the world. The campus
selections by MNCs and TNCs over a couple of decades have been a matter of concern to the students of
those countries, which have been destinations of our smart English speaking IT-BPO guys for obvious
reasons. Many of them feel that their job opportunities are being eaten up by Indians. Many guys
working in MNCs and TNCs in countries like the US, the UK, Australia, Germany and a host of other such
developed countries have faced similar acts of discrimination. Many of such incidents go unreported for
simple reason; as the victims have to run from pillar to post once FIR is registered.
Student community particularly do not like to be involved in legal wrangles because they think that they
have come here not to fight legal battle but to complete their studies and make careers. They are also
tormented by the lackadaisical, callous and sometimes, ignorant attitude of police. For instance, in
Australia, the police did not act till the matter was blown out of their capacity to hold. According to
Forbes; about US$ 13 billion is spent by Indian students abroad annually. Australia alone has a US$ 15.5
billion business with foreign students and as many as 1 lakh Indian students study in Australian at
present.
According to an estimate about 8.3 lakh Indian students are studying in countries like the US, the UK,
Russia, France, Australia, etc. Needless to say, those going abroad for higher studies belong to affluent
class of the society. The number of High Net Income (HNI) individuals in India has swelled for some
years. Like many other areas, the lopsided development in the field of education has created a
dangerous in-equilibrium. The affluence of these students studying abroad or working guys, who earn
handsome salaries in MNCs, betrays in their lifestyles and attracts opportunistic activities by teens, who
have been already suffering from a sense of inferiority complexes. These complexes find expression in
such opportunistic acts blended with racism.
Sociological and educational: With the passage of time, the colonies have gained independence from
colonial powers. The European countries are finding their erstwhile colonies rubbing shoulders in
gatherings at International forums. The sense of hatred unconsciously precipitates in their mind and find
expression in such abhor able acts of racial attacks. History has tough us to be proud of our past. Their
past had been excellent but future is full of intense competition which extra-individualistic. In the
present global financial regime, every one, may it be individual or nation has to find a place for itself not
on the basis of its past but on the basis of its present.
The economic hegemony of the US is all set to nosedive. The American Tsardom in financial market is
likely to be over. The global financial crisis (GFC) has bashed the US, the pain of which is still
emanating. Asian giant China has purchased US$ 1.3 trillion worth US Treasury Bills. A sense of chagrin
prevails in USA, what a travesty; once lender has become a borrower. The Chinese export juggernaut
into the US has changed the entire economic power structure. Protectionist measures taken by the USA
and host of developed nations have these social and psychological dimensions also. The sense of
frustration is obvious in younger minds because their economic future is not as secure as it had been
decades ago.
Ethical and moral:
There is no denying the fact that economic development in India has changed our lifestyles and cultural
traits to a great extent. Still then, our social, family, and religious ethos, which have deep roots, have
not eroded to the extent of disappearance. Religious tolerance and non-violence are still way of our
lives. When our boys go abroad we preach them to be adherent to these ethos. In spite of state of
attacks, students in Australia decided to take out a peace march rather than taking to streets. Normally
such incidents meet violent backlashes. But the kind of restraint, which has been showed by Indians in
Australia and abroad, is suggestive of the fact that ethos of non-violence and Satyagraha are still alive in
our soul and the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi are inculcated in our way of life. These characteristics of
ours have been taken by many nations as timidity and cowardice. After all, what explains when two teen
attacked four students and went un-retaliated, physically they could have not only been overpowered
but thrashed also.
Progress and affluence of students studying abroad do manifest in their lifestyles, which tempt these
racist elements to attack that serves twin purpose; on the one hand they snatch something from them
and on the other it satiates their hidden desire of inferiority complex.
Racism in Australia towards Indian
students?Bottom of Form

There has been a lot of news lately on Racism in Australia in particular towards Indian students. Last week
Indians rallied in Melbourne for a peaceful protest against racism.
There are news stories that have spread all over the world and Im pretty disappointed in the way that Australia is
being portrayed. My friends and I were talking and had no idea what was going on, except what was on the news.
I love people from other cultures, and had not seen the types of exploitation or violence that was being discussed
about in the news, I had to dig through many websites to find out what the media was talking about on TV it
seemed so sinister and scary, and that Indians have to fear for their life, etc..? What is that about, its certainly
not the reality I know. The media is scaring people from coming here over some robberies and a stabbing of an
Indian student. Maybe Im being naive, but robberies and stabbings happen in capital cities all over the world do
they not? Stay safe, dont go anywhere, dont do anything? The robberies are happening in one part of
Melbourne that even us Aussies hate to travel at night my sister wont even let me park in those train stations
because of the "dodgy" types that hang out there. Its not just a racial attack when you are talking about those
areas of Melbourne, its more a case of avoiding those areas no matter who you are and the problem is that a
lot of international students and unemployed people choose to live in those areas because the accommodation
there is very cheap. Of course, the media have a lot to do with the way that everything is being portrayed, and I
share a couple of those videos below. You can see one side of the story by watching the news, usually a one-
sided out of proportion scary story because those are the types of stories that make it "global" and get more
viewers. There are dodgy areas in every country that people need to be extra careful to avoid, and Im pretty
disappointed that this point seems to have been missed. On the upside, maybe by having a police presence in
these areas, and other security precautions, it may make those areas safer, so perhaps these news stories will
allow more funding to the local police in those areas to be able to make those streets safer, and an overall look at
all the problems that all international students face in Australia, could prove beneficial by it being so global news
right now, especially now that the politicians are now "right in the spotlight" and will have to "Do Something"
because of all the media attention.
Overall, despite Australias bad-publicity about it, I do believe positive things will come from it, especially for
International students.
Exploitation of students by employers, rogue colleges mistreating students, landlords demanding high rents for a
small room only, racial attacks involving Indian students followed by an Indian student protest in the heart of
Melbourne and outrage in politics while students in India burnt the Aussie flag. It all sounds very `Un-Australian`.
But it happened last week and it could happen again. A lot has been said about the robbery and assault of Indian
students in Melbourne. [Read Full Article - Source: Kangaruni.com Proud to be Australian?] Is Australia a racist
country and unsafe for foreign students?
The following couple of videos is whats being shown on the news down here in Australia:
This first video is an 8 minute report about the situation from the ABC news. "Tensions have been simmering for
some time now because when the students get here the promised lifestyle is not what they were told back home.
The students studying in the capital cities find themselves having to rent houses in the outer suburbs and doing
night jobs to make ends meet." There are many university students which dont have their college
accommodation, so that is why we are going to the suburbs,
The second video is another news story from the ABC. This is a news story on International student issues
(mainly Indian) in Australia. Also interviews many people including Federation of Indian Students of Australia.
This third video is one Id really like you to watch if you are reading this. Some Sydney University students went
out to interview actual international students to find out what they really think (not just what the media is making
headlines) and whether students really believe that Australians are Racists. "We hit the streets for guerilla style
interviews to see what real people think."
In my opinion, it is difficult for any student studying in capital cities to make ends meet if they are not fully
prepared before they come here, its hard to get a job if you dont have the skills (even for locals), harder if you
dont have English fluency because you are judged in the interview room and are up against those who are
fluent in English, and the living expenses are much higher. Any student coming to Australia who are worried
about the cost of living, could consider studying in a quieter, cheaper, rural environment rather than a capital city,
the expenses will be much cheaper, although it is much harder to get a job in a rural area as well unless you are
not fussy about the kind of work you do.
These types of news stories happen all over the world, not just in Australia, although now that the news has
reached global publicity and gone "political", I hope that a greater good will come of it and that more awareness
is made of the types of problems foreign students and immigrants face in Australia so that good change is made
to rectify the current problems.
As one of the most multicultural countries in the world, Australia is accepting of all cultures, and all religions and
your right to practice your faith without persecution or discrimination is protected by law. University and vocational
education and training (VET) institutions often have prayer rooms on campus, and there are many places of
worship representing all faiths in towns and cities around the country.
Although I know that racism exists within Australia (and everywhere in the world), I am one of many who believe
its not the majority who are racists, and that most people are welcoming of foreigners and find it exciting and
interesting to meet with people from different cultures, I have seen first-hand that even those that are vocally
against foreigners, are still culturally tolerant and will smile and talk to those that they claim to not like. I have
worked with people from almost every country in the various jobs Ive had over the years and have not seen the
problems that are shown on the media now, even when I worked in Melbourne. Im not naive to think that there
isnt problems at all I do believe that Australia has a lot of work to do with regards to opening up their
understanding of the different cultures, but I also agree that its still one of the most safest and best countries in
the world to live, work, and study, and is a country that is generally very much accepting and welcoming of
people from other cultures.
Related Articles "In the News" this week:
Gilchrist to the rescue
Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney,New South Wales,Australia on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:08:21 -0700
A prominent member of Sydneys Indian community has dismissed as "entirely futile" a planned rally in the city
centre today to highlight assaults on Indian
Indian student body in Australia concerned over anti-Indian Indians
MSN India, Bangalore,Karnataka,India on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 05:20:46 -0700
Melbourne: An organisation representing Indian students in Australia said Saturday it was "quite disturbed" over
how some "anti-Indian Indians" here were
Cine federation appeals to producers to avoid shooting in Aus
Indopia, India on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:11:52 -0700
Mumbai , Jun 6 In the backdrop of attacks on Indian students in Australia, a federation of cine
employees&aposunions has appealed to its members and the
Northeast students question racism in India
Smash Hits, India on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:08:23 -0700
Guwahati, June 6 (IANS) With stars in their eyes hordes of students from Indias northeast region head towards
various parts of the country during admission
Indians passive by nature? Dont add insult to injury
WA today, Perth,WA,Australia on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:03:28 -0700
INDIAN students have some strange friends in Australia. One major columnist condemned attacks on Indian
students last week, deeming them especially odious .
No pattern of violence against Indian students
Times Now.tv, Mumbai,Maharashtra,India on Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:11:15 -0700
Bashing and stabbing attacks on five Indian men in Melbourne prompted a mass protest involving earlier this
week that gridlocked a major city centre
Bollywood body boycotts Australia following racial attacks
However, there are those who believe the attacks should not be allowed to affect the Indian entertainment
industrys ties with Australia.
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3 Comments on Racism in Australia towards Indian students?
1. admin
Commented on June 6, 2009 at 9:29 pm |
Found a website today for Indians living in Australia, so thought Id post it here so that other Indians who
may be reading this might be interested in visiting: http://indians.australians.com/
2. rolly
Commented on November 17, 2009 at 4:20 am |
In light of the recent attacks on Indian students in Australia, Association of Australian Education
Representatives in India (AAERI), the self-regulatory body of education agents and an initiative of
Australian Education International (AEI), is working closely with Indian and Australian government to
weed out any issues that concern the security of Indian students in Australia.
AAERI has been working towards reinforcing Australias standing as a high quality education destination
for all genuine students and is strongly lobbying with the government bodies in India & Australia to
ensure that Australia remains a high quality education destination.
Thus, to accelerate its agenda of ensuring the safety of Indian students studying in Australia, AAERI has
developed an 8 point Action Plan to address challenges faced by Indian students in Australia
http://www.aaeri.org/
Who is killing Indians in Australia?
March 8, 2010
Who is killing Indians in Australia? An open letter to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
Rajeev Srinivasan on enough weasel-wording, some action needed now
Dear Prime Minister Rudd,
Allegations about systematic racist attacks on Indians in Australia have echoed in India for
some time. But the gruesome murder of a 3-year old Indian boy is a game-changer. Gurshan
Singh Channa, whose mother is a student, was abducted from his parents residence,
murdered and dumped about 20 miles away. This goes beyond what civilized people can
tolerate.
The incident is reminiscent of the infamous kidnapping and murder of the small son of
Charles Lindbergh, American aviation hero of the 1930s. The murderer was sent to the
electric chair. Indians have the right to expect nothing less than the arrest and conviction of
the murderer of young Gurshan. The Australian government must act with the full force of its
forensic powers to track down the killer(s) immediately. When an Australian named Graham
Staines was killed in India some years ago, the Indian government worked overtime to solve
the case; diligence on your part would be simple courtesy.
I understand that an India taxi-driver has been named the suspect in the case, but even if he is
proved to be the murderer, what about all the other cases where your police have admitted
they have no clue?
The ongoing attacks on Indian students in Australia, which has led so far to several deaths,
have been downplayed by your government. The standard line has been that attacks on
Indians are random acts of violence by anti-social elements. Occasionally, the Indians were
also blamed for putting themselves in danger; some official even told the students to conceal
their iPods and cellphones, suggesting that the motive was simple robbery, and implying that
it was their own fault for flaunting their stuff.
Blaming the victim is, shall we say, unusual? There have been cases in Australia where
defendants in rapes suggested that the women brought it upon themselves by wearing skimpy
clothing. I dont remember this line of thinking being considered acceptable by the courts.
The obvious question: how come nobody is robbing Chinese students, or African students, or
Arab students, all of whom are visibly different from native (white) Australians, and who
should, by the same logic, be equally subjected to harassment, beatings, murders?
Nobody has an answer, so the next logical hypothesis is that there exists a group of people
with particular animosity towards Indians: that is to say, these are racist hate crimes. But
nobody in Australia has had the guts to admit it; however, now with the brutalization of a
small child, there is no more room for beating about the bush someone is targeting Indians
in Australia, and it is the moral and legal duty of the federal government to find out who it is
and to stop them.
It is interesting to compare the general Indian experience in the US, which I am personally
familiar with, to the Indian experience in Australia, which I have heard about from Indian
students. In the US, barring some discrimination and an occasional casual epithet thrown
ones way, there has practically been no sustained violence against Indians since the 1960s
(if you forget certain incidents early in the last century when anti-Asian and anti-brown laws
were in force).
In the past year or two, there was a disturbing series of murders of students from the state of
Andhra Pradesh, which led some to speculate that there were contracts being put out back
home, but nothing was proven. But it must be acknowledged that there were three singular,
barbaric acts in the US in the last thirty years: Navroze Mody was beaten to death with
baseball bats by teenagers in Hoboken, New Jersey; Charanjit Singh Aujla was shot to death
by plain-clothes policemen in his own liquor store in Jackson, Mississippi; and Khem Singh,
a 72-year-old Sikh priest, was starved to death in a prison in Fresno, California. Otherwise,
Indians have felt welcome in the US, on average.
The experiences of Indians in Australia, according to long-term residents, have been good.
Many say they have felt little overt discrimination or racism. A large number of Anglo-
Indians, of mixed Indian and white ancestry, emigrated to Australia around the time the
British left India and because of the shared colonial experience, I assume there was a
certain wry recognition of the damage the British did to both countries: a Gallipoli in one
case, a Jallianwallah Bagh in the other.
Speaking from the Indian side, there is a appreciation for the well-marketed Australian image
(exemplified in the US by Crocodile Dundee and in India by witty Fosters ads) of the place
being full of blokes having a rollicking good time. Then there is, of course, cricket. Although
I am personally indifferent to the game, many rabid Indian fans are great admirers of the
Australian team, generally considered the best in the world in recent years.
Thus, Indians start off with residual goodwill towards Australia, although, sad to say, this has
not been reciprocated at the official level. Australia has in the past acted as the enforcer in
nuclear-related matters, and your government has been forcefully arm-twisting India
regarding the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (alas, that would be suicidal with bellicose
nuclear powers China and Pakistan next door). Besides, you appear to have made a conscious
decision to put all your Asia eggs in the China basket. Official relations with India have been
chillier than they need to be.
On the face of it, still, it is baffling to Indians that students who are spending billions in
tuition fees are being murdered by Australians. It simply doesnt seem in keeping with the
Australian character that has been marketed to us; or for that matter, with the Australians I
have personally encountered they seem too easy-going to plan mass-murder. Of course,
appearances being deceptive, I am aware that the treatment of, say, Aborigines, wasnt
exactly pretty. I too have seen The Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith, and incidentally I have
enjoyed Breaker Morant and Picnic at Hanging Rock.
There is an emerging hypothesis in India that it is not hate-filled whites behind the attacks on
Indians; rather that it is immigrants of certain ethnicities who may have a grudge against
Indians or are picking on them because of the known tendency of Indians to be pacifist. I
understand there are many ethnic gangs in your country, and that there are no-go areas where
law-enforcement fears to tread. Well, thats really no way to run a country. I submit that you
simply have to do something about it.
Both from an ethical angle and from a trade angle, booming India (growing at 8% this year)
is too big a market for Australia to lose. At the very least, you need a second buyer of your
raw materials lest China gain too much buyer power and dictate terms, glimmerings of which
we saw with the Rio Tinto affair.
No, Mr. Prime Minister, as America declines, and Asia rises, it would be strategically unwise
to alienate one of your potential allies. India will be growing faster than China in a few years
time as the demographic dividend kicks in. And India would be happy to have Australia as a
supplier for various strategic goods. It would be a shame if all this is thrown away because
you cannot offer Indians physical protection from a bunch of violent thugs. You need to, as
Indians are surely an industrious and inoffensive ethnic group in your melting-pot.
Sincerely,
Rajeev Srinivasan, a concerned Indian
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1 Comment
One Response to Who is killing Indians in Australia?
1. samh78 Says:

March 20, 2010 at 11:14 pm
My Dear Mr Srinivasan,
Thank you so much for your letter. I am so pleased to hear from you on this matter.
The death of Gurshan Singh shocked the nation and indeed we set out to find the
person responsible as soon as possible. The gruesome death (not murder)of a 3-year
old Indian boy is a game-changer. This is indeed a predicament how does the
Australian government prevent Indians from killing other Indians in Australia?
Perhaps the Indian government could assist though your thoughts on this would also
be welcome. I have heard many of your proud compatriots suggest we not allow
people from the Punjab state to enter the country (as the British are now looking to do
in their own way) though Ive dismissed this as racist nonsense and quite shocking
frankly as I always assumed India was a nation completely free from prejudice and
discrimination. Please help.
There is of course the question of Nitin Garg the other case where our police have
admitted they have no clue. He was unfortunately a victim of crime like so many
other people in this otherwise wonderful country, whose murderers are yet to be
found, people of all ages and races. Given the amount of attention to Indian media has
given to Mr Gargs death, I can only assume the Indian media and government will do
the right thing and afford all these other victims of unsolved murders the same
attention despite the fact they are not Indian.
And thank you kindly for your submission that we really need to do something about
the ethnic gangs and no go zones in our country. In fact this point has been
bothering me greatly of late and Ive decided to send a high level fact finding mission
to India to see the worlds best practice on how this is done. After all, given all the
advice the powers that be in India have offered us, one can only assume there are no
unsolved murders in India, there is no sectarian, political or tribal violence, no
prejudice between the communities of different Indian states. We must also assume
that these reports of dowry killings, infanticide, gendercide and the thousands of
deaths we hear about due to poor safety standards in India have no basis in fact
whatsover or perhaps more accurately, they are a product of the British imperialist
legacy.
Separately, I noted with great sadness a report in the Hindustan Times recently about
an Indian store clerk in Kansas in the US who was murdered in his job
http://www.hindustantimes.com/indians-abroad/indiansabroadnews/Gunman-kills-
US-store-clerk-working-final-shift/Article1-520791.aspx.
Similarly, I read this a report about a Sikh shopkeeper in the UK who was killed on
the job http://www.hindustantimes.com/indians-abroad/europe/Murdered-Brit-Sikh-
shopkeeper-had-talked-of-quitting/Article1-512036.aspx
Notwithstanding the fact these are isolated incidents and the no other Indian has ever
been attacked in these two countries, I hope we can also turn our attention to the
plight of your compatriots in other western nations as well with the same vigour India
has sought redress in Australia.
And I was so glad to hear you have seen some of the finest Australian movies and that
this has helped shape your views about the Australian treatment of aborigines. I have
been encouraging all the staff at our Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to
watch that wonderful film Slumdog Millionaire and to use that as a template for
understanding Indian society better.
Correct me if Im wrong but from your letter I infer that you have never been to
Australia? That most of what you know about our country is based on Indian media
reports, third hand accounts or movies from the 1960s to 1980s? Id like to extend a
hearty invitation to you to visit this great land and see with your own eyes the
wonderful time many of your countrymen are having.
Finally, I need to address the matter of trade. We too are excited by the trade
possibilities that arise from our rich resources and your emerging market. But as yet,
we dont feel we have the need for Indian-made products, despite the very high
standard of workmanship. Nor do we feel the time is right to provide India with the
uranium it has been eagerly seeking. With the greatest respect, were yet to feel
confident about Indias ability to handle this material. I hope you understand.
Yours sincerely,
K. Rudd, a concerned Australian
March 8, 2010
tolerate.
they have no clue?
and to stop them.
were in force).
Sincerely,
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1 Comment
1. samh78 Says:

March 20, 2010 at 11:14 pm
legacy.
Yours sincerely,
Violence against Indians in Australia
controversy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

Indian students protesting on 31 May 2009, in Melbourne, blocking Swanston and Flinders Streets.
In May and June 2009, Indian media reported what it saw to be racially motivated attacks
against Indians, especially students. Rallies were organised in Melbourne and Sydney, and
intense coverage of the perceived hate crimes commenced in India, being especially critical
of Australia and Australian police services. The Australian government initially called for
calm as it investigated the attacks. People from a range of different ethnic backgrounds
perpetrated attacks
[1]
and investigations revealed that at least two of the later attacks were
perpetrated by Indians and "had nothing to do with race".
[2]
The Victorian Chief
Commissioner declared that some of the attacks were racist in nature, or that they
incorporated racist elements.
[3]
Reaction from the Australian population was generally
sympathetic to the plight of the students.
[4]
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 assaults.
[5]

Contents
[hide]
1 Background
2 Chronology of events
o 2.1 2007-2008 attacks
o 2.2 April 2008 Indian taxi driver protest
o 2.3 May 2009 Indian student protests
o 2.4 January 2010 protests
3 Reactions
o 3.1 Media coverage
o 3.2 Racism
o 3.3 Statistics controversy
o 3.4 Educational, policing and safety issues
o 3.5 Need for a mechanism to prevent attacks on Indians abroad
4 Aftermath
o 4.1 Bollywood reaction
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
[edit] Background
Indian students comprise the second largest group of international students in tertiary
education in Australia. From 2004 to 2009 the number of Indians studying in Australia rose
from 30,000 to 97,000 with 45,000 of these living in Melbourne.
[6][7][8]
Some come from the
rural parts of India, with most coming to Australia to seek permanent residency.
[6][9][10]
Eapen
Verghese argued in an opinion piece that the cost of living in Australian cities has made it
necessary for many of these students to live in cheaper and more distant suburbs, where there
is an increased risk of encountering violent crime.
[6]
Others have argued that Indian student
face discrimination and exploitation in housing and jobs.
[11]

In 2007-2008, international education contributed AU$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.
[12]
Inder Panjwani, General
Secretary of the Association of Australian Education Representatives in India (AAERI) stated
there was a possibility that a few Indian students who had been admitted to Australian
universities might cancel their admissions [because they feared attacks].
[13]

[edit] Chronology of events
[edit] 2007-2008 attacks
In the financial year 2007-2008, 1447 Indians were attacked in Victoria.
[14]

[edit] April 2008 Indian taxi driver protest
On 29 April 2008, in Melbourne an estimated five hundred Indian taxi drivers protested at
Flinders Street Station with a sit-in protest following the death of a taxi driver.
[15]
There was a
similar protest on 19 May 2008 in Adelaide, where about fifty taxi drivers protested after an
assault on an Indian taxi driver.
[16]
The Victorian Government brought in mandatory safety
shields later that year, but this was met with protests because of the costs.
[17]

[edit] May 2009 Indian student protests
After a number of incidents in May 2009, on 31 May 2009, over 4000 Indian Students staged
a protest opposite Federation Square in Melbourne, saying the attacks were motivated out of
racism and were not being sufficiently addressed by the Australian Government.
[18]
One
report said "Along with more police protection, the students also want a multicultural police
section, and on-site accommodation for Indian students at all universities and colleges".
[19]
18
protesters were arrested.
On 31 May 2009, In Melbourne India's High Commissioner, Sujatha Singh, met with
Victorian State Premier John Brumby to express her government's concerns over the
violence.
[20]
On 1 June 2009, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh phoned Prime Minister
Kevin Rudd to express his concerns .
[21]

On 1 June 2009, in New Delhi about a 100 people 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 attacked.
[22]

On the same day Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd expressed regret for the attacks and
declared that the perpetrators would be brought to justice. He did not state whether he
considers the attacks to be racially motivated.
[23]

The left-wing All India Students Federation conducted a candle march at the India Gate, and
demanded "stringent action against those behind the brutal attacks on the innocent
students".
[24]

In June 2009, Indian student organisations called on the Indian government to declare
Australia an "unsafe destination for Indian students".
[25]
, the National Students Union of
Indiamet 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
[26][unreliable source?]
and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad political party, said it would
consider an Australian boycott over the bashings if authorities did not do more to protect
Hindus in Australia.
[27]

On 7 to 10 June 2009, there was a rally in the Sydney CBD and at Harris Park attended by
hundreds of Indians and supporters. The rally started at Sydney Town Hall and marched to
Hyde Park. Some attending the rally specifically mentioned Harris Park as an area of Sydney
where Indians were frequently assaulted, and called on police to do more to make that suburb
safe.
[28]
The students claimed they were considered "soft targets".
[29]
Some Indian protestors
were reported to be carrying hockey sticks and baseball bats. According to police, the protest
was sparked by an attack on Indians earlier in the evening allegedly by Lebanese men.
[30]
In
retaliation the protesters attacked three uninvolved Lebanese men, who sustained minor
injuries.
[31]
This was believed to be the first violent reaction by Indian students against attacks
on them.
[32]
A police dog squad was called in to control the crowd.
[31]

On 9 June 2009, Indian Prime Minister, addressing the Indian Parliament said that "he was
'appalled' by the senseless violence and crime, some of which are racist in nature,"
[33]

On 4 July 2009 Michael Danby heading a six-member Australian parliamentarian delegation
to India said, We are joining the Premier of Victoria in a march to express the views of the
overwhelming majority of Australians condemning these attacks.",
[34]
, but when the Harmony
Day March Occurred On July 12, 2009 , FISA was not given leave to address the crowd.
[35]

In September 2009, Victorian Premier John Brumby visited India at the end of September
and tried to "repair Australia's reputation" as fewer Indian students are applying for
Australian visas.
[36]

[edit] January 2010 protests
Two murders on December 29, 2009
[37]
and 3 January 2010
[38]
resulted in a protest in New
Delhi.
[39]

On January 5, 2010, A cartoon depicting the Victoria Police as a Ku Klux Klan member was
published in the New Delhi Mail Today
[40]
This was condemned by Acting Prime Minister
Julia Gillard who described it as deeply offensive. In January 2010 the Indian Government
issued a travel advisory for Indians in Melbourne, warning of the increasing crime rate "often
accompanied by verbal abuse and fueled by drugs and alcohol". However, Simon Crean, the
acting Foreign Minister, urged Indian leaders to "avoid fuelling hysteria" and stated that
Melbourne was a safe place to visit.
[41]

On 26 January 2010, the Prime Minister's nephew Van Thanh Rudd and Sam King,
[42]

dressed up as as members of the Ku Klux Klan, protesting against the racist violence against
Indians in Melbourne, with the signs "Racism - Made in Australia" on the front of their
dresses.
[43]
The protest took place in front of Melbourne Park and both were arrested within
10 minutes.
[43]

On 24 February 2010, the Vindaloo against Violence protest saw 17,000 protesters at over
400 restaurants, workplaces, schools and universities "reached out to the Indian community,
and all our immigrant communities, to let them know that they are not indifferent to violence
and that they are welcome and entitled to feel safe here. showed the government and law
enforcement that we feel seriously about this issue and want to understand why this violence
is happening and what is being done to diffuse it. The official participation of Victoria Police
and Premier Brumby in the days action illustrates that this message has been received."
[44][unreliable source?]

[edit] Reactions

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not
remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (March 2010)

This article's Criticism or Controversy section(s) may mean the article does not present a
neutral point of view of the subject. It may be better to integrate the material in those
sections into the article as a whole. (March 2010)
[edit] Media coverage
Indian community leaders in Australia said Indian media has blown the issue out of
proportion, and that their coverage could overcast the real issues faced by students.
[45]

The Indian media's coverage has been likened to hysteria by both Australian media,
[46]
and at
least one Australian politician. Australia's Immigration Minister, Chris Evans, has stated
"There's been a lot of concern inside India and there's been, I think, some fairly hysterical
reporting of what's occurred."
[47]

On Feb 8, 2010, the weekly Indian newsmagazine Outlook published a 10-page cover story
on the attacks called "Why the Aussies Hate Us"
[48]
, in which Vinod Mehta, the editor in
chief wrote that the Indian Media were not overreacting in their coverage of the violence, and
accused the Australian authorities of displaying a "smug and superior attitude". He expressed
admiration for Australia but criticized the Australian responses.
[49]

Some in the Indian media have accused the Australian authorities of being denialist.
[50]

There were also concerns that an Indian journalist report of being attacked
[51]
did not
mention her Indian assailant.
[52]

In an attempt to repair the relationship, some Indian journalists were invited to visit Australia.
[1]
[edit] Racism
Yadu Singh, a cardiologist who heads the Indian Student Welfare Committee set up by the
Indian Consulate in Sydney, said there had been at least 20 beatings of Indian students in
Sydney in the past month, but most went unreported out of fear. He estimated over 100
attacks on Indian students in the last 12 months.
[53]
He described the phenomenon as "curry
bashing", and that "They are not random at all, the people are targeting them. They know
these students are easy targets." He 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.
[54]
Others have
objected to labeling Australia as racist based on the actions of a few.
[55]

Sitaram Yechury, a member of parliament representing the Communist Party of India
(Marxist), wrote 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 says that the racism directed against Indians in Australia can be explained in this
broader context.
[56]
Sandy Gifford, a La Trobe University professor, said that in her opinion
Australia is a racist society and racism runs deep in the country. She said, "Racism in
Australia is pervasive, part of the fabric of everyday life and normalised in ways that render it
invisible and make it one of the strongest forms of structural violence."
[57]

Bruce Haigh who served in Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 1972 and
was in contact with members of the black South African resistance, including the Black
Consciousness Movement in 1976, Australia is racist and that it is still viewed by mainstream
Australia as wrong, so it is practiced with some guilt and in polite company circumspection.
He cited many cases which speak of itself about how much racism prevails in Australia
[58]

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.
[59]
On January 5, 2010, A cartoon depicting the Victoria Police as a Ku Klux
Klan member was published in the New Delhi Mail Today
[40]
This was condemned by
Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard who described it as deeply offensive.
Nama Nageswara Rao, leader of the Telugu Desam Party, visited Australia, and held a press
conference on his return. He stated that he had interviewed many of the victims, and the
attacks did not appear to be motivated by racism. He also noted that many of the perpetrators
were immigrants from ethnic minorities, such as Lebanese.
[60]
Sydney students interviewed
by ABC's AM programme stated that their attackers were from a range of ethnic
backgrounds, and while they said there was a "racial element" they also saw the attacks as
opportunistic.
[61]
The attackers have been described as being white,
[62]
African,
[1]
Asian,
[62]

Middle Eastern,
[32][62][63]
Aboriginal,
[62]
and Pacific Islander.
[62]

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.
[1]
On 28 January 2010 two Indian nationals were arrested for the
murder of an Indian national killed on December 29, 2010.
[64][65][66]

[edit] Statistics controversy
An Australian study into the statistics of these attacks concludes that "In the light of poor
criminological evidence and a plethora of evocative images, the global media has propagated
and fostered claims about crimes and racism related to that are well outside the evidence.".
[67]

The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research states there has been no recorded increase
in assault crimes in Harris Park in the past two years. A member of the NSW upper house,
Gordon Moyes, cited changing victim demographics for the suburb, "What has happened
over the last few years is that a number of Indian students, attracted by fairly cheap
accommodation, have come into the area, the target - always the soft targets - moved from
elderly people walking on the street to Indian students with laptops.
[68]

The Victorian Police Commisioner Simon Overland wrote that "Victoria Police has been
concerned about the rise in assaults and robberies involving Indian students",
[69][70]
and later
said that "racism was clearly a factor in some of the attacks."
[71]

New South Wales Police have stated that Indians are not over represented in Australian crime
statistics.
[72]

This view was supported by Sydney-based United India Association president Dr Prabhat
Sinha, who took the view that the attacks were not necessarily racially motivated. He said:
"They become soft targets by groups of four to six drug users, for example, who just want
cash."
[73]

Newspaper columnist Greg Sheridan said that Victorian Premier John Brumby was in
"indolent denialism" regarding these incidents by saying that "Assaults on Indian students are
under-represented as a population share.". The Victorian Police had initially denied reporting
by ethnicity, then admitted it and then said it was unreliable.
[74]
. Sheridan was concerned that
there was also systematic under-reporting of all crime in Victoria as revealed by the Victorian
Ombudsman report "Crime Statistics and Police Numbers".
[75]

[edit] Educational, policing and safety issues
Ruchir Punjabi, an Indian International student in Australia, claimed early in the debate about
the cause of the events in the Sydney Morning Herald that labeling the crimes as racism was
distracting from critical issues in the education sector that the Government needed to give due
attention to.
[76]

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.
[77]

The Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs said it
would conduct a national quality crackdown on education and training providers, in particular
smaller education providers that have been the target of student complaints.
[78]

South Australia is the only state that has an agency responsible for international student
safety. Education Adelaide, jointly funded by the state government and Adelaide City
council, provides a function in the Adelaide Town Hall hosted by the Lord Mayor to
welcome new arrivals, organises social events for international students, provides them with a
written guide on personal safety and safe shopping, campaigns for affordable accommodation
in the city centre and provides a farewell party in Government House hosted by the Governor
at the end of their stay. Following the recent media attention regarding attacks on Indian
students, the agency accepted testimonials on the safety of living in Adelaide from
international students, including one from the 22 year old Sikh who had been attacked in
Rundle Mall on June 11.
[7]

The People's Republic of China has also expressed concern over student safety in
Australia.
[79][80]
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 the New Zealand Education Trust,
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.
[81][82]
Education authorities in New Zealand are hoping
recent attacks on Indian students in Australia will make New Zealand a more attractive
option.
[83]

[edit] Need for a mechanism to prevent attacks on Indians abroad
Domestically, the Indian government declared that it would formulate a policy to deal with
racial discrimination against Indians abroad.
[84]

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.
[85]

[edit] Aftermath
There was a 46% drop in Indians applying for student visas for Australia from July to Oct 31
2009 compared to the same period in 2008, and a total drop of 26% in student visa
applications to Australia from all countries (including India).
[86]
A study (completed before
the deaths of Nitin Garg and Ranjodh Singh) forecast a 20% drop in Indian students expected
to study in Australia in 2010, compared to 2009, partly due to a reduction in the number of
visas allowed to be granted, stiffening of the regulations associated with them,
[87]
the strength
of the Australian dollar,
[88]
and a clampdown on unscrupulous migration agents and
colleges.
[89]
After the attacks of 2009 and the deaths in Jan 2010, its expected to fall even
further than the 20% drop.
[90]

In response, Victorian police were given new powers to conduct stop-and-search operations
without the need for warrants. They conducted their first stop-and-search operation for 3
hours at Footscray train station which has a history of knife crime. They found seven people
carrying twelve weapons.
[91]

The former head of its elite Special Air Service (SAS) regiment and current National Security
Adviser, Duncan Lewis, was charged with leading a taskforce to examine the attacks on
Indian students. Lewis chaired the task forces first meeting and coordinated Australias
response to the assaults. The Victorian government is considering enacting hate crime
legislation that would consider prejudicial motivation as a factor in sentencing.
[92]

In Nov 2009, Victoria's Opposition Leader, Ted Baillieu said he will permanently put 2
guards armed with guns, on every train station in Melbourne from 6pm till last train every
night, if he wins the 2010 state election.
[93]

[edit] Bollywood reaction
Bollywood's largest labour union declared that its members would refuse to work in Australia
until attacks on Indian students there are stopped.
[94]
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".
[95]

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."
[96]

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International / Cover Stories MAGAZINE | FEB 08, 2010

1

INDIANS IN AUSTRALIA
Do You Speak Australian?
The new visibility of Indiansfresh off the ships, insufficiently Aussie, swamping the job scenefeeds
a latent racism
PRANAY SHARMA

1

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Indians
PRANAY SHARMA
OPTIONS
The Largest Island
When tough talk yields no results, tougher measures are needed
PRANAY SHARMA

Bells Toll
130 Indians attacked countrywide, the Indian high commission says. Of these, 30
were students.
1,447 incidents of crime against Indians in 2007-08 have been reported in Victoria
alone. The state is crime-prone, and has a force of 13,000, including volunteers, to
police a population of four million.
33 Indians died in violent attacks between 2004 and 2009, says Federation of Indian
Students of Australia spokesperson Gautam Gupta. Of these, six died in 2009. Nitin
Garg was stabbed to death in 2010.
On Jan 5, the Indian government issued an advisory to Indian students in Australia

asking them to take certain precautionary measures while travelling.
33.2% visa applications turned down by Australia between July 1 and October 31,
2009, up from 6.5 per cent for the corresponding period in 2008. These applications
were mostly turned down because of documentation fraud.
***
K
anan Bhargawa still shudders at the memory of March 16, 2008. This young student
from Ambala was accompanying his friend Jassi that day to the local railway station of
Sunshine, the citys relatively poorer suburb where many Indians stay. They had gone to pick
up Jassis wife who was returning from the city at night. The moment the duo reached the
station, they were accosted by a group of boys. One of them, presumably their leader,
demanded a dollar. When Kanan said he didnt have one, the group fell upon him, raining
blows and mouthing racial expletives. Jassi tried to intervene, only to be beaten up as well.
Their fury vented, the assailants vanished in a jiffy. Kanan has lost vision in his right eye. In a
quivering voice, he says, I was lucky, I wasnt knifed.
CONCLUSION

Not only are
Indian students
taking away seats
in colleges; by
staying behind,
they are also
taking away jobs,
says a right-wing

'We Remain Committed To Assisting The People Of Pakistan'

This Is Not Just Babewatch

Go to Complete List
One might think that suburbs such as Sunshine are prone to
random violence. One may not even slot the attack on Kanan
as completely racial. But talk to Indians walking around in
Melbourne, and theyll tell you that the spectre of racism is
stalking them in every neighbourhood. Take Kamlesh Patel, a
post-graduate in chemical engineering from the prestigious Monash University. He stays in
Prahran, a posh neighbourhood, safe from the baddies of Sunshine. A few months ago, as
Patel was walking his dog, a carload of youngsters braked to a halt near him. From inside the
car, one boy shouted, Hey, you Indian bastard, why dont you go back home?
There is what can be termed repressed racism in Australia, erupting at the slightest
provocation or under the influence of liquor or often for no reason other than the sight of an
Indian. Gurdeep Singhs been driving a taxi for some years now in Melbourne. Only last
weekend, a drunk Australian in his car exploded, F*** off bastard, go back to your country
and work.
These examples illustrate vividly the danger Indians in Melbourne face daily. Does this arise
exclusively from an innate racism? Well, the economic fear that Indians, arriving in hordes,
will rob them of jobs in the enveloping gloom of the slowdown ties in with it. As does the
cultural factor that the growing Indian community, largely drawn from small towns and
villages back home, is perhaps as a group not sufficiently adjusted to the local culture and its
demands?
It is those in the left-liberal parties who feel the attacks on
Indians, or at least some of those, have a strong racial basis.
Those in the extreme right-wing outfits deny this outright.
Among the latter is Jim Salaem, head of the Australia First
Party, which has adopted the contentious immigration issue as
its principal cause. Salaem says it isnt the white Australians
who are attacking Indians. He blames the violence on those
who have migrated from Muslim countries or Africa. But he
concedes that the governments open-door immigration policy
has created enormous problems for white Australians. The
governments education policy of getting students from India
and other countries is depriving our local boys a chance to get
into universities, Salaem told Outlook.
The situation has been compounded, says the Australia First leader, because the education
policy is closely linked to the immigration policy, which allows a large number of overseas
students, including those from India, to work in Australia until they are granted citizenship.
Salaem fulminates, Not only are these Indian students taking away the seats in colleges and
universities, they are also taking away the jobs that could have gone to an Australian student.
In addition, by staying back and getting a permanent residency in Australia, they are
becoming a serious threat to white Australians in the job market. He consequently wants
overseas students to return home after they complete their studies.
Similarly, Bob Vinnicombe of One Nation, yet another right-wing group, wants a cap on the
number of immigrants coming to Australia. The government should actively encourage
bringing in Christians and white people from Zimbabwe and South Africa, he told Outlook.
Neither the Australia First Party nor One Nation matters much in Australias parliamentary
politics. But Vinnicombe claims that many politicians in other parties share his views, though
they refrain from going public for political reasons. His and Salaems views may not be
party leader.

CONCLUSION

Adds another,
The government
should actively
encourage
bringing in
Christians and
white people from
Zimbabwe and
South Africa.

shared by most Australians, yet the attacks on Indians have brought the immigration and race
issues to the fore again.
Perhaps their views have also gained ground because Indians
have become more visible in Australia. The Australian cant
miss him in his daily routine. He sees the Indian on the train
when he goes to work; its the Indian who serves him at the
takeaway; the Indian is there again behind the counter when he
goes to buy groceries at the supermarket; he mans the gas
stations, or is behind the wheel every time the white Australian
takes a taxi at night. As if all this isnt enough, he also finds a
few of them living in his posh neighbourhood. Says Gautam
Gupta, spokesperson of the Federation of Indian Students in
Australia (FISA), Perhaps somewhere in the Australian mind,
the Indians have started playing a role.
The furore over racism is also a case of mismatch in
perceptions. Most attacks are seen back in India as racial, even though some can be purely
for robbery. In Australia, an attack is not deemed racial till it can be established that the intent
was such, and not purely criminal. To understand why Indians are particularly susceptible to
mugging, one only has to hear the mean joke doing the rounds here: Whats common
between an atm and an Indian? You get money whenever you hit them.
Its true many young Indians flaunt their iPhones, iPods or carry laptops around the city.
Those looking for easy money target Indians because they have things that can be sold
easily. Since most Indian students share a pad with six or seven others, they feel its safer to
carry cash with them rather than leave it behind. They are loath to deposit money in a bank
fearing they might be asked whether they are adhering to laws regulating the number of
hours they can legally work. No wonder, the authorities here are advising Indians not to carry
their valuables on them. This has FISA president Amit Menghani bristle, How can you ask
them not to carry their mobile phones? How will they ask for help if they are attacked?
Partly, the violence in Melbourne, including attacks on Indians,
has increased because the economic downturn has compelled
the Australian government to downsize its police force by 2,500
personnel. The state of Victoria today has a police force of only
13,000 personnel to man a population of over four million
people. So, you no longer find a cop patrolling many a railway
station, often the site of attacks.
Indians are also considered soft targets because they dont
retaliate. No one messes around with the Chinese, for instance,
because they rush out to help their fellow nationals in distress.
The Indian, in contrast, its said, rushes to the media. The
Indian community is also a house divided. Melbourne has
1,50,000 Indians, but on the January 26 celebration of the
Australian National Day, they were the only nationality marching under four separate
banners.

Most Indian
students perhaps
know about our
geography, but
know little about
Australian
history, says a
professor of
history in Sydney.

Agrees Benjamin
Cass: There are
only two things
they know about
Australia, that it
has kangaroos and
that we play
cricket.

Nor is there unanimity among Indians whether or not these attacks are racist in nature. Those
who are rich and have resided here for years vehemently deny that Australians are racist.
Vasan Srinivasan, president of the Federation of Indian Association of Victoria, can be
counted as one among them. I have been living here for the last 23 years, he told Outlook.
but have never experienced any racial slur from the Australians. I have two young daughters;
if they were racist, do you think I would have stayed in this country? Of course, there is
always the counter-argument: that the rich can keep away from troubled areas, not travel in
public transport and are therefore less vulnerable to racial abuse or attacks.
This group of rich Indians partially blames the attacks on their
brethren who have arrived recently in droves, belong to small
towns, and are completely oblivious to the cultural sensibilities
of Australians. They blast their Bhangra music on trains, talk
loudly while travelling in public transport and make lewd
comments and gestures at young Australian girls. Says
Gagandeep Singh, who manages a petrol pump in one of the
Melbourne suburbs, Some months back, while travelling on a
train with my parents who were visiting me from Punjab, I felt so
ashamed because you could clearly hear the choicest Punjabi
abuses from a group of Indian boys who were also in the
compartment. An Indian lady says a young Australian girl once
confided in her that she prefers to stand in train coaches than to
sit next to Indian boys. Otherwise, she said shed spend the entire travel time warding off their
advances.
The controversy over racism also stems from ignorance about each others culture and
history. Most Indian students perhaps know about the geography of Australia, but have very
little knowledge about its history, says Heather Goodall, a professor of history at the
University of Technology, Sydney. She says most Indians only know that Australia followed a

No one messes
around with a
Chinese because
fellow nationals
run to his aid. The
Indian, on the
other hand, rushes
to the media.

white-only immigration policy for much of its history, forgetting its strong left-liberal tradition
and its fight against racism. Agrees Benjamin Cass, who has worked with Indian students
planning to come to Australia to study, There are perhaps only two things they know about
Australia: one, that it has kangaroos and two, that the people here play cricket.
Indeed, the attacks on Indians have prompted many Australians
to call for urgent introspection and acknowledgement that
racism is still a serious problem in the country. Says
documentary filmmaker John Bolston, When youve been told
by your political leaders that you are the best, then it is difficult
to accept yourself as racist. Perhaps, it is time that the
government takes the initiative for us to wash our dirty linen in
public. The debate on racism is expected to gather momentum
as Victoria and Australia inch closer to elections by this
yearend.
Others also want Indians to remember that what they are
witnessing, though reprehensible, are typically the birth pangs
every immigrant group has experienced when their numbers have grown substantially in
Australia. It happened with the Chinese, Afghans, Jews, Greeks, Lebanese and Vietnamese.
Its now the turn of Indians, who must unite and establish linkages with liberal Australians to
protect themselvesand their interests.

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ALSO IN THIS STORY
INTERVIEW
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OUTLOOK

Travelling on a
train sometime
back, I was
ashamed, as you
could hear the
choicest Punjabi
abuses, says
Gagandeep Singh.

Indians
PRANAY SHARMA
OPTIONS
The Largest Island
PRANAY SHARMA
FILED IN:
AUTHORS: PRANAY SHARMA
TAGS: INDIES|RACISM|INDO-AUSTRALIA|MIGRANTS-OUTSIDERS|MIGRATION-MOBILITY|JOBS-
EMPLOYMENT/UNEMPLOYMENT
SECTION: INTERNATIONAL
SUBSECTION: COVER STORIES
PLACES: AUSTRALIA
TRANSLATE INTO:

1

Daily MailPublished
COLLAPSE COMMENTS : Oldest First

HAVE YOUR SAY

MAY 07,
2010
04:28 AM
548
Australia has a problem with racism however most countries do. I have been the
subject of racist slurs from white Australians while in Australia, and since I'm
white Australia this confused me exceptionally.
I lived in India an d studied Hindi there and found it very difficult, as I was
constantly harassed and was robbed twice of very large sums of money, simply
because I was seen as an easy target. I even had a waiter ask me if I would go
out at night with him while I ate at a five star restaurant.
Australia isn't perfect, but no country is. Look at India and you will see how an
imperfect country can still be beautiful. Indians accept India the way it is, and
when they come to Australia to study and live, they must understand that they are
in a different environment and adjust to it.
Racism is wrong, it is an evil of society that should not exist, but it does. Australia
is still full of beautiful people and great opportunities for immigrants!
I love Indians. I love seeing women in their beautiful salwar-kameez or saris,
practicing my Hindi and eating yummy India food. I hope Indians continue to
come to Australia.
CASSI
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 18,
2010
10:32 PM
547
ALAN:

I always find it easier to follow sports on TV at home.

The irony of holding the Winter OLympics in Van is that it is the only large city in
Canada with anything like a mild climate.

You guys have it good weatherwise, but I understand a shortage of water is
feared.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 18,
2010
04:29 AM
546
Can never have too many Indian restaurants Ali. Not so sure about Bollywood
style hairdressers.
ALAN
FEB 17,
2010
07:23 PM
545
Aussies should take some consolation from all this. Although they may be struck
down in the future by a huge epidemic of Delhi belly from the thousands of Indian
restaurants that are going to mushroom everywhere when all these characters
graduate, at least because of all the new beauty parlours they will be looking
good as they rush towards the snakes house.
ALI
PANCHKULA, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
05:28 PM
544
All of a sudden this slanging match has degenerated into cameraderie ;-). Do we
come back after the commercial break?
GANESH C PRASAD
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 17,
2010
12:42 PM
Yeah, heard about snow being trucked in. At least you had contingency plans.
You getting to any events?
543
ALAN
FEB 17,
2010
12:25 PM
542
ALAN:

People are tremendously proud and happy about the Olympics, despite the
weather refusing to help with enough snow.

A bit ironic, that, as we had a surfeit of snow last year - I spent most of the Xmas
holidays shovelling the stuff.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
07:35 AM
541
"In any case it is to the credit of Aussies that they elected him."

I suppose it is Iqram, in the same way it's a credit to the Canadians who elected
the blokes you mentioned. No-one went around patting each other on the back
that I was aware of. It was just a fact of our society. Perhaps the likes of John So
and David de Kretzer should be publicised more overseas to help combat some
stereotypes.

How're you enjoying the Olympics?
ALAN
FEB 17,
2010
03:14 AM
540
PAUL:

Sorry to have misread your post: you said half the CANADIAN students in Oz are
of Indian origin. Very different thing.....Still, it does surprise me. I would have
expected a lot of Chinese. In any case, I can assure you this is not due to any
lack of educational opportunities for Indo-Canadians. Their enrollment levels in
higher education by my observation are very high.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
03:05 AM
ALAN:

Maybe John So didn't even know English when he came to Oz? In any case it is
to the credit of Aussies that they elected him. Way to go !
539

PAUL:

It does amaze me to hear half the students of Indian origin in Oz are from
Canada. Can't account for that. Do you have any ideas on this?
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
02:52 AM
538
ALAN, PAUL:

I am trying to be amiable. I do not speak Strine and so don't even know the
meanings of some of the words you use.

Strine is a separate language in itself. It seems to be marked by the substitution
of y for i and a. Thus you guys tend to say "Yin the boondocks aye cut off the tyle
of aye kangaroo. Thys wys becayese aye bydely nydyed food." No wonder the
currently beaten-up Indians can't speak your lingo. Give em time, Cobber !!!
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
09:52 AM
537
You'll find this funny Iqram. When I dashed off the premier and governor as
examples of non-anglo political achievements, I completely forgot the last Lord
Mayor of Melbourne. John So migrated to Australia from Hong Kong at 17. He
was the first popularly elected mayor, and the longest serving mayor from 2001-
08.

Don't you find it amusing that my narrow, racist Australian mind completely failed
to register him as an example?
ALAN
FEB 16,
2010
08:10 AM
536
... and another thing Iqram.
- you came onto the board as a troll.
- you got no real bites
- when confronted with a few home truths (including that you weren't taken
particularly seriously, despite your own self-congratulatory statements), you've
chucked a hissy fit.

Grow up.
ALAN
FEB 16,
2010
07:37 AM
535
Iqram - you're still missing the point entirely. Either you've swallowed the spin put
out by the likes of Gautam Gupta and propagated by the Indian media, or you're
being deliberately obtuse. I'm not sure which.

So, once again, this is a law and order issue with minor racist overtones being
spun into a racial issue for political means. It's not about the number of hours
students are able to work, it's about participants in a Permanent Residency scam
attempting to hold the Australian Government hostage by playing the race card.

At the moment, you're just another long-distance Indian refusing to accept the
views of Indian Australian citzens in favour of the views put out by those trying to
pressurise the government (that happen to fit your own prejudices).

Now before you get all excited again, take some time to read ALL the posts
below by Indian Australians. I know, I know, it'll take a while, and it would be
much more comfortable to wallow in self-righteousness, but if you want to be
taken seriously, I suggest you make the sacrifice. Some posts will be negative,
but there will be plenty from Australian Indians quite happy in Australia.

I don't want to get into a 'whose got the most non-Anglo Saxons (or French) in
politics' debate, because it would be simply childish. However, we did have a
long-standing state leader of Lebanese origin, and currently have a state
governor who was born in Sri Lanka. So let's not get too smugly superior about
Canada eh?

Finally, Australian abrupt manners may not suit many Indians (or even
Canadians). Fair enough. However, it shows a clash of sensibilities rather than
racism.
ALAN
FEB 16,
2010
07:12 AM
534
IQRAM
Re-read your own posts....civility is not your strong suit. Why , if Vancouver is
paradise ( and it is indeed a lovely city) are about half the Canadian students in
Australia actually of Indian origin?
Australia has very similar policies to Canada in respect of Multiculturalism (
except of course in respect of Quebec). Levels of crime are low in both countries.
Both countries have issues with street crime. The rate of violent crime is about
1/20th that of India or the USA, per capita.
Read the posts here by well-educated long-term Indian residents of
Australia....they contradict your delusional assessment of te country to which you
have not even been
PAUL
FEB 16,
2010
05:54 AM
533
PAUL:

I am beginning to see what my neighbours from Australia in Vancouver meant
when they spoke of a lack of civility.

It's sad to see these attacks on Indians in what I and every other Indian I know
took to be a friendly, decent country. What happened?
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
04:46 AM
532
Iqram
You are in serious and urgent need of medication...you are delusional
PAUL
FEB 16,
2010
04:21 AM
531
The most ridiculous complaint I have seen in these postings in regard to what is
happening is that the poor Indian chaps take "frivolous courses" like cooking and
hairdressing. Their English is not that good either. Is Australian English good? Do
they not say "myle" for "mail"?

Is that a reason for beating a guy to death? What heartlessness !
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
04:15 AM
530
ALAN, PAUL, RK:

I am geting the unpleasant and disappointing impression that, ceratainly
compared to Canadians, Aussies are a small-minded people.

The issue here is simple: can some Indian lads, nearly all hard-working guys, go
about their lives in peace and safety or can't they. Do they have to be subject to
the attacks of mindless hoodlums?

That's all.

If anything like this happened in Canada the reaction of the majority community
would be so different. They would not try to make excuses for the hooligans by
saying the Indians smell or talk too loud or some of them hang around girls, etc.
They would say: This kind of inhuman behaviour has no business happening in
Canada, period.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
03:47 AM
529
ALAN, PAUL:

On a point of fact, Lee Kuan Yew did call Australians the white trash of Asia.
Please see this Sydney Morning Herald link if you doubt it:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/hostile-welcome-for-lee-kuan-
yew/2007/03/28/1174761533651.html

I do not endorse his remark.

I am pretty sure Australian behaviour in places like Thailand and Bali often has
displeased the locals, including messing with women; as far as I know except for
the terrible Islamic bombing in Bali aimed at all and sundry there have been no
hooligan attacks on white Aussies as is faced by the luckless Indian boys in
Australia these days.

This is nothing to be proud of and I hope decent Australians will call a halt to it.

ALAN raised the issue of how Indians are treated in Canada.

As an Indo-Canadian I call tell him proudly we are in a very fine situation in
Canada. In British Columbia there has been an Indian Prime Minister and
Attorney-General. There are prominent Indians in politics, participating without a
trace of selfconsciousness. The level of integration of the Indian and Asian
communities in Canadian life astonished me when I first encountered it and led
me to move to Canada.

There are the occasional racial incidents as will happen in any country, but noone
is in state of fear from rampaging thugs as in Australia.

I have several neighbours who came to Canada from Australia and the reason
they give is that they disliked the impoliteness of Australian life, the lack of civility.
One of them said to me Vancouver is ten times better that Melbourne. Canadian
good manners continue to astonish and delight me. Everyone can learn from it.
Maybe the Aussies especially.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 15,
2010
08:04 PM
528
Ikram
Lee Kwan Yew has said no such thing about autralians. I think you might be
thinking of a near neighbour who failed to get into med school in australia and
has held a grudge for 50 years. Anyway, Harry Lee is hardly a role model for
anyone. An authoritarian regime, totally crushing and dissent, a one-party state,
deals with the drug barons of Burma, a judiciary influenced by politicians, a lick-
spittle for China which abandoned Taiwan in na flash.......Lee Kwan Yew's
opinion.....no thanks, whatever in might be
PAUL
FEB 15,
2010
04:39 PM
527
Iqram - if you think I took what you said at all seriously, you've another thing
coming. As I said repeatedly, you've just come across as a raving dill -
unfortunately not too disimilar to many Indians.

Now, instead of coming across as silly and ignorant, you're coming across as
arrogant and ignorant. Thinking you can teach me anything at all about the
Ausralian Aboriginal situation, Australian history and land ownership is laughable.
At a base level, these are issues taught in our schools and continually being
discussed in the media. It really only highlights your prejudices about Australians
that you think otherwise.

The situation in Canada regarding Indians and migrants generally sounds very
similar to Australia. I wonder why you think it's so very different?
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
01:05 PM
526
ALAN:

I have read your post 423 and found it interesting.

I am not claiming every Indian in Australia is a saint. Some do ill-advised things,
no doubt. It would help if they were warned not to.

I live in Vancouver, Canada, and what I find here is that while there are some
Indian gangsters and reckless drivers and other louts, no-one takes it out on the
peaceful Indian population or blames it.

Every community will have its fools and louts. I doubt if White Australians always
behave "appropriately" with women. Ask the Aborigines.

Thanks for the hilarious link about Pauline Hanson thinking of moving to Britain!
That gave me a good laugh. From sunny Queensland to cold and grey Britain!
She will soon discover what a fool she has made of herself. In Australia she is
somebody. In the UK she will be a nobody in a miserable clammy climate. It will
be baco to Oz in a flash!
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 15,
2010
06:54 AM
525
Iqam - you still haven't read my post #423 have you(particularly the last
paragraph)?, you complete dill.
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
05:53 AM
524
Alan

Cheer up, mate!

You can't take a joke, can you

I was pulling your leg about Indians having a right to Australia because
Aborigines are Indian by origin. i just meant to open your eyes a bit. Whites have
no more right to Australia than anyone else.

Cheer up about Indians. they are a decent lot, given the chance. They are a
democratic country; they like cricket and hockey. Just see the second
generations of
Indo-Australians - they are just Aussies like everybody else.

Don't make a mountain out of a molehill. Let Aussies leave these Indian lads
alone to earn a few pennies. that's all I am saying.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 15,
2010
04:56 AM
If you do read the readers comments in the link below, perhaps you'd also like to
consider that this Outlook article claims that One Nation has gained ground.
Really? What else about Australia has the Outlook article distorted?
ALAN
523
FEB 15,
2010
04:40 AM
522
To people convinced that all Australians are white supremisists baying for non-
white blood, have a look at the readers comments on the story below.

These are in response to the news that Pauline Hanson is migrating to England.
Hanson was the politician who was kicked-out of mainstream politics in the 1990s
and founded the One Nation party referred to in the Outlook article.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/pauline-hanson-plans-to-emigrate-20100214-
nzgr.html
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
03:41 AM
521
Seriously Iqram, you're raving. Take a chill pill.

Try reading the responses below, including the many from Indian Australians. If
they don't help you understand the issues and you still want to start a war, well,
there's nothing more I or anyone else can do for you.
ALAN
FEB 14,
2010
07:40 PM
520
ALAN:

Is it in you even to notice the sheer contemptible GUTLESSNESS, arrant
cowardice of those rednecks who are murdering Indians in Australia today?

They know very well, these miserable thugs, that the Indians are unlikely to
defend themselves strongly for fear of being deported after racist police accuse
them of overreacting or aggression. They know these immigrants living in fear of
deportation are easy meat.

Is that white "gutsiness"?
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
ALAN:

07:31 PM
519
I found your long reply interesting from several angles.

How ironic that when it comes to your own lot you are quick to find whingeing
excuses: thus you whine that the redneck criminals dumped on the Aborigines
(people of Indian descent, note) by the British had broken the law to survive
during the Industrial Revolution.

So it's OK for rednecks to do what they have to do to survive....What about
Indians in Australia, then? They at least nearly all are admitted to be working
hard to earn their crust of bread. Is that your complaint? That they have not had
the "guts" to resort to criminality unlike the forebears of the white invaders of
Australia?

How ironic that you boast white invaders of Australia are proud of their criminal
origins and coinvicted status. Is that why you are now failing to convict the
criminals who are murdering defenceless Indian lads? Because you are reluctant
to have too many new members of your elite fraternity of convicts?

And how ironic again that if an Indian (blood brother of the Aborigine)ever
commits a crime in Australia, you will not invite him to join the national elite
because of that gutsy feat, but deport him !
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
06:16 PM
518
ALAN:

I didn't need to be told rednecks are proud of being of convicted stock. i could tell
by their behaviour.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
06:13 PM
517
ALAN:

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)has reported that new genetic
findings show Australian Aborigines are of Indian origin.

The ABC report can be accessed on this link:

http://www.abc.net.a...09/07/24/2635149.htm

Indians have a far better right to Australia than beer froth spitting rednecks.

It is the whites who are invaders of Australia, not the Indians. The Indians are
merely brothers of the Aborigines.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
04:59 PM
516
Well said Alan. And do not forget Mr Iqram, since your heart seems to bleed so
much for the Aborigines, that India was also invaded by Muslims so that by your
logic you and your ilk have no right to be living in India.
ALI
PANCHKULA, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
04:23 PM
515
There was a recent study of job discrimination in major Australian cities. A
professor sent thousands of fake resumes with Anglo-Saxon, Middle Eastern,
Chinese, and Italian surnames. The extent of discrimination in lower end jobs
such as waiting and data entrying was shocking. Keep in mind the resumes
showed that the applicant graduated high school in Australia. So these fictional
applicants knew English.

"Anglo-Saxon names more likely to get interviews Chinese jobseekers need to
send out twice as many applications to get interview Sydney bosses most biased
EMPLOYERS are far less likely to interview a person with a Chinese, Middle
Eastern or Aboriginal name for a job even if their CV is identical to someone with
an Anglo-Saxon name.

And Sydney bosses discriminate more than those in Melbourne or Brisbane, a
new study using 4000 fake CVs shows, reports The Australian."

http://www.news.com.au/bosses-prefer-to-interview-jobseekers-with-anglo-...

What was most shocking was that the study showed ITALIANS were even
discriminated against. I think Australia has a much more difficult time absorbing
immigrants than the US.

"To get the same number of interviews as an applicant with an Anglo-Saxon
name, a Chinese applicant must submit 68per cent more applications, a Middle
Eastern applicant must submit 64 per cent more, an indigenous applicant 35 per
cent more and an Italian applicant 12per cent more," Professor Leigh said.

Chinese jobseekers needed to send 92 per cent more job applications than those
with an Anglo-Saxon background to secure an interview in Sydney, while Middle
Eastern applicants needed to post 80 per cent more resumes."
CHOICE
CITY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 14,
2010
01:20 PM
514
Jahaz mate, before there's a touche, you have to actually make sense, not just
ramble away.

If you want to dispel some of that cloud of ignorance of yours, read my post #423
about what's going on in Melbourne (what you want to go to war over, you silly
goose).

If you want to understand why unsophisticated Indians such as yourself are
exaggerating this issue, read post #479 by Ganesh Prasad.

Before I consign you to my 'too silly to post to file', here's a few things for your
education. Firstly, the few Australians who have convict ancestry are proud of it.
The convicts were Irishmen rebelling against British rule, and impoverished
people who broke the law to stay alive during the Industrial Revolution. The
convicts therefore were the people in Ireland and Britain who had the spirit to
rebel against the unfair system set-up by the English upper class. The gutless
dregs were left behind, and form the lower class English of today. Perhaps you
should think about that in the context of the help so many Indians provided to the
English in enslaving India.

If you've read those posts, you may be ready for a bit more enlightenment. I
believe the unsophisticated Indians such as yourself are conflicted. The
nationalist in you is deeply ashamed of your enslavement by England, yet your
social fabric worships 'whiteness'. Australia gives you the perfect opportunity to
resolve this conflict. You convince yourself all Australians are white people. You
also convince yourself that all these Australians are convict descendants. Then
you can satisfy your nationalism by raving against Australians as the enslaving
race, but you're less troubled by 'our' whiteness because we 'are all' just
descendants of convicts. BTW you knew the US was a dumping ground of
convicts as well didn't you?

End of lesson, you silly man.
ALAN
FEB 14,
2010
06:45 AM
513
ALAN:

I referred to the ugly beer swilling and swearing culture of low class Australians.
Touche?

Canada is being Indianised, and that makes Canadians feel happy.

I think the same is on its way for Australia. These attacks are just Australia's
teething troubles in its process of eventually happy Indianisation.

Indian troops died to defend Australia, which belongs to Aborigines, not to
redneck invaders like you.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
03:45 AM
512
In #508 I referred to India's ignorant and over-excitable masses. In support of that
statement we have Mr Jahaz contribution:

"2) take military steps to discipline Australia.
ALAN
FEB 13,
2010
07:56 PM
511
PAUL brays:

"Australia made a terrible mistake in changing India to a category 4 country which
led to a dramatic increase in the number of students coming..."

Britain made a terrible mistake when it decided to dump its convicted criminals on
Australia's hapless native Aborigines. "They keep coming, these criminals!", the
poor Aborigines must have said.

The British Empire or Vampire also built up Australia by ruthlessly plundering
India. So the Indians coming to Australia today are merely collecting a small part
of the compensation Australia owes India.

Indian troops died in wars to defend the British Vampire and it junior Vampires
like Australia.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 13,
2010
07:10 PM
510
PAUL, ALAN:

Lee Kuan Yew, the very distinguished and respected elder statesman of South-
East Asia and Prime Minister of Singapore, called Australians (I quote him), "The
white trash of Asia."

The native population of Australia - what is left of it after centuries of genocide -
will no doubt agree.

As for Indians, there are two simple, easy steps the Indian Government can take
to make Australians totally respectful:

1) detain Australians in India until violence against Indians in Australia ends

2) take military steps to discipline Australia.

No other way with the kind of people Lee Kuan Yew spoke of.

Scaria Verghese no doubt agrees with me.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 13,
2010
11:30 AM
509
Rakesh
I find any form of racism abhorrent, whether it takes the form of verbal abuse or
violence ( or more subtle forms of discrimination). Australia made a terrible
mistake in changing India to a category 4 country which led to a dramatic
increase in the number of students coming for short courses in vocational
disciplines rather than higher education. Every university in Australia knew that
this change would be a disaster and yet the govt persisted with it. Mr Gupta, the
self-styled, unelected spokesperson for FISA, has now become something of a
celebrity with some sectors of the Australian media ( in particular, The Australian)
and yet many Indian students are very doubtful about his motives. For example,
his website, in it's guide to Australian universities lists only 7 ( of 38), all of them
in Melbourne. For some reason his motivation appears to be sometnjing to do
with a power-base in Melbourne ( as as been alluded to by other posters). Now
we have the NSW premier announcing that Sydney is a safer destination and is
sending a Minister to India to promote that. I would prefer to see a delegation of
Indian police come to Australia to look at the issue first-hand. Not
journalists....with, in the case of this magazine, an establised agenda. The Indian
High Commission is hopless, perhaps as a consequence of resourcing, in looking
after the intersts of Indian students ( in stark contrast to the Chinese) but to have
Mr Gupta become the smi-official voice of India is potentially disatrous ( The
same Mr Gupta who was quooted as saying " now they're burning us alive" in
respect of the self-immolation in Melbourne)
PAUL
FEB 12,
2010
04:16 AM
'Jack' is a funny name for an Indian. And it's c'est, from ce-est.

This problem will be sorted when the fake students are packed-off home as the
federal government is doing now. Hopefully we've learnt our lesson and minimise
508
our engagement with India from now on - including selling uranium. We should
never encourage nuclear weapons in the hands of such a populist-prone polity.

India's democracy is often given as a positive for it's relationship with the West.
But in fact, with its ignorant over-excitable masses and it's corruption, it's the last
place that should be a democracy. We're better off dealing with China.
ALAN
FEB 11,
2010
11:18 AM
507
And in response to Allan's statement about proof of racism! Yesterday the
Current Affairs shows ran a story about the illegal activities of 16 companies with
respect to Home Insulation and showed most of their names. The names varied
and a majority were caucasian names. However, only one contractor was singled
out and guess what nationality he was? Indian, of course! Now I read the Current
Affair show's listings and only two out of sixteen companies were non caucasian
and the only one showed on television was, naturally, an Indian! Considering the
problems at the moment with Indians, I am sure the news media could have been
more sensible and used another nationality. However, they chose not to. So what
does that tell us? It blatantly shows that irrespective of who or what commits an
erroneous act, even criminal, the Indian will always be the one to be shown. Such
acts by the most watched media does not augur well and leads to people
affirming their beliefs that Indians are a target in Australia. A balanced show with
one from a couple of nationalities could have laid such notions to rest. But, se la
vie! Racism will remain until such time as the sheep ensure they are counted and
raise their voices and be heard - not by Governmental lip service but in action.
Let me finish it off with an excerpt from the Australian Race Relations
Commissioner's media release six months ago where he warned where we were
heading and urgent action was required: "Attacks against international students
in Australia are disturbing and should sound alarm bells for the Australian
community about the life threatening extremes to which racial prejudice can
extend, Race Discrimination Commissioner Tom Calma said today.

Commissioner Calma said he was appalled by reports of the cowardly and violent
acts that have been perpetrated, most recently, on international students from
India."

Whu not check out what students in India have to say at url:

http://www.indiaeducation.net/RaiseyourVoice/index.aspx

for broader horizons.
JACK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 11,
2010
10:55 AM
506
The more I read, the more I think of New Zealand and its sheep. The sheep in
New Zealand are let to slaughter after being fattened and fed. The same seems
to apply to some people who leave India for greener pastures, get fed and treated
like the New Zealand sheep and are treated like sub humans and slaughtered.
Difference? I find none. They just play into racist hands instead of Kiwi farmers!
Everyone know that there is a problem, and it has to be resolved by non-sheep
raising their voices and being heard in order that injustices are put to an end and
people from all walks of life have the equality and fairness that they deserve.
However, it appears that the sheep outnumber the non-sheep who stand up for
what they believe in and there lies the problem of why such matters drag on for
longer than they should. Just a lack of guts and moral fortitude while they fatten
in a world they have just come to and where they get more than they can at
home. But remember, fattened cows are always the first ones to go to the
slaughterhouse. Being placid and ignoring issues only creates worse situations at
a later date whereby acting at the start shortens the misery. You do not wait until
you are death's door to see a doctor and cure the problem and the symptoms.
You go for the cure at the start if you want to survive. Having said that I reiterate:
"It is fair to say that Indians should not boycott Australia because of current
events but should ensure they are heard and racism against Indians from all
walks of life, Students, Business and Visitors, should cease and the Government
finally take into account the Indian voices and amend legislation accordingly."
JACK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 09,
2010
04:17 PM
505
@Rakesh
I certanly wasn't calling you arrogant.

I was refering to the 'students' who use the students visas as a step to permanent
residency with no intention to study.

The 20 hour work limitation is there to ensure that the students are studying full
time to get the qualifications that are the price of gettng Permanent Residency.
It's there to stop the students using the visa as a migration scam. Yet the same
people who are using the visa as a scam are complaining that the work limitation
is getting in the way of their scam. That's who I'm calling arrogant.

I'm not sure you're entirely right about the financial guarrantee. It's there to
ensure the 'student' doesn't become a financial burden on Australia in the context
of their visa requirement - which is not working more than 20 hours. If a student
can't support themself within the 20 hours work, they should be using the
financial guarrantee. Remembering as well students are allowed to work
unlimited hours during holidays.
ALAN
FEB 09,
2010
10:05 AM
504
@ Alan

There is no arrogance in stating the facts and the fact is that the 20 hour work
permit is not a top up but a part of the Visa granted.

The financial status shown back home by these students is to ensure that
students have funds for contigencies and meeting their course fees. (btw they are
allowed to show properties as financial backing) now they wouldn't use that for
living here or eating here.....ofcourse. That's why that 20 hour permit was given -
I am not complaining but trying to give you the picture why Indian students get
trapped when they face such people at lonely places......

You might have an insured car with no access to claims but you would still get
pissed off if someone scratches it at a parking lot.....wouldn't you? even though
you can get it repainted through your insurance - it works the same way.
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 09,
2010
04:25 AM
503
@ Rakesh.

I suspect the 20 hour work restriction was in place to help ensure that only
genuine students were entering the country.

Whatever the reason, 'students' are required to demonstrate they have enough
money prior to coming to Australia for study. The 20 hours work is just a 'top-up'.

The 'students' knew this restriction before they came because they would have
had to demonstrate their financial status. Why the complaint afterwards then? It
can only be because they are flouting the immigration act in just the way it was
intended to prevent. And then they complain about it! The arrogance is breath-
taking.

I have no sympathy on that account whatsoever. Particularly if that gripe is one of
the reasons they're sabotaging Australia's overseas reputation.

And by the way - you've been here 3 years and haven't heard Englishmen
referred to as pommie-whingers, or them told "well if you don't like it, go home"?
ALAN
FEB 08,
2010
10:18 AM
502
David Morgan, I don't think any Australian has denied that some of these attacks
are racially motivated.

It is a disgrace that Indians are being attacks (having said that, I would like to
some some more evidence to support India's claims that their citizens are being
singled out).

However, to simply assume all these attacks are racist, as the is the Indian
medias want, is to create a smokescreen and will mean we miss the real
underlying issues - rising street crime, dodgy learning institutions, immigration
scams, new immigrant orientation, and yes, racism (although rabid jingoism in
our youth brought about by the commercialisation of ANZAC day and Australia
Day seems more likely).
BRIAN
FEB 08,
2010
08:35 AM
501
@ Alan

I absolutely agree with you. That is what is bothering people like me & Ganesh,
who are settled here and are aware of the situation both in Australia and India.

Last week itself I was discussing this with a few fellow Indians and I made a
guess that behind the scenes of all this is something which no one is talking
about - may be uranium sale issue to India. It might be the spark that ignited all
this.

And I can't agree more with the way things have taken shape it has done great
damage to the bialateral relationship and both the economies.

I think the issue wasn't attacks but the frustration the indian students (& other
International students) were having due to restrictions on their work / dodgy
colleges / residency applications and concessions in travel etc. If a few of those
concerns were taken care of then the frustration among that group of students
would have been lesser. That's my point of view - imagine an Indian student (with
working rights of 20 Hrs / week) is returning home at midnight after working at a
restraunt / driving taxi and has earned around 100 bucks now he is stopped and
asked for all the money he's got by some hooligans at the station he would resist
for sure and will be beaten up - that's not racist that opportunistic but then these
students have no where to go and complain - even police turned a closed ear
towards them - all this happened for a while and was picked up the politicians
and media.

Now the question is how do you stop it, revive the harmony and move on. Action
needs to be taken from both the sides and with a positive attitude of rebuilding
the image - current spat of events is doing the reverse.
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 08,
2010
08:32 AM
500
@ David Morgan

To me the fault was with the Howard government for setting-up a system open to
corruption and abuse. Once in place, it gathered a momentum that led to the
current situation.

In 2000, the Howard government put into place legislation that enabled back
door migration. People who claimed to be studying/have completed a course in
one of a number of required trades could apply for Permanent Residency. As a
result dodgy colleges were set-up (often owned by Indians offshore) to provide
evidence of this study to enable migrants access to Permanent Residency. Not
only did these colleges flout the legislation, they illegally pressured the students
for additional funding.

The legislation resulted in a flood of migrants (mainly from India) who used the
system to gain access to Australian residency. Because the legislation was
poorly controlled, the requirements to complete courses were often ignored or
given lip-service. The so-called students, under financial pressure, took all sorts
of low-end jobs such as convenience store work and taxi driving, and lived in
poor neighbourhoods, resulting in high risk of robbery and assault. Also, because
in many cases the limited work allowances for Indian students were being flouted,
they tended to carry their money with them, making them worthwhile targets. The
sudden influx of Indians into poorer areas was noted and resented by others in
those areas.

In 2009, the Rudd government acknowledged that rather than producing the
semi-skilled workers it was intended to, the student legislation was resulting in
poorly skilled migrants with limited English entering Australia. In January, March,
and May, successively stronger measures were put in place to address this
failure. The May changes required greater English abilities and tests for the skills
the students were supposedly learning. The Federation of Indian Students in
Australia resented this threat to the back-door migration program. Because they
could hardly protest at requirements that they do the training they had agreed to
do, the Federation instead used the assaults and robberies to attack the
government for not protecting them, and added the racism link as added spice.
This was picked-up by the Indian media and politicians and run with without
question, particularly the racist angle. Given the notorious corruption in India, it
would hardly be surprising if some of the money from the Indian-owned colleges
didnt lubricate this outcry.

The Rudd governments review of the legislation conducted last year is
apparently finished, with a result in shutting-down the overseas vocational
training/immigration system.

The response of the Indian student federation will be interesting.
ALAN
FEB 08,
2010
07:30 AM
499
A common thread here from Australians is that it's not really the fault of the
Australian people that Indian are people being bashed in our poorer suburbs,
because it is claimed we're not really racist. It seems the fault lies instead with
our government for letting Indians come here in the first place...
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 08,
2010
05:44 AM
498
"Would they say the same stuff to a student from swtizerland or Germany ? NO."

Actually Rakesh, I think that's exactly what would happen. There'd be references
to nazis and Germany's tretment of Turks. I think you've fallen into the trap
described by Ganesh.

Australians may have over-reacted, and perhaps I have as well. But perhaps
you'd like to think about it from our perspective? This story has made headlines
around the world, and enough mud has been slung to have stuck, damaging our
reputation. I wonder what this has cost our economy, apart from the students who
won't come? What about the skilled and professional Indian (and other) migrants
who have been scared-off? Even typing this now makes be extremely angry.

And remember it wasn't just the media, but senior Indian government ministers
who perpetrated this.

If Australians have reacted strongly, do you really wonder why?

Anyway, the students attempt to deflect the government from reforms of the
overseas student system started last year has failed completed - see below. I
hope they're happy with the damage they've done to the Indian/Australian
relationship - and the boost they've given to the marginal racist groups in
Australia.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/crackdown-on-skilled-migrants-20100207-
nksr.html
ALAN
FEB 08,
2010
05:15 AM
497
@ Paul, Don't feel so disgusted mate. I understand this Debate has no end but its
good to read various views on an issue from people who had different
experience.

I have been living here for 3 years (and mind it I didn't come here as a student). I
really like this country, it is indeed better than India on many counts and I also
accept the unbalanced reporting from Indian Media but what I am not happy
about is the way some of the Aussies have reacted to it.

If Indian Media acted immaturely then people here who tell Indians to go back if
they don't feel safe here or who start talking about problems in India is equally
immature.

Would they say the same stuff to a student from swtizerland or Germany ? NO.

Attacks are wrong anywhere in the world, be it India or Ausstralia we should all
condemn them. Labelling them as Racist is another thing and I also DON'T agree
with the kind of reporting that is happening in India but your last post sounds a bit
disappointing.

Regards
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 08,
2010
04:25 AM
496
[an open letter from the Australian government to Indian vocational students]

Dear Indian vocational student.

The Australian government unfortunately admits that it is unable to keep you safe
in this country. This is due to the racist, blood thirsty, bad genes of the Australian
people inherited from convicts. Nothing can be done about this.

The Australian government therefore has decided to send you all back to the
safety of India. Because we care so much for your safety, we have also decided
to give the opportunity for Mr Gautam Gupta to accompany you. Through his role
as spokesperson of the Federation of Indian Students in Australia, Mr Gupta has
shown he is deeply concerned for your welfare, and we are sure he will jump at
this opportunity to continue in this role.

We wish you all the best in your lifelong dreams to become hairdressers and
cooks, and hope you continue these pursuits for the benefit of all Indians.

Yours sincerely,

Kevin Rudd

PM Australia
ALAN
FEB 06,
2010
05:30 PM
495
@Paul -

Timelines on changes to the overseas students regulations are interesting in
regard to your question.

From January 2009, in response to findings that the job outcomes for former
overseas students trained in Australia were poor, largely on account of English
language deficiencies, the government began changing its skill selection priorities
and procedures:

January 2009 - a new critical skills list was introduced that excluded hairdressing
and cooking, 2 previous staples for vocational students seeking permanent
residency qualifications.

March 2009 - other trades were removed from the critical skills list

May 2009 - the English language minimum requirement for trade occupations
was increased and a skills test was be instituted.

Coincidentally(?) -

Despite Indians being attacked throughout 2008, in late May and June 2009
Indian student groups in Melbourne and Sydney held protest rallies against
violence. The Indian media also started highlighting the issue at that time.

Why did the attacks suddenly become so much more unacceptable and
frightening to Indian students just as the crackdown on vocational students
began, one wonders?
ALAN
FEB 06,
2010
02:49 PM
Where was Mr Krishna and Outlook India during this spate of killngs in the US?
Not a word. It was left to the state govt. It went on for months. Mr Krishna would
not be interested......too busy brown-nosing the Bush administation
Software engineer from AP found dead in US
494

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This is the latest in the series of deaths involving students and professionals from
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years ago and was living with his wife Praveena, who also hails from Anantapur.

An Indianapolis police official, requesting anonymity as she is not authorised to
speak to the media, told PTI that the police received an emergency call at about
6.15 pm.

The body was first found by his wife, also a software techie, who then alerted the
neighbours, who in turn called the police, the official said.

Upon reaching the apartment, the police found the deceased lying on the floor
and there appeared to be some marks on his neck. He was immediately taken to
the hospital. The autopsy report is awaited, she said.

The official said that while initial investigation has indicated that it is a case of
suicide, the police is continuing with its investigation to confirm the reasons and
cause of his death and also the circumstances under which it happened.
PAUL
FEB 06,
2010
01:14 PM
493
Varun @478 "Sumera in Melbourne, what do you think the Indian government or
media should say? That there's no problem at all? "

No Varun, where in any of my posts have I implied that? The point made was of
the lack of balanced (non-accusatory, self righteous) reporting.

It is like Ganesh says - If you're proven wrong, you just brazen it out and shout
louder
SUMERA
FEB 06,
2010
12:21 PM
492
K Nair
Australians don't want to work? Australian unemployment 5% cf USA 11%. USA
budget deficit 1.5 TRILLION, owes China 800 BILLION. I don;t think Australia
needs a lesson in financial managemnet from the USA or on equity from India (
the country with the largest gap between the wealthy and the poor. We are doing
okay without gratuitous advice, thanks all the same
PAUL
FEB 06,
2010
11:47 AM
To Ganesh C Prasad/ Sydney, Australia (comment 479).

Thank you Ganesh for your comment 479, though reading it makes me a bit
sad... sad for my birth country, to see such a cogent, prudent & intelligent Indian
living & contributing so far away.

491
Regards.
RK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
11:39 AM
490
I remember a meeting with the VP of one of the best known Australian
MNC's,way back in 1983/84, in his Sydney highrise office. Official matters having
been disposed off, the conversation turned to socil matters of Australia - he called
it a big expanse of land endowed with immense wealth loaded with opportunities,
with comparativeley negligible population; they are too wealthy, why should they
work, was the attitude. Even he was an American, not a 'local'..

Into such a society, expatriates hungry for higher education, career/business
building, etc. are drawn in droves, instilling fear of reduction in the priveleges
enjoyed by locals. It is said researchers have connected Michaele Obama's
lineage from a genuine African slave of the past ; the lesson is, no Australian
street goonda can block evolution.
KSC NAIR
INDIANAPOLIS, UNITED STATES
FEB 06,
2010
11:23 AM
489
Australians shouldn't be too surprised by this series of articles, even though they
plumb new depths of jouralistic duplicity even by the usual Indian-media
standards of hysteria and xenophobia. This has happened before: a few years
ago 2 Singaporean Chinese were murdered in their apartment close to the
University of New South Wales. The Singaporean and Indian papers screamed
about racist Aussie murder for weeks until the police charged the(Indian origin
Singaporean) flat-mate with the murders. After a long-trial and appeal, he( Ram
Tiwari) was recently sentenced to 48 years.......one of the longest sentences in
NSW history ( the judge described one of the killings as an exceution). It was a
disagreement about money. Needless to say, the coverage in India of te trial was
zero. Prematurely screaming racism about every crime is unwise, as has been
shown in the recent events in Australia. Some cases may be racist, others are
certainly not. This magazine chose their interviewees very selectively. They could
have used an example from Tasmania...where electors voted into Parliament an
Australian of Indian origin , ie preferring to be represented by someone whose
name is Singh rather than the loony-right fanatics chosen for interview by these
'journalists' ( the loony party got less than 1% of the vote. Ms Singh is now a
minister in the govt. Of course, a focus on that would not suit the editor's agenda
PAUL
FEB 06,
Not having a good day - Dr Natteri Chandran, not Chandra. And the link didn't
2010
10:12 AM
488
work. Hope this does -

http://www.tewfi.org/documents/Internation_Indian_article.pdf
ALAN
FEB 06,
2010
10:00 AM
487
Oops - of course I meant Pakistan/Australia 20/20.

Also to Peter - the Indian Dr I mentioned way down below somewhere as
someone I respect immensely is Natteri Chandra, who founded The East West
Foundation of India (TEWFI), a charitable and educational organization
committed to helping those in need in India. He also set up The East West Centre
(TEWC), dedicated to helping the mentally unwell among the poor and
disadvantaged in Australia, and The East West Overseas Aid Foundation
(TEWOAF) in Australia. (http://www.charinda...tter%20v2%20i6.html)

I think your stereotype of Indian health care professionals is plain wrong.
ALAN
FEB 06,
2010
09:52 AM
486
I think we could have done without that rant Peter. I was hoping these posts
would finish with Ganesh's post #479, the best I've read. But since it's going on,
I'd just like to say, did anyone watch the Pakistan/India 20/20? Firstly, after the
game, there was obviously a good relationship between the teams.

Secondly, did others notice the Indians in the crowd waving both the Indian and
Australian flags? That's what modern Australia is all about. People who migrate
here and commit to the country, don't forget their heritage, but leave their
prejudices and squabbles behind. That way Australians of all backgrounds get to
share the the good parts of cultures from all over the world (including India's rich
heritage).

This spat with India has unfortunately given oxygen to the minority of people (like
Pauline Hanson) who don't believe in multicultural Australia. They can point at
the nonsense coming out of India and say - look, we don't want those liars here.
Send all ungrateful Indians home. And there will be just a few more people who
agree with them.
ALAN
FEB 06,
Hi Peter Wignall
2010
09:29 AM
485

The possibility of an Indian influx of student/migrants to Australia. WAKE UP
AUSTRALIA- it is your clarion call, PETER WIGNALL.

Just imagine, hypothetically speaking of course, the sea level is rising at an
alarming rate now and an exodus of asylum seekers from low-lying Pacific
nations are coming in their rickety boats to Australia. Where else could they go?
What would Australia do? When a trickle of Afghanistan asylum seekers came to
Australia, xenophobic former Prime Minister Howard sent them to Pacific nations
for processing. Where would Australia send the exodus of asylum seekers from
Pacific nations? Wouldnt it be food for thought?
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 06,
2010
08:38 AM
484
It is so silly to blame the Indian Media as even an Australian Politician has, of
being volatile. Or to say it is alarmist.
Some British newspapers, eg: the SUN are equally so and it is owned by "A once
upon a time" Australian Right Winger named, Rupert Murdoch!
The press lives on "alarmist."
I am so glad that the Indian press has opened up the debate.
No Australian has got the guts or they've been Knobbled by our MR RUDD. Such
is OUR Democracy. Perhaps we could learn a thing or two from India?
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
07:55 AM
483
Violence against Indians in Australia: Mr Rudd is wrong! So are all the Politicians
and Newspapers stifling the debate.
We do not want 10 million Indian migrants coming to unbalance our population.
Last year the Office for National Statistics UK said, if current trends continued,
the UK population would rise by 10 million to more than 71.6 million by 2033 - the
fastest rise in a century.
Spreading people around the World is NOT the solution.
GDP; Gross Domestic Produce is the mantra of most Politicians and all
Businessmen.
It is pursued at any cost while they live. It must be stopped.
It increases World Population which is a CATCH-22 situation.
In 50 years the Tripling of World Population along with GDP, Factory Production,
Infrastructure requirements, Loss of Forests, Increase in Physical and Mental
Stress of all Fauna and Flora, is of no benefit to anything on Earth.
Why is it wrong to control World Population?
In a World with a 1950s Population, there would be a World with one third of our
present problems.
Imagine it: Fish for all, Jobs for all, Health for all, and No Global Warming.
Take the plunge: Two children per married couples maximum, then sterilisation of
both partners.
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
07:47 AM
482
The possibility of an Indian influx of student/migrants to Australia.
WAKE UP AUSTRALIA. Never mind Global Warming!
More than a third of species assessed in a major international biodiversity study
are threatened with extinction, scientists have warned.
These included 21% of all known mammals, 30% of amphibians, 70% of plants
and 35% of invertebrates.
At what point will society truly respond to this growing crisis?
Professor Jonathan Baillie,
Zoological Society of London.
This is caused entirely by the increase in Human Population!
It cannot go on. Spreading people around the world is NOT the answer.
Therefore: Increasing Australian population with migrants from INDIA is not to be
allowed.
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
07:19 AM
481
Michael Edwards (Australia) ABC correspondent in Delhi. Blog about India.
They have to worry about water and electricity shortages, putting food on the
table, poverty, pollution, inequity just surviving. So the fear of terrorism is
almost exotic compared to the concerns of everyday living."
My comment on India:
India is a fascinating ancient civilisation with Social systems in places, unknown
anywhere else in the World. The Caste System in particular.
If China had introduced such a system in 1945 it would have been condemned by
the whole World!
Looking at India in the news and internet, it is lauded as the Biggest Democracy
in the World.
It has the greatest gap between the rich and the poor of any Country, Democratic
or otherwise, in the World.
Its people cannot and do not have the same Ethics or Morals of most Western or
Australia citizens.
Example: It is believed most Indians who study Medicine abroad do not take their
skills back to help their fellow Indians; they stay to earn fat wages in the country
where they studied.
I have, over the years read horrendous articles about the Indian Health Service.
Below is taken from a letter to my friends in England.
Start-22-11-2005. I Wrote:
Another documentary about hospitals in India showed a father carrying a boy of 6
yrs with his intestine hanging out. They had been in a queue at a Hospital
emergency department for 3 days! I do hope the film crew were able to help
them. India is disgusting!! The only Charity I give to is Medicines Sans Frontieres.
If only it could become totally HUGE and Global with money to build Hospitals
and medical centres worldwide. All to be done with their own Architects, Staff
etc, to cut out filthy corruption.

Are there any Indian Nationals working for Medicine Sans Frontieres, for more
than 12 months?

WE DO NOT HATE INDIANS. Your Country is so far removed from our own
EGALITARIAN Society as can possibly be imagined.
The RAJ did not help! Indeed at that time most people in Britain were no better
off but they have evolved, you have not.
Therefore WE DO NOT RESPECT your Country.
That is not Racism.
We have no trouble at all with older Indians who have settled here. We are very
concerned about a possible influx causing an imbalance with the 144
Nationalities here already.
NAME ME AN INDIAN CITY with more than 50 differing Nationalities living there.
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
06:23 AM
480
Things are out of control over here in racist Australia.
Dr. Nair (Indian national) Sydney -The murder charge relates to the death of the
22-year-old woman in November.
Likely outcome: Going to Jail cost to tax payers for the next 12 years around
500,000
An Indian taxi driver is facing charges over the bashing of a passenger who was
knocked unconscious in a suburb here in Australia, media reports said on
Thursday.
Likely outcome: conviction, fine, ticket back to the Punjab if we had any sense.
Cost to the community, police time, court time, victim counselling and more than
likely crime compensation.
NSW police had arrested three persons in connection with the murder of
Rannoch Singh, a 25-year-old Indian man, whose burnt body, was found in the
NSW town of Griffith on December, 29, 2009. Third man was arrested on the
same day and will also be charged with Mr Singh's murder
All Indian Nationals
Likely outcome: Going to Jail if found guilty, probably get 20 years and out in 15.
Cost to taxpayers: 3 x 700,000 or 2.1 million over the journey
Cost to victims family cant be quantified will more than likely get crime
compensation
Singh, a 29-year-old Indian "student", turned up last month burned to a crisp, with
a tale of having been attacked in Essendon by four racists with a can of petrol.
Singh, 29, of Grice Crescent, Essendon, in the city's north, faced an out-of-
sessions hearing early this morning ... charged with making a false report to
police and criminal damage with a view to gaining a financial advantage."
Likely outcome: will more than likely get a massive fine and conviction. Again if
we had any sense, straight onto a plane. No charge
Cost to community: Police time and Court time, and fire brigade time
Other Matters
In 2008, when Sukhraj Singh was almost bashed to death in a Sunshine shop.
Singh had been belted by an ethnic gang of whom the only one since publicly
identified in court is Zakarie Hussein, a 21-year-old from Somalia.
Likely outcome: jail time will cost us plenty, especially when the charged
Hussein sings like a tweedy bird and dobs in the rest of his mates who will then
spent time in jail with him.
Take the notorious bashing on the Werribee, of an Indian national last year
Check the CCTV vision and you could see what the police and journalists would
not say - that the attackers seemed to include youths who weren't "white", and at
least one who looked very Indian.
Dont worry these dudes will be caught and will be jailed. Allow at least a couple
of 100 thousand for investigation court time etc.
Most of the reported robberies on Indian taxi drivers in the inner west in one six-
month period were likewise by African gangs
Will catch those lads eventually more court time and taxpayer money.
Recommend removal from county when caught and charged. Likely outcome,
community based order and wrap across the knuckles.
And here is the latest update: February 6, 2010
TWO Victorian men gave alcohol to a 14-year-old girl one of them met on an
internet chat service before they both raped her, a court has heard.
Ravinder Singh, 30, of Lalor, and Steven Handros, 18, of Thomas town, are
charged with raping the girl at a house owned by Singh in Melbourne's north in
September.
Should be an interesting trial if proven guilty expect long jail term 15 years x 2
say 1.4 million
So here is the deal regarding the racist attitudes of Australians:
Feel free to falsely label this country as racists but take back your nationals and
jail them in your own country at your cost. As we know this isnt going to happen,
sent cheque for upkeep
As a peace gesture for falsely accusing this country as being racist, take the
Africans also. We will pay your daily rate of keeping them in one of your jails as
this is far cheaper than jailing them here, where they have swimming pools, three
square meals a day, television and internet and conjugal visiting rights for the
occasional bonk. This is a good deal for both sides.
In the event that you have spare space in your Jails, we can also throw in Arab
gang bangers, Viet drug dealers, and Indonesian people smugglers, Russian
gangsters and Chinese Triad members As a special we will throw in some white
boys so the deal doesnt smell of racism.
And above all, make it Indian law that you are not allowed to get educated in
Australia due to the nature of white Australian racism.
Save the taxpayers here a fortune and would put relationship back on even keel.
And above all, get a decent cricket side. The current one is pretty ordinary
COLONEL
BRIGHTON BEACH, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
01:31 AM
479
Varun Shekhar says:
> Sumera in Melbourne, what do you think the Indian government or media
should say? That there's no problem at all?

No Varun, you're engaging in some clever sleight of hand here. The behaviour
that has enraged so many Australians (including myself, an Australian citizen of
Indian birth) is accusation without proof.

It is absolutely right for the Indian media and government to highlight a problem
or raise awareness of an issue, i.e., that Indian citizens seem to be targeted
victims of violent attacks in some Australian cities. It is certainly true that the
initial reaction of Australian officialdom was lethargic. They needed to be spurred
into action.

However, it is *not* right to assume (without proof) that the reason for the attacks
was racism. It is even worse to assume that an entire country is racist (again,
without proof). Technically, it's called libel and many Indian journalists (including
the reviled Arnab Goswami of TimesNow) should be in court facing libel charges
and the prospect of a heavy fine.

i.e., it wouldn't be so much of an issue if mere 'exaggeration' or
'sensationalisation' (as you put it) was the problem. The real issue that enrages
us is *unfounded* accusations of racism. Even today, the sections of the Indian
community that have levelled these accusations are not willing to back down,
apologise or otherwise admit that there is no evidence that the attacks are racist
in nature and that Australia is a racist country.

You do raise an important point, though:
> If indeed the Indian government and media are 'exaggerating' or
'sensationalising' the recent attacks, then one major way of refuting these
comments, is to interview and sample the concerned or target group: the recent
crop of Indian students in Australia.

Yes, by all means, do interview them. And make sure you ask them a simple
question: What was the ethnicity of their attackers? The lot back home may be
surprised to learn that the Australian criminal class is as thoroughly multicultural
(heh) as the rest of Australian society. Would you still believe Australia is a racist
country (implying white supremacism) if it emerged that Indians were being
targeted by criminal gangs made up of Lebanese, Pacific Islanders, Aboriginals
and Sudanese in addition to white people?

I would blame Australia's culture of political correctness for not allowing vital
(although sensitive) information like this to be made public. The police and press
both suppress race-related information about criminals and suspected criminals
because it could lead to racial prejudice (heh).

As Mr. Andrew Bolt writes (http://bit.ly/cKybuP),

"The racial identity of those thieving attackers, officer? Can't say, couldn't see.
The ethnicity of the boys who bashed Singh, Mr Reporter? Didn't notice, won't
write."

I don't always agree with Andrew Bolt, but this article of his is right on the money
and I found its stinging irony deliciously entertaining.

No Varun, the real racism is elsewhere. The willingness to believe the worst of
someone based not on their actual behaviour but on their ethnicity alone, is
called racism. By accusing white Australians of inherent racism (with utter
disregard to something called evidence), sections of the Indian community have
been guilty of racism themselves. Can you see this? I don't think so. As another
poster here said, Indians don't seem to do irony.

I'm not holding my breath expecting an apology, though. Although I'm proud of
many aspects of my Indian culture, I know from 30 years of living there that the
words "sorry" (and "excuse me", "please" and "thank you") are rarely used in
public discourse.

If you're proven wrong, you just brazen it out and shout louder.

My piece of psychoanalysis:
It's well-known that dishonest people can't trust other people. They project their
own deceitful thoughts onto other people and then assume ulterior motives on
their part. I suspect Indians are so willingness to believe in white racism because
Indians as a group are so damn conscious of skin colour. I think an Indian
meeting a white person projects his own thoughts onto that person regarding
himself, "Man, what a dark-skinned guy this is. He's inferior to me!" Then if the
white person in question is anything but perfectly polite, the Indian goes, "Aha! I
knew the guy was a racist! They're all racists, I tell you!"

Look in the mirror, my dear fellow Indians. The racist is standing right there.

Don't believe me? Conduct another interview of Indians living in Australia. Make
sure you talk to:
1. People of dark skin
2. People belonging to Dalit or OBC (Other Backward Castes) groups
3. Women

Ask them in which country they are treated with dignity - India or Australia. The
answer wouldn't surprise me, but it sure as hell may surprise a lot of people back
home.

But as I said, I'm not expecting an apology anytime soon. India needs to grow up
and mature a lot more before that will happen. As for me, I've been in Australia
for 12 years, have grown considerably as a person since coming here and I
absolutely love it here. I'm a proud Australian citizen and if you think I'm a "traitor"
to India for speaking some unpleasant truths, I'm happy to wear that label.

Have a nice day.
GANESH C PRASAD
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
07:43 PM
478
Sumera in Melbourne, what do you think the Indian government or media should
say? That there's no problem at all?

A major point posters are missing is this: if indeed the Indian government and
media are 'exaggerating' or 'sensationalising' the recent attacks, then one major
way of refuting these comments, is to interview and sample the concerned or
target group: the recent crop of Indian students in Australia. Don't interview or
cite 2nd or 3rd generation Indo-Australians who are well settled, pretty secure
and more or less accepted. Ask a large section of the new arrivals. If the vast
majority of them say that everything is going well, they don't feel threatened, and
they've never had a bad experience worth mentioning, then Australians would be
correct to accuse the Indian government and sections of the media of
exaggeration.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 05,
2010
07:09 PM
477
"Oh, Australia did support India's independence movement..."

Oops, so we did. Me bad. Thanks Paul."

Hmmmm, you could show that by citing Australian media commentary back in the
20's, 30's and 40's. And the pronouncements of the Australian government in that
period. As for the allusion to the partition massacre, the British themselves are
not innocent by a long shot. Their policy of constantly compartmentalising people
into religions, and using the excuse of Hindu-Moslem discord to delay or deny
independence, contributed in a big way to the tragedy of 1947.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 05,
2010
11:23 AM
476

Oops, so we did. Me bad. Thanks Paul.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
11:01 AM
475
Oh, Australia did support India's independence movement, just as the post-war
Labor govt supported decolonisation in many countries. India and Australia were
co-sponsors of te newly-independent Indonesia's membership of the UN in 1949
PAUL
FEB 05,
2010
10:50 AM
474
@ Anand Samy

Just curious to know what does Samy means in your Indian Name?
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
10:43 AM
473
"What rubbish. India is a highly diverse, democratic country that accommodates
all the various languages and ethnicities within its borders, as far as possible"

Why should we believe that when you refuse to believe what we (and Indian
Australians) say about Australia?

"Incidentally, why didn't Australia support India's independence movement?"

Who knows - as you say, it was a long time ago. Maybe we stupidly believed the
Poms when they said there'd be a godawful massacre among all those peace-
loving Indians.

More likely we thought it was a matter better left between you and them.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
@ Craig

10:42 AM
472
I am not angry on all australians my friend but the ones who when confronted
with something give arguments that check yourself first and justify the attacks.

And for your knowledge, India never invaded any country in the last 1000 years.

Talking about Pakistan, it was indus valley as you said and pakistan was made
out of that and was a result of british rule - they left that partition as scar of their
departure.

And all the hate you talk in Goa, Sikkim or be it any part of India itself is all fueled
by few countries & politicians which do want India to live a peaceful & prosperous
life and make money out of it.

I have friends in North East part of India - sikkim is one them and they tell us how
chinese army people invade into India, dress up in Indian army uniform and do
atrocities on locals then go back and then they fuel all those anger that Indian
armed forces treat them badly and that's why all the anger.

AGAIN MY POINT - IF SOMEONE IS ACCUSED OF SOMETHING DENYING IT
WITH THE ARGUMENT LIKE YOURS SHOWS THE INSECURITY WITHIN.

I am not calling all aussies but a handful (may be) are the ones who cause all
these problems and then everyone has to bear the heat.

Things are not shaping up in the way they should.

Indian students come here for a better life and as you said its a beautiful country
so we don't expect ourselves to get bashed by some cowards in parks / street /
taxis and then told by others to shut up since it is even worse back home.
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
10:15 AM
471
"You kill the natives in AP. The Goans hate you. In Darjelling they refer to you as
the monkey people. In Sihkkim they despise you."

What rubbish. India is a highly diverse, democratic country that accommodates
all the various languages and ethnicities within its borders, as far as possible. If
there are idiots in those states who say the things you claim, they are a tiny
minority. There are many more articulate folk in those places. Incidentally, why
didn't Australia support India's independence movement? It's that racist mentality
and culture again. It's probably much less now, but one can imagine how
horrendous it was in the 30's, 40's and 50's.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 05,
2010
10:13 AM
470
I notice a large number of Indians, on this site and others, have experessed the
shame they feel that has been brought upon them due to the behaviour of the
Indian media and a handful of Indian ploticians on this, and the action of a few
Indian criminals in Australia.

You are amongst the ones who should not to be ashamed, and you should hold
your heads high for the fact you have faith in Australia and its people.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
09:43 AM
469
To whom it may concerned

By and large, media-print and electronic-have a tendency to sensationalise and
exaggerate to their advantage, that is the nature of the beast; it happens in
democratic countries like India and Australia. It is tolerable to an extent than
compared to the Big Brother is controlling the media. At least we are living in
democratic countries where we enjoy lots of fundamental rights which are denied
in totalitarian countries like China.

I am not suggesting that the NYPD has completely obliterated violence on the
streets of New York. Its zero tolerance policy coupled with the cops on beats has
helped to reduce crimes dramatically.

This will be my last post on this matter and lots of bloggers have expressed their
varying views. I feel the less said the better on this matter.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 05,
2010
09:38 AM
468
Today watching TV channels in india they are hunting for a news. I think the
reporters are working overtime to find a news and interestingly they found out
about the finance report given by macquarie bank where the guy sitting at the
back was browsing the porn pics. what a joke. hey there are so many important
news here in india and they want to pick this out of Australia. you morons....in
particular times now. what a junk? yesterday one Indian minister gave a mouth
full to mr. goswami the main anchor about his twisting tactics. what a shame
India?? and the scroll at the bottom is mentioning about this article and
requesting people to buy them as shelf life is only till this
sunday...then....Ashamed to be an Indian...all i feel is i dont want to go to some
other country and try to change them...if we like live there if not then get into the
next plane and back home...
ANAND SAMY
CHENNAI / MELBOURNE, INDIA
FEB 05,
2010
08:43 AM
467
Rakesh, why so angry?

You are from the Indus Valley in Pakistan. You took lands from the natives all
over South Asia. You have all but wiped out the natives of the Andaman Islands,
and the sub-continent.

You kill the natives in AP. The Goans hate you. In Darjelling they refer to you as
the monkey people. In Sihkkim they despise you.

Return to your lands in Pakistan and give back all the wealth to the natives.

The typical Indain response is to tell Australians to go home. I am my friend. And
I am loved, free, safe, happy and rich.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
08:15 AM
466
No doubt some are scared Jenny. But it's an interesting coincidence that this
issue gained momentum just when the federal government started a review of the
Overseas Student Act that controls the issue of permanent residency visas to
overseas students is it not? A cynical person might think that this is a way of
putting pressure on the Australian government not to crack down too hard on the
visa scam.

In which case, at least some of the fear felt by Indian students may be blamed on
whoever chose to exagerate the issue of general racism for political gain.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
07:54 AM
465
Hi, my name is Jenny, I live in Melbourne. All I can say is that I'm sorry that all of
this is happening. I am just sorry its happening and I hope the government will
finally step up and take care of this once and for all for everyone. I am sorry that
Indian students feel (and are) so scared in my hometown. I wish it was not like
this. I'm sorry.
JENNY
FEB 05,
2010
07:48 AM
464
and if you want a comparison with NYC, why is the homicide rate in the USA , per
capita, about 20 times higher than Australia. India ranks #1
PAUL
FEB 05,
2010
07:42 AM
463
Scaria
The Indian component of Australian 'export' of education to India is largely Indian-
driven and owned ( as well as partly Nepalese and Australia). Have a look at the
latest BRW rich list...you will see on it a name realted to the ownership of one of
these colleges.
Students studying at Australian Universities seem to have very few problems. I
concede that the Govt made a huge blunder in changing the visa regulations to
allow this proliferation of vocational enrolments. But the nexus there is to PR. and
individual students have taken that path.
No-one wants to see Indian students suffering or bashed, let alone murdered. At
issue is the rapid-dog mentality of jouranlists such as those responsible for the
one-sided, fear-inducing, xenophobic, disingenuous hysteria contained in this
series of articles. Fortunately the fraudulent self-immolation story has been
picked up by every news agency in the world, making Mr Krishna look like the
moron he may very well be
PAUL
FEB 05,
2010
07:21 AM
462
So you don't think these 'students' should actually have to study and pass their
courses before getting residency Scaria?

Other skilled migrants have to demonstrate trade experience before they're
allowed to migrate. Why shouldn't the vocational students have to demonstrate
experience prior to getting a PR?
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
06:54 AM
461
Hi Ian, Alan and Paul

Please read my previous blog 291 about what I have said on this matter.

My heart bleeds for your self-righteous gibberish here. It is time for you all to
come down from the self-righteous high moral grounds that you have perched on.

There are sleaze- balls and undesirables everywhere and people are engaged in
criminal activities on a quotidian basis world over, irrespective of colour or creed.
A SYDNEY neurosurgeon, Dr.Nair is charged with malpractice and likewise other
white Australian doctors have involved in malpractices in the past. An infamous
white English doctor in England, with the sobriquet of doctor death, was on a
killing spree-killed so many of patients. An Indian sleaze ball at Essendon
claimed that he was torched by some Australian youths and police arrested him
for making false accusations for a fraudulent Insurance scam. Another Australian
disgruntled nitwit bombed a Darwin insurance office and his criminality has some
innocent victims. Do you want me to go on?

Immigration of students with the proviso of permanent residency is acting as a
magnet for students to come to Australia for permanent residency in the pretext
to study-any frivolous courses like hairdressings and so on. Australian
governments motive is to perpetuate its 15 billion dollar educational industry.
One thing most bloggers here didnt shed light on is policing. In New York the
NYPD has a zero tolerance for criminals and the undesirables who posses
weapons of any kinds. Is it time the Victorian police ape the NYPD and declare a
zero tolerance for criminals and the undesirables who possess weapons of any
kinds? Why does a law abiding citizen to possess weapons of any kinds to go
about doing his/her business, whatever they may be? Victorian police is arm
strung by lack of police numbers. Its efficiency is second to none, exemplified by
the speed with which it arrested the Melbourne millionaire Herman Rockefellers
killers-within a week.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 05,
2010
06:21 AM
460
@ INDIAN MEDIA & ALL THOSE WHO BELIEVE EVERY INDIAN BEATEN IN
AUSSIE WAS A VICTIM OF RACISM:

I live in sydney and have not faced any racism (direclty). I agree with the fact that
this country has a prob with voilence and Indian students serve as a soft target
for some cowards on the streets. Media in India is not doing any good by
reporting everything as Racism.

@ AUSSIE PEOPLE

PEOPLE IN AUS, WHO TELL INDIANS TO LOOK BACK AT INDIA FIRST OR
GO BACK IF DON'T LIKE IT HERE - UNDERSTAND TWO THINGS FOR EVER
-

1. THIS COUNTRY NEVER BELONGED TO YOU EITHER
(you came here and killed the original aussies and made them confined to their
rural areas acquired their beautiful landscapes and made them your cities......no
fault of yours since it is in your ROOTS to LOOT)

2. WHEN YOU CRITICISE INDIA TELLING INDIANS TO LOOK AT
THEMSELVES FIRST.
Why do you forget that India was the most wealthy, peace loving and prosperous
nation. Then came the british and it is what we see it today no more a happy
nation. DOES THIS RAISE ANY QUESTIONS IN YOUR DUMB MIND????

ONE LESSON FOR EVERYONE - IF YOU ARE BEING ACCUSED OF
SOMETHING THEN ACCEPT IT OR DENY IT BUT BY POINTING OUT FLAWS
IN THE COMPLAINANTS (YOU SHOW YOUR INSECURITY IN YOURSELVES)

So India
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
06:02 AM
459
Varun @comment 453

You point out this Outlook article and the others in this magazine as
representative of the balanced viewpoint of the entire Indian media? I was in
India a few months back, and at last count there were scores of news channels
most of which had sensational, name-calling, headlines along the lines of "The
unjust brutal Australian state and society must be condemned for these
unforgivable attacks, and all just people and nations everywhere must condemn
the racist, murderous attacks on innocent Indians, and force the racist Australian
state and society to stop their unjust acts"
They have TV 'debates' that consists of several shrieking pannelists and a clearly
biased host who has already made up his\her mind about what is behind every
student attack.
If there is a reasonable pannelist or someone who has actually spent time in
australia to give an informed opinion, his voice is general drowned out.

Besides Outlook have you taken a look at other online indian newspapers in the
last 6 months?? You probably would change your opinion on the "balanced"
indian media.

Please note, I do not think the indian media is the only one given to
sensationalist, rabble-rousing reporting. But to call them balanced is a joke.
SUMERA
FEB 05,
2010
The surgeon in question seems to have been operating under the influence of
drugs as well.
04:32 AM
458

http://www.smh.com.au/national/discharged-after-spinal-surgery-in-pain-
20100128-n1s4.html
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
04:27 AM
457
This article has made one point worth considering - the 'vocational' students
coming to Australia are ill-suited to fitting into our society. The Permanent
Residency option for vocational students should be removed.

For now, to weed-out the fake students:
- audits of vocational colleges to be increased in frequency and intensity.
Colleges found to be providing fake qualifications to be shut down and their
students have their visas cancelled.
- assessment of students once they've finished their courses to be undertaken
independant of the colleges that run the courses
- increased ID scrutiny to ensure the people taking the assessments are the
same people who are enrolled in the courses
- increased scrutiny of vocational students finances
- failure to pass an end-of course assessment to result in cancellation of visa
- 6 months employment in the area of study to be required before a Permanent
Residency application is permitted.
- Vocational student visas to be only valid for long enough for completion of the
course and 6 months of employment in the field of study.

Any resulting shortfall in migration to be replaced with humanitarian migration
offers.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
03:52 AM
456
It seems like this is mostly a media manufactured controversy. A similar thing
happened in the 80's in New Jersey when gangs of youth were attacking people
of Indian origin wearing tilaks (dots) on their foreheads. The gangs called
themselves the dot-busters. When a minority population becomes visible, people
at the fringes of society are the ones to feel the most threatened, since it is their
livelihood that hey perceive to be under attack. The phenomenon in New Jersey
died down pretty fast and Indians have continued to be the largest immigrant
population in New Jersey, in all strata of society ranging from Wall Street fat cats
to restaurant workers. I suspect, that over time Victoria will witness a similar
evolution.
- Sriram
SRIRAM
ACTON, UNITED STATES
FEB 04,
2010
09:17 PM
455
So in effect, Anand, you are saying the new Indian immigrants brought all this
violence on themselves. They deserve what they got, every last one of them.
Thanks.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
08:19 PM
454
Mr varun, you have to understand the visa rules that once you are coming in on a
student visa you HAVE to prove that you have enough funds to live and study in
Australia. Then how can the student wont have money to pay the fees. Two
things one, he has cheated the visa office to get the visa saying he has enough
money, secondly he is trying to work illegally more than 20hrs to earn and send
the money home or pay the fees. No way and not accepted. so wrong people
coming on wrong visa and that is why the visa rejection now in australian high
commission in delhi is 67% and all the applications from punjab is called for
personal interview and rejected. so no point in complaining about the finance and
these are about attitude. newly arrived indian student should know how to be
humble i suppose
ANAND SAMY
FEB 04,
2010
08:15 PM
453
Actually, the Indian media, if not the Indian government, has taken a very
balanced view of the incidents in Australia. If they were a bunch of demagogues
and propagandists, they would be ranting something like "The unjust brutal
Australian state and society must be condemned for these unforgivable attacks,
and all just people and nations everywhere must condemn the racist, murderous
attacks on innocent Indians, and force the racist Australian state and society to
stop their unjust acts" Or something to that effect. If India were communist or
Islamist, that's the kind of statement you would be hearing. Instead, this series of
Outlook articles are highly balanced, nuanced, reflective and fair-minded. While
keeping focused on the primary theme of violence against new Indian
immigrants.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
08:14 PM
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////...(-))))))))))))))))))
HARIKUMAR
452
COVENTRY, UK
FEB 04,
2010
08:12 PM
451
////////////////////...////////////////////
HARIKUMAR
COVENTRY, UK
FEB 04,
2010
08:05 PM
450
Daria, Matt, Paul et al, what in your view would be an appropriate response from
the Indian media or government about the recent spate of attacks. A country's
nationals are attacked over and over, so of course there's going to be concern.
Later, you can sift through the events, and say one or two of the incidents had to
do with inter-Indian violence or insurance fraud. It still doesn't change the main
theme: that many Australians feel threatened by the new immigrants who are
'visible', insufficiently Australian, accented, and perceived as competitors for low
paying jobs. Incidentally, to those Indo-Australians denouncing the recent
arrivals, many of them have to work to support themselves, which is why they are
taking jobs like driving taxis or late night cashiers etc. The older, more
professional Indian immigrants were fortunate in that respect, that there was no
need to do these kind of jobs. Hence, they were not seen as competitors by the
element that is now attacking them.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
07:55 PM
449
hey guys, there was absolutely no news about the taxi driver who hit a passenger
and also about the doctor. what a crap indian media is!!! believe me guys they
showed the blast occurred in darwin CBD.

By the way Mr. Gautam gupta has said to one journalist that he is feeling very
uncomfortable about the news coming against indians and he is feeling red and
cant say anything now.
ANAND SAMY
FEB 04,
2010
03:13 PM
Oh, dear.......they just seem to keep coming.....

Neurosurgeon on drug death charges From: AAP February 04,

448
A SYDNEY neurosurgeon has been charged over the drug-related deaths of two
women.
Suresh Surendranath Nair, 41, has previously faced court charged with supplying
a prohibited drug at his Elizabeth Bay apartment, in Sydney's east, on November
19.

The charge related to the death of a 22-year-old woman, whose body was found
at the apartment three days later.

Without naming him, police said Dr Nair would appear in court tomorrow charged
with one count of murder and one count of manslaughter.

Police said the manslaughter charge relates to a 23-year-old woman who died on
February 15 last year after being taken to St Vincent's Hospital from an address
in Elizabeth Bay.

The murder charge relates to the death of the 22-year-old woman in November.

"Post-mortem examination results indicate both women died of cocaine toxicity,''
police said in a statement today.

Nair was granted bail on the original drug supply charge but it was revoked after
he allegedly breached his bail conditions, which required him not to engage in the
services of female escorts or consume illegal drugs.

He is due to appear in Central Local Court today.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
01:52 PM
447
RK - yes. However, semiskilled/unskilled labour could be got by giving entry for
humanitarian reasons to young famillies from Iraq, Afghanistan, India and
elsewhere. People who have been properly assessed as deserving migration,
rather than fake students who have shown they have no respect for the laws and
customs of the country they're entering.
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
01:48 PM
Thursday.

The 25-year-old passenger was involved in a heated argument with the cab
446
driver around 10 pm on Wednesday, as they pulled over in Acland Street in St
Kilda, Australian news agency AAP reported.

A witness said the passenger tried to walk away but the cab driver chased him
down and had to be restrained by security staff working at a nearby business.

The passenger kept walking away as the cab driver then grabbed a baton from
the boot of his cab, drove up next to the passenger and allegedly started striking
the man repeatedly with the weapon, according to the witness.

"Within a few minutes, many other cab drivers, all of them Indian, all turned up,"
witness Karen told Fairfax Radio Thursday. "And I could just see how out of hand
this is all getting."

Paramedics say they treated the passenger for bruising and swelling to his upper
body and took him to The Alfred hospital in a stable condition.

The 32-year-old cab driver was arrested and later charged with intentionally
causing injury and two counts of unlawful assault.

Police say they cannot discuss the case further because the cab driver is facing
charges before the courts.

He is expected to make a court appearance in Melbourne Magistrates' Court at a
later date.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
01:35 PM
445
another Indian student charged....this one for assault in Acland St, St Kilda.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
01:20 PM
444
David Morgan re Tasmanian Aboriginals. Your comments are a disgrace...and
racist. Apparently you believe in racial purity....one nation voter? Take a closer,
less blinkered view of how indigenous Tasmanians view themselves rather focus
on your own uniformed bias
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
01:05 PM
443
Totally agree with Alan (comment 440) with regard to PR courses, the federal
government in 2004/05 not only diluted the then stringent university student visa
category but also included vocational training students to be eligible for
permanent visas. These changes were a deliberate attempt by the Howard
government to increase unskilled/semi skilled workforce which can be then help
keep overall wages down within the economy.

Most intelligent/educated Indians have a social stigma attached to these kinds of
qualifications and would rather die than enroll in classes teaching
hospitality/cooking etc.

So to call these people students would be a disgrace, it is just a guise to enter
into this country, and get residency.

While it is true that many Indians have positively contributed to the
American/British/Canadian society over 30-40 years, those Indians were greatly
educated highly skilled, well behaved & came from socially conservative (back
home) families. However the current group of students who have arrived here in
Australia to learn cookery/hospitality etc are from a different crop. They are
definitely going to work hard as unskilled/semi skilled workers however do not
expect them to integrate into the mainstream of this community & become
international citizens because they have neither the social capacity/ family belief
systems nor the attitude to do so.

Therefore I dont see this problem going away UNLESS the federal government
changes the current lax immigration rules around VOCATIONAL student visa &
decline permanent visas application from all such student.

It would be unfortunate to lose good unskilled/semi skilled people however thats
the price we should be prepared to pay.
RK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
12:42 PM
442
Australia is a very racist country. We once had a Labor Party leader who said "no
red blooded Australian wants a chocolate Australia by the 80s." Our educational
policy is to get as many seats filled as possible and not care about the students
who have filled them. I recently read a book by a so called leading intellectual in
this country who proudly proclaimed that the White Australia Policy finished with
Whitlam. The silly suggestion being that all he had to do was to say it was over
and that was the end of it. My parents came here from Europe and I was
subjected to abuse because of the strange food we ate and the also strange food
at our store. However, I was a good sportsman and eventually all was 'forgiven'.
Students travelling to this country should give Victoria a fairly wide berth. That is
not to say the rest of the country is better, just that the Victorians have a history
of racism. Particularly toward the Chinese. The Labor Party and the Unions live in
a state of fear of large numbers of foreigners taking Australian jobs. It is almost a
National trait to think that we should plan for the circumstance of large numbers
of foreigners arriving. If you look at our boat person policy you get some
ridiculous Labor policy where it was a matter of rescuing these people then it
became turning the boats back. Meanwhile the numbers continue to grow and
people are accepted in. It is the ultimate double standard. In this country there
used to be a call to "Populate or Perish" these days the call is more "Populism or
Perish" as both political parties have no other real concern than re-election. It
should always be remembered that racism is one of the primary tools of fascism
and feeds the constant call for security. We are about to spend $70 billion on
arms and a security fear was needed. Guess who filled the gap you can read it in
the Defence Paper. Of course it is the Indians and the Chinese. Our Prime
minister who would attend the opening of an envelope if he could be
photographed standing alongside Obama or some other powerful person will
speak to the Chinese in their own dialect and from the other side of his mouth call
the Chinese a security threat. He and his party must think you in India and China
have no memory or are going to be so dependent on us tearing our land apart to
provide resources, that you will overlook our two faced attitudes.

Regards,

George Ikners
GEORGE IKNERS
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
11:46 AM
441
To say that indigenous Tasmanian culture is alive and well is a lie. The last full
blooded Aboriginal Tasmanian died in 1876. The current population who call
themselves Aboriginal are a mixture from rape and government policy which was
to breed out or exterminate the race. My point is that Australia has a racist past,
possibly a racist foundation. But I guess genocide can be explained away. How
about those damn cab drivers!
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
11:18 AM
440
The Permanent Residency visa offer for course completion issue needs to be
looked at. We've ended-up with a whole lot of spurious education colleges that
charge Indians large fees to provide qualifications that allow application for
Permanent Residency (whether the qualifications are completed or not). This
results in great financial pressure on 'students' that encourages them to break the
visa work laws. It also results in disreputable characters who have no real interest
in studying in Australia. Basically we're saying, 'if you're prepared to break our
laws, give us enough money and we'll let you in'.

We need to encourage highly qualified professional Indians and serious
university-level students to migrate, not people who intend to break our laws
before they step off the plane. Cracking-down on these dodgy characters would
hopefully help ease the friction between India and Australia, and encourage
serious students and professionals to migrate.

It seems to me that the Australian govt has been negligent in selling Permanent
Residence visas for money, with spurious education courses being the
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
11:15 AM
439
I have expressed my opinion on this matter (Blog 291) and time has come to cool
down on both sides-Indian and Australian bloggers. Name calling from both sides
is not helping.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 04,
2010
11:01 AM
438
Until a few weeks ago, the race of victim and guilty parties was not mentioned in
Australia in the media or by the police. That was until the Indian media got
involved. At first only crime where the victim was Indian was reported in Australia.
Now all crime relating to Indians gets reported. So something interesting is
happening:

So far this year, 5 weeks in, we have 3 Indian murderers, we have one who is on
suspicion of murdering his wife, we have 2 rapists, another who who sexually
assaulted minors (repeat offender), we have a fraudulent arsonist and now a taxi
driver who along with a gang of other Indian drivers beats up a passenger.

I would suggest that this year the number of crimes committed by Indians is way
ahead of crimes where Indians are the victim.

If anyone should be upset here, it is ordinary Australians who are being accused
of being racist whilst Indians inport the criminal activities to our cities.

What is the real story here?
PETE MC
FEB 04,
ELAN'S "paradise on earth".........San Jose, completely free of racism tension
2010
09:47 AM
437
accodring to him.....others may noit be so sure(from San Jose Mercury 17
Jan2010)

For the first time in its 26-year history, the Freedom Train from San Jose to San
Francisco that honors the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. will embark Monday without
the blessing of a local chapter of the NAACP.

The president of the San Jose branch of the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People is upset that train organizers accepted a $5,000
donation from the San Jose Police Officers Association at a time when news
reports of police misconduct toward minorities have ignited a contentious
discussion about race and law enforcement in that city.

"My feeling is you can't buy civil rights; it's something you fight for," said Pastor
Jethroe Moore II. "You don't honor someone just because they give you money."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-
bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/16/BAPK1BHN4T.DTL#ixzz0eXIs1wN2
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
09:40 AM
436
LOL sorry, I meant @ ELAN FROM SAN JOSE (apologies to anyone named
Jose that my have thought i was directing that at them)
DARIA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
09:33 AM
435
Actually, indigenous tasmanian culture is alive and well. Many in that community
would be surprised that you have declared them dead.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
09:28 AM
434
@ ELAN
...what exactly is your problem with Australians?

After your blissfully punctuation-free rant, you have then decided to copy and
paste well-known facts about Australia's history in an attempt to make your point
that apparently we are all a bunch of racist pigs.

Yes, Australia was colonized in a rather brutal fashion by the British. As was
America. How's your Native population doing these days? Not so well, I hear. So,
kindly refrain from advising us that "you aussies are getting your racist asses
kicked by everyone". The American population is hardly one to make a fuss
considering their treatment of their African-American, Mexican (and virtually every
other) minority groups.

Yes, there are Australians who are racist. Just like there are Americans,
Canadians, Russians, Indians, Chinese, Sudanese, Lebanese, Japanese etc etc
etc (shall I go on?) who are also racist. This does not in any way represent the
majority view. What you have also failed to realise, is that the majority of
Australians are not white these days. There is such an immense mix of races that
it's very difficult to even say who's a migrant and who is not.

I myself migrated from Russia around 17 years ago. In the first few years, yes,
there was an occasional remark made towards me that could be termed as racist.
These comments however, were generally brought about by me not knowing the
language, customs and social niceties of the country I had just moved to. In other
words, when I began to respect Australia's customs, they began to respect me
too, in turn.

In general, with the obvious exclusion of the inevitably dim-witted portion that
exists in ANY population, I have never had any displays of even mild racism
towards me, that were not provoked by me in the first instance (when you rather
ignorantly ask an Aussie why they eat pies and that their beloved national food
tastes like dog's bollocks, you are likely to get told to get f***d and do go eat , in
my case, stroganoff [insert applicable national food here] back in one's home
country). And fair enough I say.

Conversely, I have actually had a number of instances of being inappropriately
spoken to, harassed, touched and called terrible names, by Indian cab drivers
who feel that it is their right to do so, because I wear Western-style clothing
(jeans and T-shirts)and happen to be traveling home late at night from work. One
charming driver referred to me as an "Aussie slut" while watching porn on a
laptop at the same time as driving his cab. This doesn't make me assume
however, that all Indians are represented by that particular pig of a man.

So please, Jose, until you know what's actually happening here, as my Aussie
girlfriends say, "pull your head in, mate".
DARIA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
I suggest we ask a Tasmanian aborigine to comment on that. Whoops, we
f@#ckin killed them all. That's right, the whole population of Aborigines in
09:13 AM
433
Tasmania, gone.
No, Australians don't have a racist history, not that much, it's just the people who
migrate here.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
09:05 AM
432
The White Australia Policy, not the actual name of the policy, was designed to
create a utopian and egalitarian society at the time of Federation.

The view was that if all people held similar beliefs, read: religious, cultural, ethical
(and as the Australians were Anglo-Saxon-Celt this is what they saw as similar),
then there would be no need for war or division. As Europe, Africa, Asia and the
Americas had been undergoing decades and centuries of external and civil wars
and class division this policy would prevent Australia going down this path.

That is what the ideals of the policy were. In todays world that is seen as a racist
policy. The WAP was in many ways disbanded directly after WW2, proven by the
influx of southern and western Europe.

Now, before anyone mentions, "What about the Aboriginals?", this you also need
to put into context in the history of the times.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
08:51 AM
431
The Colombo Plan is the one thing you never hear about. When Indians and
others want to prove we are racists they refer to the White Australia Policy, which
when put in context for the times would not have been considered by most
people but that is for another blog.

The Colombo Pla was intiated by Australia in 1949 and had Australia paying for
the University education of Indians, Sri Lankans, Pakistanis, Malaysians,
Indonesians etc. in ecenomics, science, agriculture etc. which resulted in
improving the lives of the people in these nations.

Call us racist if you wish, but understand history when using it to prove your point.

Unlike India, we still sponsor people from all over the world to study here. Maybe
that should be your Australian story.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
08:41 AM
430
It's all an ugly business Sumera. I suspect people denying the racist element are
at least partly reacting to the exagerated reports from India. Afterall, when you're
unjustly accused of being complicit in race-hate, the tendancy is to get indignant
and over-react.

Here's to understanding between all parties eh?
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
08:37 AM
429
Breaking news from Australia.

Another racist attack has occured in Melbourne. The man used a club and drove
past the pedestrian hitting him in the head knocking him unconcious. Then a
large number of people turned up and assisted in beating the already unconcious
person. A bouncer had early seperated the criminal when he had attacked the
victim from behind in Ackland Street.

The man with the club was an Indian taxi driver, the gang that assisted him to
beat an already unconcious person, were Indian taxi drivers, the victim a white
person. The Indian has now been arrested and charged with serious assault. This
must be a racist conspiracy to arrest peace loving, tolerant, well educated Indian
'students', who drive taxis.

While I'm on the subject, the other Indian that has been arrested for the rape of
the two 11 girls in Victoria after he slipped them alcohol must also be subject to
the same conspiracy.

We will return this Indian Peadophile soon. He can pratice legally what is illegal in
Australia. I think he is confused, and thought child brides were legal in Australia.

I notice very many similarities with all cases involving Indians, be they victims or
perputrators. The surname is nearly always a Punjabi name. Is this a
coincidence? Or a white racist conspiracy?

We know most Indians hate Punjabis, based on articles within Indian papers, has
this now lead to Australians hating Punjabis?

I am also now confused, have we Australians developed our racist brains so far
that we now can determine that someone is a Punjabi and not a Maharashtrian?

I also find it interesting until recently Sihks were not called Indians in the Indian
media, only Hindus were.

My racist brain is now so confused.

Apologies, this ridicule is not directed at the educated Indians, which in India is a
minority based on Indian, NGO and UN statistics, or at the real Indian Students in
Australia.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
08:36 AM
428
I meant comment no 424 by Matt. Although Alan's post is spot on too! :-)
SUMERA
FEB 04,
2010
08:04 AM
427
Alan's comment (no 423) sums up what the situation is in Melbourne vis-a-vis the
indian student attacks.

However Alan, I dont think there will be many indians who will actually read your
viewpoint with an open mind and concede that perhaps they may have jumped to
conclusions too soon (after all, one has to save face, even if it has mud all over it)

Indian's are by nature given to emotional and sometimes violent outbursts. Mostly
because we tend to accept things that come our way even if it bothers us (and
dont actually do anything to address it at that point), and then when it gets too
much explode into irrational reactions, childish name-calling, and disturbingly
violent riots.

As an indian-australian living in Melbourne, I have been asked what I think about
all this, and in my conversations with australian colleagues at work, I found that
most seem to want to deny that racism exists in australia or that there can be
some racism behind some of the indian attacks. There have been a couple who
just say 'So what, other immigrants faced it too, why should indians complain?'
That attitude is just as reprehensible as indians grouping all these attacks as
racist and calling all (white) australians racist.

By that same token, I noticed today (on online papers like the Herald Sun) that a
lot of australians seem to think that because the indian guy set himself on fire for
an insurance claim and there were 2 indians involved in the murder of the indian
fruit picker, that all the other assaults on indian students and racist taunts that
accompanied (some, most of them?) can be waved away.

Unfortunately, we haven't heard the last of this. There are still many poor, indian
students in melbourne, mostly from indian villages who are ill-equipped to deal
with life in a western metro.
SUMERA
FEB 04,
2010
07:14 AM
426
Canada is one of the more enligtened countries when it comes to the matter of
policies on racism, but shares very similar history to the USA, Australia and other
places in relation to its dark racist past. Many posters here refer to the so-called
white-australia policy ( in effect abolished in 1966) but would not understand that
Canada had a virtually identical policy until 1967.
In any event, the white Australia policy has very little to do with the situation
facing Indians in Australia....except perhaps rather ironically in the sense that
much(but not all) of the street crime in Australia is undertaken by the alienated
and dissaffected children of those who came to Australia as a result of the
abolition of the white australia policy.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
07:00 AM
425
As a White Anglo Saxon Australian I am actually quiet offended by allegations
that all Australians are racist against Indians.

I have neighbours, freinds and work colleagues who are of Indian back ground
and they like I can not see the racism that the Indian Journalists are reporting.

My Indian neighbours children are teenagers and just starting to drive. I see
many of their teenage freinds coming to visit and whilst alot are of Indian heritage
quiet a lot of them are white and from other backgrounds whom they have net
through school.

My Daughter and the Indian girl next door have been freinds for many years

That is the real Australia

Geoff
GEOFF MARTIN
KINGSWOOD, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
04:43 AM
424
Rohan:

Actually, refuting every point theoretically does produce a balanced argument. It
is the very basis for the confrontational legal systems found throughout most of
the Western World, and bits and pieces of the east.

Is it perfect? No, but it presents both sides and permits an impartial observer
(such as judge or jury) to weigh up both sides, and draw a conclusion.

So, as my closing summary to this debate:

Are there racists in Australia? Yes.

Are the attacks on Indians in Australia racially motivated? Some yes, some no.
We know that some attacks were indians attacking other indians, and one was an
accidental self-immolation.

Does this mean that every as-yet unexplained attack was racially motivated? No.
Not logically. Not statistically.

Does this mean that every as-yet unexplained attack was NOT racially
motivated? No. Not logically. Not statistically.

Does that mean we don't know which attacks were racially motivated? Yes, and
until more data comes through, any division along those lines is just a guess.

In Australia, are Indians proportionally more likely to be attacked that other ethnic
groups? No. In fact the evidence is that statistically they are under-represented in
victim of crime numbers. That Aborigines are over-represented should be more of
a national embarrassment. Native Australians don't have a high-commissioner
that they can symbolically recall or a tabloid press where they can run
nationalistic comment.

Does that mean Australia doesn't have a problem with violent attacks and
assaults? No, but it means its a bigger issue, not directed particularly at Indians.

Will the Australian economy fall-over if all the Indian Students leave, or if we
never sell Uranium to India? No. We'll feel it, but its more than made up for by
exports of primary products to China.

Does the average Australian care whether Indians are here or not? Probably not.
A few will feel threatened, and a few will miss them should they leave (In
particular, a white friend of mine who seems to have had a long string of Indian
girlfriends).

Does Australia have a monopoly on racists? No

Is India free of racism, and thus in a position to point the finger? No

Is the US free of racism, and thus in a position to point
the finger? No

Is Canada free of racism, and thus in a position to point the finger? No and
Maybe. They are definitely one of the more advanced nations when it comes to
integration.

Is Varun arguing from an informed position? No

Is Varun turning to personal attacks and gross generalisations in order to build
his case? Yes.

Is that technically even an argument? No.

Over to you, Varun.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
04:20 AM
423
This is what I believe is happening in Melbourne. Its only conjecture, because
really, theres no hard evidence.

I believe Indian students are being robbed because theyre in risky occupations
such as taxi driving and convenience store work, because they live in poor and
violent neighbourhoods, and because they tend to carry cash to avoid financial
scrutiny. Also, I believe Indian students are perceived by the criminals who attack
them as not being part of mainstream Australia and therefore vulnerable. I
believe the students are probably subjected to racial taunts while being robbed.
These attacks will be being carried-out by impoverished drug users and drunk
thugs of all races and ethnicities (including whites), and recent immigrant groups
who are having trouble fitting into Australian society. Because of the racial taunts
the robberies are being interpreted by the likes of Sasha as hate-crimes.

Some Indian students may also be being attacked because of inappropriate
behaviour around Australian women. Again, racial taunts will almost definitely be
involved and Sasha will be interpreting these as hate crimes because of the
taunts.

Indians in places where young people go to let-off steam like the CBD may also
unfortunately be targeted with racial taunts by idiotic drunk young men with too
much testosterone, probably whites of all European backgrounds, and probably
middle eastern men too. This is undoubtedly an example of low-level racism, and
unfortunately it's been applied to each successive group of migrants into
Australia - Italians, Greeks, Vietnamese, Lebanese etc.

I consider a racist attack to be where someone is attacked simply because of
race - not for theft or retaliation. The attack on the Nepali mentioned below may
be such a case. I think there was another attack on an Indian (last year?), and
that was by a middle eastern gang. The recent attack on 2 Indians by East
Asians may also be a racist attack, but it might also be a result of the recent
tensions between China and India. Such abhorrent attacks dont seem to be very
frequent.

Now the Sashas of this world and the Indian media are lumping all these
together as hate crimes and out of reverse racism concluding theyre all being
perpetrated by white Australians because of an all-pervading Australian anti-
Indian racism. To justify this, ridiculous claims are being made of ambulances
giving preference to whites over Indians, and police are accused of inaction. To
put that into perspectivem, Ive been bugled 3 times in Melbourne and had a car
stolen twice. The police have dutifully come and taken notes, and thats the last
Ive heard of it. Sometimes, theres just nothing police can do. Unfortunately the
case of Nitin Garg may be in this group.

On a brighter note, my group of friends includes Europeans, Australian east
asians, and Australian Indians. This includes a girl of mixed Chinese/Anglo
background married to a bloke of German origin, a girl of Indian origin married to
a bloke of Chinese origin, and a girl of Chinese origin married to a bloke of Irish
origin.
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
04:09 AM
422
Alan and Matt,

what exactly are you arguing about? There is no balanced view by refuting every
point that has been raised. And Matt, whether you speak Australian or English - is
this a so called balanced view on the issue that has been raised here.

Some of you agree that there are racist elements within the society so what
exactly are you arguing about?

And PeterMC, Indians might have BPO meetings - there is nothing wrong with
that. But Indians also have a lot of excellent achievements - We specifically dont
need to whore with the US because of our insecurity living in Asia.

And Heath: you mentioned Indian students are sometimes loud and that is why
they are attacked. I guess you would say that the Bali bombing happened
because of all the drunk Aussies?
ROHAN
FEB 04,
2010
04:05 AM
Bharat, I'm afraid your words are falling on deaf ears.

Like you I have an Indian background and I love the Australia. It is my home.

421
It does not matter what we say, the Indian media and Indian self interest groups
want to protray Australia as a racist nation even though the truth is completely
opposite.

I have been bashing my head against a brick wall for a while now but there is
nothing that you or I can do to prevent this.

It breaks my heart.
BRIAN
FEB 04,
2010
03:27 AM
420
Varun:

Firstly, the tone I am refuting is not that of OutlookIndia, it's that of Varun Shekar.

Secondly, by definition, a balanced view requires at least two opinions. A single
article, unless peer reviewed and referenced, will have great difficulty providing a
balanced view.

So, by our interchange, you and I are presenting a balanced view. Future readers
to this forum will be able to read our opinions and draw their own conclusions.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
03:21 AM
419
Varun: "Do you speak Australian?" is not a very articulate thing to say.

I've never heard anybody ask that question, though of course "Do you speak
English" is quite likely if communication is proving difficult.

Interestingly, the last time I asked was in response to an American tourist:

"Do you speak American?"
"No. Do you speak English?"
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
03:12 AM
"You are ugly, fat and smell like elderberries. Any attempt to refute these
unsupported statements will be taken as an indication that you can't take
criticism."

That's not the tone of the series of Outlookindia articles, at all. You are now
418
misrepresenting the Indian media, due to your hypersensitivity to criticism. If you
read these articles carefully, they give a balanced picture of the recent incidents,
and even mention the lewd and crude behaviour of some of the new Indian
arrivals. But it doesn't in any way justify the attacks, or alter the fact the violence
is continuing.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
03:03 AM
417
Varun:
> This forum is showing how intolerant Australians are to criticism.

You are ugly, fat and smell like elderberries. Any attempt to refute these
criticism.

> Indians are a small, non-aggressive, non-offending, law abiding community.

There are 400,000 Indians in Australia. That may be small when put against a
population of 1 Billion, but its a significant proportion of our 22 Million.

I agree that they are overwhelming law-abiding and non-aggressive, which is why
they make a preferential target for idiots looking for trouble. Maybe the
community needs to raise local knowledge of silambam and other traditional
martial arts to build the perception that maybe, just maybe, their intended victim
will fight back.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
02:58 AM
416
And DC...if you believe the USA has some international best-practice for dealing
with hate crime you might take a closer look at the Matthew Shepard( u of
Wyoming) case and the extraordinary bitterness associated with the 11 year fight
for federal legislation.
Minister Krishna was quoted yesterday as saying there have been no problems
for indian students in the USA. The dead can't speak for themselves, so
someone needs to remind him of the 2 Indian PhD students murdered ON-
Campus in Louisiana, another murder at Duke and hundreds of other incidents
against Indians. Whether they are hate crimes or opportunistic is not clear but
Krishna's denial of any 'issue' and the absurdity of the claim that the USA is a
safer destination for Indians should be challenged.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
02:30 AM
415
DC
I am certinly not denying the existence of hate crime in Australia ( and I can't see
any other posts doing that either). All legal jurisdictions in Australia have racial
vilification legislation. It goes without saying that there are racists in
Australia....this magazine chose to interview the fanatical right ( probably
regarded ans centre-right in US terms) and on the basis of that ascribe motives
and behaviour to an entire country. And you think thats ok? Fortunately Australia,
while conceding that there is a tiny lunatic fringe here , is a deeply tolerant
society
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
02:23 AM
414
How do you know there are hate crimes in Australia DC, given you live half the
world away? Is it because you believe everything you read in the Indian media?

Why don't you believe the many positive posts written here by Indian Australians
who are first hand witnesses?

Why do read general Australian racism into posts by Australian here, but treat the
much worse comments by Indians as isolated incidents? If Australians were to be
as prejudiced as you, we'd be justified in thinking all Indians are as racist as Elan.
Luckily we're not, and you should think about that before posting your nonsense.
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
01:08 AM
413
Paul
I am commenting not on the situation in Australia but on the comments of several
people on this board that are overtly and covertly racist. I am sure you are neither
blind nor ignorant to see these comments for yourself. And if you can't then I am
sorry- you take a racist tone for granted. (Of course a number of disgusting racist
comments from certain Indian readers are utterly deplorable. )

I draw a parallel with the US not to make a statistical comparison of crime rates -
that's what you and many others are doing in this forum to underplay allegations
of hate crimes.

Americans never deny the presence of hate crimes by citing statistical
significance - nor does the law and order blame the accusers when they cannot
apprehend the criminals. And allegations of racial profiling is taken very seriously
- if you donot care about the victims you will certainly care for big ticket lawsuits.

Instead of apprehending the culprits if you guys deny that there is no hate crime
in your country and the accusers are all lying that's fine. And blaming Indian
media or asking immigrant Indians to go back will not resolve the brewing
animosity.
DC
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
FEB 03,
2010
10:54 PM
412
" Do you speak Australian?" is not a very articulate thing to say. Doesn't reflect
well on the person doing the asking, nor on Australia as a whole, if it is a popular
question.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 03,
2010
09:38 PM
411
Those Australians, including Indo-Australians, making accusations, that the
Indian media is being hysterical or hyper-critical, are way off base. This very
Outlook article contains many balanced, nuanced views of the recent spate of
violence. An Australian official is quoted to the effect that not all the attacks are
racial. Actually, India has the freest and liveliest media in the third world, with a
variety of perspectives and information presented openly. In some ways, it's freer
than a large section of the American media.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 03,
2010
07:59 PM
410
No nation or group of people is perfect. But sadly I find Indians this time
completely wrong side of line. two points I think are prime reason for whole issue.

1. Poverty and extreme competition for survival in India which naturally pushes
people to go in search for better life out there in developed nations. No matter
what they have to do, to achieve it.Plain and simple.

2. Ultra nationalistic but haplessly naive Indian media which refuse to do a self
introspection.
STORM
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 03,
2010
07:47 PM
Hello Friends. I have been witnessing this intense issue of Indians being racially
targetted by Australians. I feel its completely unfair to the local people of Australia
who are being subjected to intense media criticsm back in India. I am an Indian
national on PR and migrated 2 years ago to Australia. My experience so far has
been absolutely amazing. The people here are warm, have great sense of
humour and generally happy. Most of them go about their business without
409
meddling into other peoples business. We can practice our religion freely without
being ridiculed or judged. Well i should also say that there is a bit of ignorance
about Indian culture, but thats understood given the limited interaction Australia
has had with India in all this time. coming to the Indian students problem, let me
share a first hand account of my freind who works in Seven Eleven in St Kilda.
According to him our students coming particularly from punjab are a big
nuisance. they not only disrespect the local culture but are rude and rowdy in
their behaviour. Only last week few of these guys bashed a lebanese guy outside
a restaurant on silly reason. He says he actually feels ashamed when he see's
such behaviour from his own country mates. Remember its simple rule. Respect
the local culture and the culture will respect you. We Indians have to respect the
local culture here or else we better be on our way out. Let not the lovely people
here be subjected to such useless and baseless criticism when we know that the
facts are very different than what it is made out to be.
BHARAT
PERTH, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
07:12 PM
408
@ post 404 David, you got it wrong mate. I totally agree that we are here to
debate and find a way to communicate and share a clear pathway why all this is
happening which has never happened before. The reason for my post if that is
what you are referring to as a complain....I am sorry mate, I think i was right to
say that "I am ashamed being Indian because of few Indians here in Australia
who has used Racism as the way to get popularity. Is that right? that was my
question and that's the reason why i mentioned names like Gautam Gupta who
has used this as his platform to promote himself. Just saw channel 9 news via
internet, and he is there and the news reporter said "Gautam Gupta who is the
representative of indian Community" in her comments, I TOTALLY disagree and
it will be a big SIN for the Indian community in Australia to have him and as well
No one is approving or acknowledged the same.

Dont take me wrong here, i am not against Guptas...i am against propaganda
about Racism by him which is not so. where is his comments about the Indian
arrested. Has he met them and spoken to them. what is he doing. See the whole
point here is misleading the people in India and creating communal riots. Not
right mate. The indians like me are living here for long time with out any issues
and would like to do so. I think i can vouch for my 15yrs of experience in
australia.

Sorry for the long message but i have to say this to clear the air.

cheers
ANAND SAMY
FEB 03,
2010
06:25 PM
407
I moved to Australia with my parents in 1982, I have lived in Australia all this time.
I have never been racially abused or attacked in any way. I love India the country
of my birth but I am ashamed of the way the Indian media, politicans, people
accuse Australia of racism. Indian is one of the most disgusting countrys on
Earth, the politicians are corrupt, the police are corrupt, the people live in filth and
squalor. India is a racist country, where politicians rape foreign women and get
away with it, where Indians sexually assualt children and get away with it, then
these Indians come to Australia try to do insurance scams, sexually assualt
Australian women, murder their own and calim all Australian are racist. I am
embrassed to be a Indian after all this, my best friends are Australian, Greek,
Italian, Chinese and they are some of the warmest, nice people I have ever
known. Why don;t the Indian media investigate the Indians coming to Australia on
fake visas to get a PR status? Why don't the Indian people and politicians and
media investigate the rapes, scams, murders Indians commit here in Australia? If
Australia is such a racist country why don't all you Indians stay in your safe,
uncorroupt country? All you Indians have done now is make life hard for the rest
of the Indian people living in Australia in peace and have grown up in Australia a
great country which India will never be able to compete with. India is a disgrace
and a laughing stock in the world, stay in India and as a Indian living in Australia
we don't want you here.
ROSHAN1R@GMAIL.COM
FEB 03,
2010
05:35 PM
406
DC Post 364
New York
Fortunately Australia is a long way sort of crime rates in the USA ( homicide rate
1/50 per capita). I totally disagree with you in respect of the effectiveness of hate-
crime legislation and law-enforcement. It has done nothing to decrease the extent
of hate crimes, anymore than the death penalty has for the homicide rate. As to
suggesting that on the basis of reading some posts on this site and making the
determination that a significant proportion of Australians have racial biases?
Huh? Which posts are those and in any event are you not making excatly the
same error as the author of the article: making comments and ascribing motives
when, as you concede, you don't know anything about australia. Strange logic.
Maybe stick with the New York Post
PAUL
FEB 03,
2010
05:11 PM
'Quisling' is a bit harsh David. If some Indians/Indian Australians have an issue
with the way others are behaving in Australia, they have a right to express it.
ALAN
405
FEB 03,
2010
03:58 PM
404
"hey Guys,

This is disgrace. Please look at my post of yesterday. I have already said how
disappointed I am as being an Indian."

You don't help your cause being a Quisling. A rational debate is fun and
interesting, but I thought this whole issue was about journalistic integrity and
finding the truth, not attacking people because of perceived stereotypes.

I'm confused at some of these posts which seem to shift the blame between the
parties. That isn't the issue is it? It's a matter of perception and how
sensationalism can cloud people's ideas about other people.

I'm not being philosophical here, saying "yeah we aren't racist" is admirable,
because in general I believe it's true, but as has been said before, clearly
something is happening. What it is I don't know? Parochialism? Nationalism, bad
reporting? I'm starting to think an English language magazine from India isn't a
forum to convince anybody of anything.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
02:46 PM
403
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/03/2808440.htm?section=australia

http://www.theage.com.au/national/brumby-slams-indian-government-media-
20100203-ncqv.html
NIN
FEB 03,
2010
01:48 PM
402
Nice post RK - the more positive testimonials from Indian Australians the better!
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
Breaking News!!!

01:45 PM
401
The indian Nobel prize winner (living in USA) is now calls Britain about
racism.....cant believe this. What a confused Indian....he feels Brits are racist
because his O2 mobile application is been rejected because of credit rating.
What a dum....god SAVE India and sitting here and having my holiday is making
me more agressive and cant wait to land in melbourne and be away from the
indian media and few morons here....god save India

http://www.timesnow.tv/Indian-Nobel-laureate-cries-
racism/articleshow/4337678.cms
ANAND SAMY
FEB 03,
2010
01:22 PM
400
Hi all,

Brief background to myself first, I am an Indian Australian, settled in Sydney for
the last 9-10 years, working for one of the largest financial services company in
the country in a very responsible position & have also interacted/worked closely
with clients (people) from other large organizations within Australia.

I categorically REJECT the assertions made in the Indian media and some within
this forum that Australia is a racist country. Also I truly believe that Australia is
one of the best countries, on the face of this earth.

I love its people especially the universal respect & consideration they have for
others, love the Australian generosity of giving everyone a fair-go, no matter
where one comes from. I love the diverse cuisine found in this beautiful
countryItalian wood fired pizza fresh out of the oven/Spanish chorizo & green
salad /Lebanese kebab/Thai fried rice/Indian thandoori chicken/Croatian
Chevapi/Australian Angus beef steak and off course the great Australian white
wines from South Australia.

I love the vast landscapes especially the long golden white sand beaches of the
east coast.I love the clean fresh air found everywhere (not just in the countryside)
and ABOVE ALL
I love Australia for the LACK of institutional corruption, societal hatred & cultural
prejudices found in most other countries and PERSONALLY experienced this, in
my own country for 30 long years.

Therefore when Indian media makes accusation against Australia, I for one do
not/will not support it... Not because I am blind or I am an illiterate idiot...but
because I have first hand experience of this beautiful country.

Also my wife is a non Indian/ my in laws (extended family) are non Indians...all
my friends are non Indians and my colleagues are non Indians...so I would know
surely IF Australians are racist!!

So trust me when I say this, Australia is one of the best country on the face of this
earth and its people, one of the best you can find.

All I have to say to my Indian brothers everwhere is that...
I love Australia, I love India and Iam fortunate enough to have known both.
RK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
12:57 PM
399
Just announced in the press - An Indian national has been arrested in Horsham
for sexually interfering with two girls. Allegedly he gave them alcohol before
allegedly molesting them. They were minors.

I guess those racist aussie girls somehow trapped him.
CP
FEB 03,
2010
11:44 AM
398
I wonder if the two Indian brothers who died at a New Zealand glacier when they
left a safe area to take pictures are included in these statistics? They were
residing in Australia at the time so maybe they were. No doubt it would have
been a violent and unfortunate death for both of them. As for the guy who torched
himself as well as his car lets hope he is deported back to India as soon a
spossible.
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
11:31 AM
397
hey Guys,

disappointed I am as being an Indian. Sick and Sin. There are few points from my
side after getting up in INdia today and the television channel having a little say
about the idiot being caught for burning himself but more emphasis is on Indian
high commissioner in Australia is been called to Delhi to meet foreign minister
and the caption says " pressure of Australia". I would say "bull S**t". India you
have to grow up even though i am now in Chennai and writing this message.
Cant wait to land back in Melbounre.

secondly, Mr. vijay i think you even might be Gautam Gupta. by the way guys Mr.
Gautam Gupta is jobless and sitting at home doing nothing after getting his
Aussie passport. All he does is getting media coverage but he does not know
after the latest news do u all think he is going to get recognition in Australia no
way. No aussie will go to him because he does not have any credentials any
more. Another news the president of FISA is a bouncer at a night club in
melbourne. what a credit for so called indian student union. Bull according to me
ha.

I also like to mention that Mr. Varun...and sasha you have to grow up because
you are giving the Indian strategy of escapism when the reality is thrown at you

I feel Karthik like me who has adopted Australia as home has a general view.

I condemn the attack. but condemn only if it is genuine. I think poor gautam gupta
once in a interview in Indian channel said "hope victorian police know what they
are doing" ...hey Gautam i think now i say "yes i know what they are doing"
hahahha you are deep trouble mate.

honestly from my heart if the Victorian police checks Mr. Gautam Gupta's record
he might be in trouble as well. he came to australia to study and for sure he
would have worked more than 20hrs a week. That is violating student visa
regulation. he might even be deported to India does not matter if he is a citizen
because he declared legally that he has not violated anything. Mr Gautam you
should be going to speak to a lawyer now mate.

I was also been told that the representatives of FISA is standing in front of
flinders street collecting addresses and requesting them to become a member of
fisa. disgrace dude. this is not how you guys should do things
ANAND SAMY
FEB 03,
2010
10:25 AM
396
Bloody hell. KEEP YOUR DAMN HANDS TO YOURSELF.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
09:52 AM
395
There was a Nepali guy attacked from behind 2 days ago near where I live on the
Northern Beaches of Sydney. He looks Indian, but...his attackers were Pacific
Islanders who had only been in the country for 3 weeks. Unfortunately his
situation is rather serious and I hope he makes a full recovery.
RICHARD BLACKBURN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
09:16 AM
394
Not at all mate, not at all. That's cool. We're all together on this so we can all
wait a second, what's that tapping noise? Look out, here comes the next
comment!!!
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
09:06 AM
393
Sorry mate - thought you were saying I shouldn't have mentioned the incident
with the girl.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
08:59 AM
392
Hey don't beat me up mate, I was talking about the blog, not the article!
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
08:53 AM
391
David Morgan - If the girls brothers had caught the Indian guy, he would have
been beaten-up. We would then have another statistic of how racist Australians
are, regardless of the fact that they would have beaten-up anyone who molested
her like that, of whatever race.

The story therefore had a point. I really don't think hiding these sorts of incidents
help with getting "views aired".
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
08:49 AM
390
Do people who live in India actually read this magazine? I haven't seen many
posts from people living in the Republic of India. Maybe we're just talking to
ourselves and a few disgruntled Indians living outside their homeland.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
08:38 AM
I hope that the postings here are not encouraging fanatics. I think forums like this
are constructive in that a lot of views get aired, facts are unearthed and fanatics
389
are shown up.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
08:38 AM
388
David Morgan - actually the girl I was referring to is pretty-much a bogan,
although her parents migrated here only recently. And if her brothers had been
able to catch the Indian guy who sat next to her in the bus, I wouldn't have liked
his chances.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
08:20 AM
387
Few if any Australians are refuting the facts, but the facts are not being
published.

Gautam Gupta states that 33 Indians have been violently killed in Australia during
2004-2009. No one can dispute that 33 Indians were killed during this period, and
the Vic Police aren't or the Government.

What is disputed is it is presented as factual and whole, when put into context of
the article and the Indian hysteria it is implying Australians murdered 33 Indians
due to racist reasons.

What is missing is the fact, all 2009 murders were committed by Indian nationals.

What is missing is the fact that the majority were not murder, it consisted of
suicide, car accidents, accidental deaths ie. drowning, and a few murders, and a
few unknown.

Gautam Gupta is presenting the details to the Indian media selectively for political
gain and fame. He is positioning himself as the saviour of all the down trodden
Indian masses in Australia. Mind you all the Indians I socialise with are far from
down trodden. Either he is lying or the journalist is incompetent.

1,447 crimes were committed against Indians in 2009 against Indians. Slightly
misleading.

Fact, 1, 447 crimes were committed against 1,447 poeople of South Asian
appearance, this includes Fijian Indians, Malay Indians, Bangladeshis,
Pakistanis, Indians, Sri Lankans, Australian Indians, American Indians, Anglo
Indians etc. etc. The crimes include all forms of crimes including house breaking,
car theft, assault, murder, financial crime, petty crime etc.

What this story and others in the Indian media imply is that these were all crimes
of physical violence committed against Indian nationals by Australians.

Fact, Indians that had committed crimes against Indian nationals are also in this
number.

Fact white Australians committed some of these crimes.

Fact, some will be fraudelent claims.

Fact, Lebonese Australians comitted some of these crimes.

Fact, Asians comitted some of these crimes.

Fact, numerous ethnic groups would have committed these crimes.

Fact, many of these crimes will not be solved as they are minor and are only
reported to enable people to put in legitimate insurance claims.

The majority of Australians know there are drunk, violent, racists in Australia, but
we also know this is a tiny minority, it is just that the Indian Government, the
Indian media, sections of the Indian populace, and sections of the Indian and
Australian community in Australia are using this to tar ALL Australians as racist
criminals. With some doing it purely for their own gain.

DO you think this is not in the interset of idiots like Gautam Gupta and FISA. The
BJP are also loving it. So are the right wing neo-nazi groups in Australia, because
now they aren't having to do much at all to stir up resentment.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
07:34 AM
386
Peace y'all.

I don't think we've solved it yet. Those statistics that were mentioned:

* 1,447 incidents of crime against Indians in 2007-08 have been reported in
Victoria alone.
* 33 Indians died in violent attacks between 2004 and 2009, says Federation of
Indian Students of Australia spokesperson Gautam Gupta. Of these, six died in
2009. Nitin Garg was stabbed to death in 2010.

And to refute all this we can say a handful of those were done by Indians against
Indians, (or Indians against themselves) and some are suggesting the rest were
done by other immigrants. I haven't seen much acknowledgment from Australians
that we do in fact have an ignorant, alcoholic, violent and racist class of people in
this country who have been that way since our beginnings only 200 odd years
ago.

It's the bogans I tell you.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
07:18 AM
385
Varun - "Indians are a small, non-aggressive,non-offending, law abiding
community"

Have you not read Craig's posts refuting that? Do you consider insurance fraud
to be law-abiding?

There's a young woman I work with who was sat next to in a bus. There weren't
many people, so there there was no need to sit next to her. He then used the
motion of the bus to rub himself up against her. Contrary to your statement on
inoffensive Indians, she found this extremely offensive, and unfortunately now
intensely dislikes all Indians. I think she's being very narrow-minded on this, but
she won't be convinced that all Indian men aren't all sexist sleazebags.

I have friends and acquaintances whose family is of Indian origin or who are
Indian immigrants, and I can't tell you how angry I would be if they were targetted
in a racial attack. That's why I get pissed-off when I see statements and articles
about how racist I am because I'm Australian.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
06:59 AM
384
Sasha - I'm sorry if you find logical arguments difficult. Unfortunately that's what
you need to do to make people believe you have a point. This does seem to be a
somewhat foreign concept in India. Strange since Indians claim to be racially
gifted in maths, and logic is it's underlying basis.

You've made 2 claims that help underpin whether you're credible or not. Firstly
you've stated that ambulances in Australia bypass Indians in favour of whites.
Secondly, you've claimed that the govt could easily deal with the Indian attacks.
When questioned on these, you haven't been able to substantiate them.

So why should you be believed in your other claims?
ALAN
FEB 03,
@ Varun.
2010
06:58 AM
383

There's a substantial difference between being overly sensitive to valid criticism
and offering counter-opinions to being misrepresented as a national body. Think
about some stereotypes and assumptions people make about Indian people and
see if you wouldn't want to try and get your view heard.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
06:42 AM
382
This forum is showing how intolerant Australians are to criticism. They just can't
take it when criticism is leveled against them from a poor, non-white, third world
country. Indians are a small, non-aggressive,non-offending, law abiding
community. They definitely deserve consideration and sympathy.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 03,
2010
06:42 AM
381
Post No 375 by Craig of Adelaide is spot on. I will also like to add to this the fact
over lat 10-15 years, because of some economic growth in India (which is all
based on sweat shops setup by MNCs), Indians have started believing as if they
are a world power and they can bully other countries. The ground reality however
is : "India is a third world country and will continue to be so for another 100 yeras,
with its myriads of problems like corruption, caste based totally fractured society
etc. etc"
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 03,
2010
06:27 AM
380
Allan, It's hard to argue with people like you. You win. I accept that Indians are
whipping up a frenzy because they have ulterior motives to give Victoria a bad
name. Indians in Victoria lie. The attacks on them are not racist. Whatever you
say is right. Take care
SASHA
FEB 03,
2010
06:20 AM
379
For all those chest beating Indians, what do you think of this now :

http://tinyurl.com/yl8gpvb

I am not sure if Indian media is going to give any prominence to this news or not,
but knowing how spineless creatures we are, I highly doubt it.
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 03,
2010
05:53 AM
378
@ Ian

That is disturbing. You'd think there are enough morons to write inflammatory
posts without resorting to using your staffers and family/friends to boost
readership and revenue.

What market are these people catering to?
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
05:53 AM
377
hear hear Craig.
BRIAN
FEB 03,
2010
05:32 AM
376
David,

The Herald Sun (Hun) has a notrous gang of trolls to write stupid right wing
comments to get "click-bait" - the more clicks on the site, the more advertising
revenue. Please see Daryl Mason's archived blog posts for more info.

http://theorstrahyun.blogspot.com/
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
05:24 AM
375
DC, you feel the article is balanced and the response by the Australians shows
we are racist. The issue with this arrticle are the key facts are missing that make
it balanced.

All murders of Indians committed in Australia during 2009 were found to be
committed by Indian nationals and the only one still outstanding an Indian
national is under investigation and even the Indian Government agree it is likely
he killed his wife. A point left out in all Indian media articles, including this one.
There was a massive outpouring in India of hate gainst Australia of the racist
attack that resulted in an Indian man being attacked and set on fire in early
January. He claimed to have been set on fire by 4 white Australians. He was
arrested overnight and charged with insurance fraud, and a number of other
crimes.

The 2010 murder of Nitin Garg s still under investigation. Should the police just
claim it is racial and only investigate people belonging to racist organisations?

You claim the US would take this more seriously, possibly so but do observe their
recent history where blacks have been chained to the back of a pick up and
dragged to their death, or beaten and tied to stakes until they died, and hundreds
more heinous race hate crimes. This we never see in Australia.

The comments made by the majority of Australians are tongue in cheek, as we
are enjoying ridiculing a number of the fools in this blog who made incredibly
vicious and racist comments.

One issue that though vaguely referred in the article is overlooked. Up until
2006/7 Indians were rarely involved in any issues. This is becasue until then the
average Indian was a highly educated professioanl, mixed with Asutralians, and
spoke English. This changed dramatically with the majority entering after 2006
not being highly educated, not mixing with Australians, and not speaking English.
In an interview of 60 Indian students in Melbourne during an article on this matter
all but one openly admitted they were not real students.

There is not a denial of the crimes that have been committed in Australia. It has
been openly stated that some of the crimes have a racial element, and these
comments go back into 2008 when a noticeable rise was made of the number of
Indians being assaulted or robbed in Melbourne. Up until 2008 they were
substantially below the national averages. For assaults they are still below the
national average, but for robbery they are above the average. The majority of the
robbery cases are against taxi drivers, service station workers, and convenience
store workers, which are now the most common place you find the unskilled
Indian 'students'. Prior to the Indian students' working these jos other unskilled,
low educated immigrants worked in these roles until they made their way out of it
and now have educated themselves and their children. Very few Australia
nationals would ever work in these jobs as they are deemed unsafe, exactly the
same as in Canada the US, UK etc. Asutralian youth do not need to work in these
jobs because as our economy was not impacted by the GFC, Australian youth (of
all ethnic background) still can pick and choose higher paying, safer jobs, or are
supported by their families when they study. In the 80's and early 90's these jobs
would have been done by Australians, and they were the ones being robbed. I
know this becuase my parents were held up and threatened with being killed. The
criminals were not white Australians. You see it isn't a race issue. It is a crime
issue.

One of the complaints of the Indians is we are not given them a break down on
the race of people that are committing the crime, and we are not releasing these
details in the media. In Australia this is deemed racial profiling and if we did that
the same people complaining that we don't do it would start complaining that we
did do it. Imagine if we release a front page story that shows Indians are over
represented in the murder of Indians in Australia. Then based on this we prevent
all Indians migrating to Australia. We could treat them like the US do Arabs,
Pakitanis, Africans or even how the US Airline treated Indias President.

The problem is India has made it a race issue and claimed ALL attacks are racist.
Do you expect the Australian Government, people and Police to just say, "Yes
India, this is correct all attacks are racial.". You need to understand, that if the
police follow the racial line, then they limit their capacity to investigate, as they
would then assume the attacker is a racist which then limits th profle of people
they investigate.

Unlike India, our police do not have a tendency to kill large numbers of suspects
then claim we close the case. Even the Indian Government admit this is a major
problem in India.

Very little of this issue is about Indian students being attacked, it is about trade
and saving face for India, and the fact is since 2007 the Indian Government have
complaining about our relationship with China, our refusal to sell India uranium,
that our Government does not value India as much as China.

So it is about crime, but has a lot to do with politics.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
05:22 AM
374
Vijayrajan

You are the same as Varun Shekar

You are joining the other ignorant uninformed "swallow what the media has to
say " people in this forum

Please come and stay in Australia and then comment

Andrew Symonds an aboriginal??

You and the Indian media are the same...
KARTHIK
FEB 03,
And some more interesting stuff on Indians in Australia
2010
05:09 AM
373

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/Indian-found-guilty-of-
raping-Oz-lingerie-model/articleshow/5512562.cms

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/After-Indian-couple-25-yr-
old-detained-in-Oz-murder-case/articleshow/5512487.cms

And when Indians are attacked, the Queensland police act quickly to make
arrests. Please note that the ethnicity of the attackers has not been released by
the police.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/More-violence-Four-
Indians-attacked-in-Australia/articleshow/5508451.cms

And finally, the Indian Goverment via their Brisbane consul, Mr. Singh, is sitting
down with the police and community leaders to work through teh issues, just as
the Chinese government did years ago - rather than yelling "racist" through the
megaphone of the media.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
05:00 AM
372
Vijayrajan

Mate, Andrew Symonds is not Aboriginal. He was born in Birmingham in the UK
and one of his parents was West Indian. He was adopted in the UK and his
adoptive parents migrated to Australia. Amother great example of people coming
to Australia and reaching the top despite their skin colour. And before you try it
on, he was removed from the Australian team for disciplinary issues related to
drinking.

Can we believe anything you say? Do you know what you're taliking about?
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
04:53 AM
371
Any word on how you know that ambulances turn away from Indians in
preference to whites yet Sasha?

How about telling us the steps the government should take to stop 'all these
attacks' that you claim is so easy to do? Perhaps ban Indian students from
buying petrol?
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
04:45 AM
370
Oh Cmon Allan, Everyone knew that the attack in NSW and this particular attack
was not racially motivated. In fact the essendon one was a fake one, the
neighbour was quoted long back on this one. What about all the other attacks
that are really racially motivated. How come the culprits are never caught unless
it's an "ethnic" involved?
SASHA
FEB 03,
2010
04:27 AM
369
@ The people who find some of the comments from Indians here inflammatory
and unfair: Read the type of vitriol and vileness that spews from Op eds and
blogs from such newspapers as the Melbourne Herald sun etc.

What I am saying is, don't think a few rude, upset or nationalistic people
represent the views of all. Unfortunately that also works the other way and one
should not assume that level headed, balanced and open views are also
representative.

Crime statistics, vox pops and shallow journalism don't help give a true picture of
what's going on. The fact that the vast majority of Australians who have made
positive comments regarding India and tried to be balanced are probably doing
so because this article was linked from a centre-left Newspaper similar to
Outlook.

Racism is not the overall position of Australians. Parties that are overtly or
covertly racist have little to no support except from disaffected idiots. While
Xenophobia is an issue here, there is little endemic racism in Australia as
understood in other countries: Ie: "I am racially superior to you." Those type of
dickheads lurk on the fringes.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
04:23 AM
368
So it was insurance fraud rather than a racial attack:
http://www.theage.com.au/national/burned-indian-faked-attack-to-claim-car-
insurance-police-20100203-nbfr.html

And he couldn't even do that right. What a dickhead. Any comments from posters
screaming about Australian racism here? How many of the "white attacks"
mentioned in this article have now been found to be inflicted by Indians, non-
whites, or self-inflicted? Anyone changing their opinions or are you just happy to
keep wallowing in your prejudiced pigsty? I'll keep an eye out for apologies to all
Australians on this blog.

I hope:
- This bloke is hugely embarassed
- In a great deal of pain
- Gets the book thrown at him in court.

I also hope the govt cracks down on the PR rort and keeps these dodgy Indian
'students' out of Australia. Any amount of money isn't worth it.

Decent Indian immigrants always welcome.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
04:21 AM
367
Vijayrajan, we agree there is racism against Indians in Australia. And we all want
to do something about it. We disagree on how to deal with it. You want to deal
with it by attacking protesting and causing a stink and getting peoples backs up.
You wont recognise or acknowledge the documented fraud by Indians coming to
Australia. You are looking through rose coloured glasses in assuming that all
your people are angels and all of the (white) people are devils.
Please dont acknowledge or respond to this guy. He is a waste of oxygen.
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
04:05 AM
366
This report in the Melbourne "The Age" newspaper should take some of the
heat(pardon the pun)out of the argument. Here is an example of a self-inflicted
injury as part of an attempt at insurance fraud being attributed to racial hatred.
Nothing is further from the truth. Australians generally will shrug their shoulders
and say "what an idiot" and that his racial origins are irrelevant.

Burned Indian faked attack to claim car insurance: police
February 3, 2010 - 7:08AM

An Indian man who said he was set alight by assailants near his Melbourne home
last month accidentally burned himself while torching his car for an insurance
claim, police allege.

Jaspreet Singh, 29, of Grice Crescent, Essendon, in the city's north, faced an
out-of-sessions hearing early this morning before a bail justice at St Kilda Road
police complex charged with making a false report to police and criminal damage
with a view to gaining a financial advantage.

The case gained international headlines among a series of attacks by white
Australians on Indian nationals in Melbourne.

Singh, who is in Australia on his wife's student visa, told police he was doused
with petrol and set alight as he parked his car near his home early on Saturday,
January 8.

Singh was taken to The Alfred hospital with burns to 15 per cent of his body,
affecting his face, arms and hands.

But Detective Senior Constable Danielle O'Keefe of the arson and explosives
squad told the hearing Singh suffered the burns while trying to torch his 2003
Ford Futura.

Detective O'Keefe said arson chemists and hospital staff had concluded the
damage to the car, Singh's clothes and his injuries were not consistent with his
story.

"Police inquiries have led us to believe that Mr Singh is in some financial difficulty
and that he intended to sell his car but instead stood to gain $11,000 from an
insurance claim out of this particular incident," she told the hearing.

Police had obtained security footage depicting Singh buying a 15-litre opaque
plastic container and 15.96 litres of petrol on the day before the attack.

The container and other evidence was found at his unit when he was arrested
yesterday, Detective O'Keefe said.

She said Singh had been very co-operative but denied all allegations.

His wife had been questioned about her knowledge of the incident, she said.

Burns were still obvious on Singh's face and neck, and he wore pressure
bandages on his arms.

Through an interpreter, Singh told the hearing he and his wife planned a holiday
to India, leaving on February 20 and returning in late April to visit his child and
extended family.

Detective O'Keefe said police did not oppose bail but noted that Mr Singh was a
potential flight risk.

The bail justice, who declined to be named, granted him bail with strict conditions
banning him from contacting witnesses and attending points of international
departure.

He must report to police three times a week and surrender his passport.

He will appear before the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on March 15.

At the time, police Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Neil Smyth described the
attack as "a bit strange" and said there was no evidence the attack was racially
motivated.

AAP
GREG ANGELO
FEB 03,
2010
03:58 AM
365
Further to this, generally this article not as sensationalst and makes some good
and valid points although some are off the mark.

For example, the comment about Indian students flashing iphone and laptops
makes them a target. Every teenager irrespective of race has a laptop or iPhone
or whatever and uses them in full public view, some end up being robbed
because of it...of course this is not reported.

Also, the comments about "Those who are rich and have resided here for years
vehemently deny that Australians are racist" is misleading. Money has nothings
to do with this. My Mum and Dad, like many other Indian families at the time,
came here with very little in their pockets. They worked hard to provide for their
family, fitted in, made good friends of all nationalities and embraced the
Australian way of life.

However we see many new Indians coming to Australia and their behaviour is
totally opposite this is painting all Indians here with the same brush.

My Indian friends and family were and are welcome in Australia, however this
relationship is unravelling fast and we are furious about it.
BRIAN
FEB 03,
2010
03:30 AM
364
I thought this is quite a balanced article.
But I agree that more media attention to this issue can risk flaring up of racial
tension affecting a larger section of people, but can also arouse the authorities
from the slumber of denial.
Hate crimes exist in the US. But the society does not downplay nor defend such
crimes as mere law and order lapses citing statistical significance of # of crimes.
The law and order authorities swiftly track down the offenders, the laws protect
the victims and the justice system promptly punishes the offenders.
I do not know whether white Australians have racial biases- I have never lived
there. However after reading comments from so many Australian readers in this
forum I am convinced that if these commentators represent the majority opinion
of Australia then Australia certainly has a significant proportion of people with
racial biases.
DC
FEB 03,
2010
03:28 AM
363
vijayrajan, your arguments just go from bad to worse.

What you are spouting as facts are just statistics quoted in the media without
naming a credible source or any context. You will find that in Victoria, the
percentage of Indians attacked is very small compared to the overall crime rate.
Unfortunately it is still proporationately high given the size of the Indian
community but this is weighted the propoprtion of Indians working in jobs that
expose them to criminal elements.

Also, can you please be more specific of the 33 Indians...how many of these
were victims of hate related crime as opposed say, Indian worker revenge
killings, or Indian husbands killing their Indian wives.

Your arguments about cricket and the Aussie cricket team are completely
laughable. Aussies play all sport tough and hard but are generally pretty fair.
Sure they may sledge, but I very much doubt the majority of it is racist given the
public attitudes and the potential penalities involved (please prove to me that is
was).

By the way, Gautam Gupta is way out of his depth with on this issue. He is a
complete lightweight. What is needed from the Indian community is real
leadership.
BRIAN
FEB 03,
2010
03:00 AM
362
Anwaar:
"I believe that most of the attacks on Indians in Australia were carried out by
sociopaths, some of whom may have been further motivated by racist instincts."

"Sociopath" is such a nice word. Colloquially they are known here as "dickheads".
Although there may be a racial motivation, it's more likely that Indians are
perceived as easy targets who tend not to fight back.

Its also worth noticing that until the Indian Media beatup, nobody regarded
Indians as a problem at all. Yes, you have the groups Eve Teasing on trains, but
thumping somebody for harassing your girlfriend, sister or friend is not a racially
motivated attack - its a dickhead motivated attack.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
02:53 AM
361
You are a sad person Vijayrajan, firstly you say how great India is for having an
Italian born prime minister then you denigrate me for being a 'slaves of white
racist Australians' - you are gamut of contradictions. For you reference, i am not
Indian, i am Australian, i have lived here my whole life and am from an Indian
background. Im glad that my parents left India, because i would hate to be like
you. I would be embarrassed to call myself Indian with your views...Australia is a
land of immigrants so maybe you should come out here and see for yourself
rather than relying on such ludicrous reporting to form your opinion.

Its quite obvious that you really dont understand (through your stupidity or your
naivety) the issue, you are confusing yourself and everyone who reads your
ridiculous statements, for the sake of the rest of us, please stop posting your
idiosyncratic slander. I really doubt that you have been outside of India with the
comments that you make - Australia is quite a safe place to live compared to the
rest of the world! Your comments about Indians being the last to take the law into
their own hands, mate, they are the first to take the law into their own hands, they
will be the first to find some loophole in the law and exploit it! Why do you think
the UK government has restricted visas for people from India, particularly the
Punjab area?? You must be so sheltered that you dont even know whats
happening in your front yard, you have some ridiculous archaic views and i am
glad that people like you stay in India!
ADITYA
FEB 03,
2010
02:40 AM
360
vijayrajan:

"Why dont you understand that racism is not new to Australia"

Um...

Racism started in Australia in around 1770, when the Brits arrived and took pot-
shots at the Aboriginees. It was first put into law with the declaration of Terra
Nullius in 1788 with the commencement of european settlement. It existed in law
in some form or another until the end of the white Australia policy in 1975. During
much of this time, the Aboriginees tradition life was interrupted by Christian
Missionaries who attempted to "lead them to salvation".

Racism started in India in ancient times with the jati, and the caste system has
been in place in one form or another for over 1500 years. Despite claims that
Caste is not related to race, lighter skin is still seen as more beautiful, and there
are a plethora of skin-whitening products on the market in India. Although
outlawed in 1950, it still effectively divides society and opporunity in India.
Children of lower castes have less educational opportunites, and do most of the
menial work. Nobody religious bothers with the Sudras, because they don't
qualify for Salvation anyway.

Don't even attempt to preach to me about my country.

And if you lose at cricket, how is that racist? Are we expected to let you win
because you are a different colour? Remember, it was an Indian crowd who
chanted "Monkey" at Andrew Symonds.

I'd make some smart-alec comment here about "The pot calling the kettle black",
but you'd probably call that out as a racist slant. In the meantime, lets ban "White
Christmas" and "Little Brown Jug" from the radio.

Australian's don't hate indians, but nor are we tolerant of uninformed rants from
people like you, no matter what colour you are.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
02:40 AM
359
vijayrajan:


Um...






MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
12:29 AM
358
Let's see if the Indian media covers this:

Police allege an Indian man .. who claimed he was set alight by assailants near
his Melbourne home last month .. accidentally burned himself while torching his
car for an insurance claim.

29-year-old JASPREET SINGH .. of Essendon ..has faced an out-of-sessions
hearing...charged with making a false report to police and criminal damage.

SINGH told police he was doused with petrol and set alight as he parked his car
near his home early on January 8.

He'll appear before the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on March 15.
ROB
FEB 03,
2010
12:17 AM
357
I too think only some Australians are racists, just as some Indians, like Varun
Shekhar and Vijayrajan, are racists. I believe that most of the attacks on Indians
in Australia were carried out by sociopaths, some of whom may have been
further motivated by racist instincts.
ANWAAR
DALLAS, UNITED STATES
FEB 02,
2010
10:53 PM
Will
Sydney, Australia
if you haven't observed the list of facts at the beginning of this story then I am
reproducing them here for your benefit and record.
356
* 130 Indians attacked countrywide, the Indian high commission says. Of these,
30 were students.
Victoria alone. The state is crime-prone, and has a force of 13,000, including
volunteers, to police a population of four million.
* On Jan 5, the Indian government issued an advisory to Indian students in
Australia
asking them to take certain precautionary measures while traveling.
* 33.2% visa applications turned down by Australia between July 1 and October
31, 2009, up from 6.5 per cent for the corresponding period in 2008. These
applications were mostly turned down because of documentation fraud.

These are the facts.you can also provide your own facts or evidence to
substantiate your claim or to repudiate the Indian official claim.simply saying
'hear-say' will not help in a serious debate.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:47 PM
355
Vijayrajan

As i've read the posts made you, how could label all the people living in Australia
as racist by watching cricket for like you said, "growing up watching cricket"....I
Think your commenting australians as rascists based on cricket doesnt make
much sense at all. Please try to think outside cricket. And as far as i know, people
here atleast donot discriminate you as Madrasi, North Indian, Bihari or whatever it
maybe!
VIJAY
FEB 02,
2010
10:31 PM
354
Alan
Melbourne, Australia

It may sound as racial to you but its not intentional.Do you think
insulting,intimidating,Injuring badly and even killing on racial grounds is less
harsher than making any racial comments.Two wrongs of course do not make
one right.But that's how earth has evolved.
Please remember I have not shot a comment at Symmonds alone but against all
those Australins who are racists.I never said all Australians as racists.Dont try to
put your words in my mouth or try to spread disinformation against Indians.
Calling Indians as 'curry' during a cricket match which in fact is Indian's staple
food also amounts to a racist comment.Every Australian is typical Australian like
how every Indian is a typical Indian.Why I have to separate myself from the
rest.Indians have been lying low so far but no more.Why should they tolerate
some one's racism after all Australia is not making any charity to Indians by
allowing them into their country.
Going by the number of reported cases of racial abuse and attacks,the
admittance of the government and the top cops that the racial attacks did take
place and have since increased is a mirror to the Australian society in a civilized
world.Taking into account the number of attacks in Australia today it stands
number one in the world as the most racist country.
when it comes to a question of self defence any retaliation by a victim of a
circumstance cannot be attributed as violence as long as the law makers and law
enforcers fail to protect the victimised community.The earlier the australians
realise this would bebetter.otherwise they may loose a dependable ally in any
future war on terrorism.England has realised this long back.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
09:59 PM
353
While I have a first hand experience of sensational Indian media coverage of post
9/11 events, I find this article to be pretty balanced. There has been issue of
attacks on Indians in Australia. The reason may be racial or normal robbery. But
it presented opinions from every side. I have seen far more sensational and
biased coverage specially in western media with incidents involving their own
citizens in other countries.
MAHA
NJ, UNITED STATES
FEB 02,
2010
09:35 PM
352
Oh, God ! this is full scale invasion. At the latest count there are 350 posts mostly
presumably from Australia. I don't know any thing about racism. Nor do I think it's
anyting about race. It's the economy, stupid!

If the bumb Indian media thought it will be cake-walk pelting stone into this bee-
hive, they now don't know where to look.
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
09:34 PM
Aditya

I am also not sure and understand why some Indians or rather some UnIndians
351
staying in Australia have become the slaves of the white racist Australians and
taking sides and denigrating Indians staying in Australia and those in India.This
world is not perfect.Some fight as castes while some others as communities like
how crusaders and jihadis fought then and even now and the sectarian wars
between various sects amongst Christians and Muslims.Then its is irrelevant
whether its casteism or racism.on racist violence I simply referred to it as only a
worst case scenario.Indians will be the last people to take law into their
hands.But its adversaries have a wrong impression that the patience and their
tolerance as their weakness.
I have traveled to many parts of the world and toured India extensively.Probably
you have gone out of India for the very first time and think Australia is the only
eden on earth.Even if I am living in India in a thatched house I am not like a toad
in a well.Yes I wear blinkers only to alert others to be watchful and careful of guys
like you.
I am proud of my country and always optimistic that we are on right path to
progress and prosperity.On white skin what I said is that Indians became the
slaves of the British only because of their weakness for white skin like how the
country today is suffering for having accepted a white Italian lady to lead us.I
have no special mention to make when it comes to attraction for white or black
skin.If you are not able to follow what I wrote or properly comprehend then I can
only pity upon youand your stupidity
I am not in any denial mode if you are talking of the caste system of India.I have
always stood by our poor irrespective of their caste and I have always been
saying that casteism in India is on the waning though not significantly at the
moment but if the progress is on fast track then this evil can be ultimately
eradicated.Going by the increasing number of inter-caste marriages in India I am
optimistic of India thus becoming a stronger nation than ever before.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
08:10 PM
350
MN

Logical and sensible people speak like you..... well said!!!!
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
08:04 PM
349
Varun Shekar

I think you are joining the other ignorant uninformed "swallow what the media has
to say " people in this forum

KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
08:01 PM
348
No and it's interesting how Varun has jumped to the worst possible explanation. I
would never imply such a thing. Are you accusing me of being racist? Well I am
an Indian! Satire aside, I was implying that maybe these students do not live in
crime prone areas, are not driving taxis when they should be studying ( before
you start saying anything come to melb and catch a taxi - all will be revealed!)
and do not travel alone (even after repeatedly being told not to do so at such
early hrs in the morning) and not carry visibly expensive items on them.
MN
FEB 02,
2010
07:58 PM
347
Hi Varun

To answer your first question..... Unfortunately Yes!!!!! The reasons are
obvious....

To answer your second question ..... No it does not. But the reasons are obvious
again..........
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
07:54 PM
346
CP, you are shallow. If this Outlook series of articles shows anything( and it
shows a lot) it shows that India has a very open society, with a free, lively press
that you wouldn't see in most other developing countries, and perhaps even in a
few developed ones. The articles look at the recent attacks from different angles,
and one of them mentions the dubious behaviour of some of the Indian students,
without of course justifying the violence. It also mentions unemployment in
Australia as being one of the causes of the turbulence. It quotes an Australian
official who asserts that not all the violence is racially motivated. There are other
nuanced comments as well.
Where else in the third world would you see such a variety of comments and
perspectives on racial incidents involving a specific country's nationals? China,
Indonesia, Saudi Arabia?
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
Is MN suggesting the Indian students from the private colleges have it coming to
07:46 PM
345
them? Even if the credentials of a few of these students are questionable, it still
doesn't justify the attacks on them.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
07:40 PM
344
Varun, It's not an "Indian" racism issue. It's a violence issue. And the violence
against all - yes folks hard as it may be to believe it, but there are non Indians
who are getting bashed, etc... and this group is actually in the majority as
opposed to what you might be thinking - the Indians students are the only ones to
be attacked. I do have another point to make - something that no one has pointed
out . Why is it that we do not hear of the Indians students from universities such
as University of Melb, Monash, Swinburne, Deakin, RMIT - why aren't they
getting bashed? WHy is it mostly students from these private run colleges the
most affected?
MN
FEB 02,
2010
07:22 PM
343
Many Australians in this forum are in denial. There is no excuse for these
repeated attacks. It's not about India's poverty, caste issues, language issues,
gender issues, not even cricket issues. A bunch of innocent, peaceful, largely law
abiding Indians are assaulted over and over. The first thing to do is to denounce
it, and admit there's a problem.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
06:52 PM
342
Hi everyone.

I have contributed my fair share to this appalling article in Outlook magazine.....

Please refer to my comments 121, 127, 130, 138, 150, 176, 180, 240, 265, 266,

Looking at all the comments I feel more proud to be called an Aussie Indian

I am proud of all my Australian mates no matter what race they are...

All I have to say is this

Indian media ..you dont understand the power of us individuals getting our voice
heard .

You think you can create chaos and disharmony amongst us for the sake of you
D**k heads making more money ...

I challenge you..

MR Editor-in-chief Vinod Mehta,

Try to do that .. Your Magazine and the so called ludicrous reporting media will
perish very soon......
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
06:01 PM
341
Varun Shekhar - no need to make excuses for the discrimination that exists in
India, it has been present for many many years and it wont change any time
soon. I am of Indian origin and have lived here pretty much my whole life (30
years) with my family, of course i have encountered racism, but that hasnt
stopped me from living a normal life and not living in fear of this discrimination.
What im trying to say is that racism exists everywhere, and more prominently in
some places and you cant get on a moral high ground about discrimination in
another country when there is extreme discrimination right under your own nose!
Surely one should address the same problem in ones backyard before jumping
up and down about it in your neighbours?
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
05:51 PM
340
Vijayrajan, not sure what you are trying to argue there but maybe you should re-
read my post i never equated racism and caste, i mentioned it as a form of
discrimination as racism is. Maybe you shouldnt equate violence with racism, you
can be a racist and not be violent, so your comment about if Indians were racist
they would have thrown down a violent challenge to Australians is really quite
silly.

I think you must be living under a rock or a small boulder there in India or you
have very big blinkers on and not seeing whats in front of you...your description
of India is quite idealistic, maybe you should venture out see India...

Lastly your comment about fair skin always being attractive, mate either you are
really stupid and dont realise your own rascial connotation or you are just in
denial like most Indians are...
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
05:46 PM
339
The issue at hand is not racism as this article implies. Was it racism (by "white"
Australians)when 3 Indians murdered and burnt another Indian Student recently
in Australia? Was it racism by "white Australians when a group of Asiana
"attacked" Indian students? And why is it that only Indians are being attacked?
What is happening to all the Pakistanis, SriLankans etc??? The white Aussies
cannot distinguish between a Srilankan or an Indian or a Pakistani - so why are
they not being attacked?
You know it bothers me that instead of investigating and writing articles the
journalists are opting for sensationalism and creating more problems. Why have I
or my many friends not been interviewed to get our side of the story? I am of
Indian origin and I have exprienced more racism from my fellow countrymen and
women. I was sympathetic initially but it has come to a point where I am thinking
why are all these students coming to do such short courses (who does a double
diploma in IT and Hospitality - which is being offered in one of the private Unis
here!) instead of going to other countries if Australia is so racist? Is it because
they know that if they go to countries suckh as UK it will be harder for them to
survive and because there is more acknowledged racism racism there. where all
Indians are also called Pakis? Or why not Singapore? You can easily see how
Indians are treated. And why not the US - is it because they know that there is
definitely more racism experienced there and that they won't put up with any
nonsense in these countries? Or why not just stay in India? Maybe because ( as
much as I love the country and it hurts me to say this - even though it is not the
country but the people who have made it this way), because there is even more
racism that occurs there and less opportunities. There is an old saying that can
be summed up - that when you point a finger at someone there are the other
fingers pointing right back at you. So before calling anyone racists - whatever the
nationality, look at your own country and fix the problems there first.
MN
FEB 02,
2010
04:40 PM
338
I personally feel the Indian students from North India feel the pinch as because
they feel so inferior to others...i think. this is completely my comments as they are
the ones who do taxi driving and the survey by the student communities in
Australia suggest that out of 100 indian students 78% of them are from North
India. Guys please think for yourself...why u have to go all the way to Australia
and drive taxis why cant that been done in Delhi...just a thought.
ANAND SAMY
FEB 02,
2010
04:39 PM
This is (and was) sure a cause of concern to all of us if Indian, or any other
community is specifically being targeted.

We know that media is prone to exaggerated things at times, and we are used to
337
it.

I very much know the rudeness of Punjabi villages, so I had my doubts over "poor
innocence Indian student" image, in this whole drama.
But today after reading all these comments from Australians, I am confused
again.

We have both kind of comments from "Argumentative Indians" here, which is
indeed the foundation of democracy.

But Australians seems outright, either in denial, or on offensive.

I will conclude, may be Australians are not racist generally; may be these attacks
are not purely racist; but sorry to say, Australian seems way too much intolerant
as a society.
None whosoever found anything wrong with them.
BUNTY
HSINCHU, TAIWAN
FEB 02,
2010
04:17 PM
336
Another BREAKING NEWS fellow indians,

Look what Brits have done - They stopped accepting student visas in North india
for some time. The statistics is that last year same time there were 1800 visas
filed and this year it is 13800 filled. Thanks to negative australian media
coverage. check out the links guys -
http://o3.indiatimes.com/mytimes/archive/2010/02/01/4998767.aspx
I think Indians like me and you all deserve this treatment. Good work my fellow
indians and i am surely Ashamed of you and the way you guys spoiled your own
opportunity.
Lucky me to be a CEO of a company in Australia and I am not a cookery or
hairdressing or community welfare student.
eagerly waiting for the comments by fellow indians.
ANAND SAMY
FEB 02,
2010
04:09 PM
335
Hi guys,

I would like to say from bottom of my heart that " I AM ASHAMED TO BE AN
INDIAN". i living in melbourne for the past 15 yrs and i was a student here in
Australia before i got my permanent job. This a disgrace to every honest indian
for what happened. I have so many Aussie friends including Italians and greek
and honestly they are so good i cant describe.
No one has crossed their line and it is a clean and healthy friendship but now
because of few "villagers" coming from Punjab has ruined the relationship here in
Australia. I am sorry but this is a disgrace to Indian community and all i say is if
any indian dont like to be here in Australia, please leave the country and dont try
to change the society.
I had enough and now i feel the harmony of Australia is been destroyed and more
than that few Indian guys who got Citizenship here and call themselves as the
representative of Indian students should be chucked out.
I also advice to check the background of the Indian student association whom the
president is a bouncer in a nightclub in melbourne and the spokesmen mr. gupta
is jobless sitting at home with his young family. This is disgrace to everyone.
PLEASE INDIANS INCLUDING ME WHO DONT LIKE AUSTRALIA PLEASE
LEAVE. we cant change MNS political party bashing people who migrated from
Bihar (near by state) how u can change Australia. Thanks guys for the damage
ANAND SAMY
FEB 02,
2010
03:27 PM
334
Alan of Melbourne - Vs comment is typically Indian. You should see what they
have to say here: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-
abroad/articlelist/222023.cms

Love and respect all round.

Like you, I have completely changed my opinions about Indians after reading
some of the bile there and here.

I came to these web sites because I was interested in what the Indian Media and
public had to say about Australia. Now I know that is largely ugly. At first I was
worried - because I didn't want people to think of Australia and Australians that
way, and because I thought that it was unfortunate that Indian students seemed
to be being targeted.

Now I no longer care so much. The Indians are really not very nice. And not just
to Australians, but to each other. Check out Raj Thackery and Shiv Sena (India's
Hitler and Nazi Party). Read what the southerners have to say about the
northerners and Punjabis have to say about themselves, other Indians and the
rest of the world.

And they really don't do Irony.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
Vijayrajan

03:02 PM
333
Your comment about Symonds 'tribe' being closer to monkeys is not only
completely wrong scientifically, but extremely racist and offensive. If you're an
example of the typical Indian, you've confirmed that Indians are far, far more
racist than the average Australian.

I said it before, but I'll say it again. This discussion is a real eye-opener.
Unfortunately, my opinion of Indians is plummeting further and further.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
02:58 PM
332
Alan

I never accused the entire Australian population as racist.So far I have was
speaking of only the Austraila cricketers and when a cricket team which is the life
line of Australians are not protesting against some team members for their ugly
behavior then the blame goes on the entire country.Rest is like a soap opera like
a daily broadcasted episode where reports pouring in where an Indian was
attacked and hurt yesterday and tomorrow.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:45 PM
331
CP

why not to start with cricket .you know we know Australians as racists ever since
our teenage days when we used to watch cricket matches for hours together and
how the Australians were sledging and passing racist remarks how the Australian
crowds were making cat calls and displaying abusive posters and placards.like
how cricket is fanaticism for Australian so is is cricket is like a religion for India.
I pity for poor Symmonds an aborigine himself but seems to have converted into
a racist Australian.It was Symmonds who first abused Harbhajan Singh to which
he retorted in kind and deservingly so.Probably the Australians still thinking that
the Indian cricketers haven't grown up or reformed.A few more exchanges in kind
will silence the racist squad.If you have seen the video clipping then you wont ask
this question again .What Bhajji said to Symmonds is monkey which anyway
every one's ancestors they are and even more closer to Symmonds tribe.When
the Australians are so proud of Kangaroos what hurts them if they are called as
monkeys too.If they can call Indians as 'curry' why not they gracefully accept
what Indian call them.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:22 PM
330
Liked that very first comment by Manish Banerjee.

Follow that old Arabic proverb: "Better the ganji (gruel) in the house than the
feast in the neighbor's", look inward, and develop India.

When the OZs want to come in and take a piece of that cake, keep them out ;-)
SRINIVAS SHASTRI
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:19 PM
329
Vijayrajan - your preparedness to judge an entire nation as racist based on the
activities of a hyper-aggressive and obnoxious sporting team says more about
your prejudices than it does about Australia.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
02:09 PM
328
Will
Sydney, Australia

You mean to say then that there is no rule of law prevailing anywhere in
Australia?.That's bad and a shame as well.I have not come to any conclusion
after a couple of incidents that the Australians indeed are racists..But when the
very Australian government and top cops accepted gracefully that it does happen
in Australia.then don't you think I was not wrong.
There are Indians and too many of them in America .Even when America is often
accused of as racial tinder box the immigrants and citizens of Indian origin are
not given such a bad deal as Australians did.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:05 PM
327
VIJAYRAJAN from BANGALORE, INDIA,

It's about cricket for you isn't? I think every one of your posts has mentioned the
cricket...We get it - aussie cricketers are racist. So, while we're at the cricket...

You still haven't answered my question, and since I don't speak Hindi, I need a
Hindi speaker.

What were they yelling at Andrew Symonds at the cricket in India?
CP
FEB 02,
2010
02:02 PM
326
If you're here for a degree Sasha, it's clearly not one based on logic or science.

1) Indian students are working in dangerous activities such as taxi driving and
convenience store work
2) If the proportion of these Indians being attacked is significantly higher than
non-Indians in those activities, then we can say there's probably an anti-Indian
element.
3) If the proportion of Indians attacked is similar or less than non-Indians, then it's
probable that anti-Indian feeling is not an issue.
4) Therefore, before we can say either way, we need to know this information.
5) Since we don't have this information, the accusations of an entire nation being
complicit in racial attacks on Indians is a complete beat-up.

Is that simple enough for you?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
01:50 PM
325
Greg

So far the Asians excepting for some extremist Muslims have shown incredible
and exemplary restraint even when abused and provoked though not committing
any physical injury.But when it comes to physical injury then the law of survival
demands retaliation when the law of the land and and the law makers and law
enforcers fails to protect.For me how much the Australians are racist is well
known since I was a teenager when we used to watch cricket matches on TV and
your brothers used to sledge the poor Asian cricketers.We used to call the
Australians then as stinking British craps for their ugly behavior.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:56 PM
David Morgan of Sydney. Are they bogans? I mean really? How do you know?

I think you might be surprised to know that there are certain african, asian and
middle eastern communities also committing crimes against Indians. But those
aren't racist are they?

324
Do you know how many of the crimes are being committed by these bogan
whites? What proportion? Do tell.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
12:49 PM
323
Pratyush from Melbourne, Australia writes:

"Why do Indian people want to go to Australia? Because they know even idiotic,
unskilled, beer-swilling labourers can afford a two storey house and a
Landcruiser."

Et cetera, et cetera.

And you live in Australia, mate? So it was easy for you to get here and out
achieve all us idiotic beer swilling labourers. Couldn't cut it back in India? Not
good enough for home?

So you thought you could slum it with the convict trash, and then belittle us with
your obnoxious rant.

Really, Indians do not get irony.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
12:38 PM
322
I agree David Morgan
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:34 PM
321
You're shooting from the hip there Will, and that is totally irrelevant. Jayant Patel
is just another psychopath and we already have plenty of them here.

This issue is about the types of people in Australia that bother immigrants. The
people responsible are the thugs in the western suburbs of Sydney and
Melbourne. They collect the dole as well as engaging in drug taking and crime.
There is an attitude of entitlement among these "bogans" who live in what used to
be called the "working class" suburbs. These types naturally do not like to be
shown up by hard-working Indians.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:30 PM
320
Tell me Vijayrajan of Bangalore, India, what they yelling at Andrew Symonds at
the cricket?

This article is just more sensationist rot. Where would you rathter be Dalit - in
India or Australia? How are the christians getting on in India? The Muslims? How
many Dowry murders are there in India each year? Plain old murders? Culpable
homicides? (I'll give you a hint - close to 3 times the per capita rate of Australia).

Do Indians even get the irony of their rants on this forum and others like the
Times of India?

Now, are there racists in Australia? Of course. Are some of the attacks on Indians
in Australia racial? Of course.

But don't call an entire nation racist because of the few. After all, some of the
attacks were committed by people who weren't white (after all, only white people
are racist). Some of the attacks were even committed by Indians.

This magazine states that some of the attacks were committed by Asians, some
by Africans, some by people of Middle Eastern background, and "many by white
Australians." I guess those are the racist attacks.

OK then - tell me how many? I really don't know.

I've seen a lot of the commentary coming from Indian nationals around the world
and in India and it is awful, racist, bigoted and nasty. But I don't think that all
Indians are racist or the whole country.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
12:28 PM
319
I would like to congratulate the author of this article. To me it seemed fair and
balanced. Unfortunately, some Australians, including those in the Australian
Press don't seem to have read the article and have made all sorts of accusations
implying that the article is hysterical and making accusations that all Australians
are racist. I don't think the article makes any judgement, it just presents opinions
from various points in the spectrum of opinions.
I am sorry that some of Australia's newest arrivals are subject to racism and
violent attacks. Unfortunately, racist remarks directed at newly arrived immigrants
has been an occurence in Australia for many years. My mother who migrated
from Malta to Australia with her sister and brothers just after the Second World
War. They each spoke and understood English. Sometimes, however, they would
converse in Maltese in public and hear comments from English-only speaking
Austrlaians such as "Why don't they learn to speak English or go back to where
they came from ?". My mother and her siblings would shock them with a
response in English. Migrants from Mediteranean Europe were labelled with the
derogatory names of "Wogs" and "Dagos". When European migration eased and
was surpassed with migration from South-East Asia, these people were labelled
with other derogatory labels that I believe are too offensive to repeat in print.
However, every person whether they are Indian or not should have the right to go
about their lawful day-to-day business without fear of physical attack or abuse
whether it is based on racism or not. Unfortunately, it is not only Indian students
who are victims of violence in Melbourne. This is a problem that the Victorian
Government has to grapple with and overcome. People in Victoria should be
taught to respect others. It should be part of the educational curriculum and if a
person fails to demonstrate their civic responsibilities, then the criminal justice
system should deal with them appropriately.
civic duties
GREG
FEB 02,
2010
12:27 PM
318
Elan and JCollin

After reading the hateful, ignorent and bigoted comments by certain Indians I
think I finally understand their problem.

Here it is:

The English and to a lesser degree the French and Portugese owned you for
hundreds of years.

They played the Indians (Aryans/Dravidians/Others) off against each other, and
Indians were only too happy to participate. The ruling classes of India were so
desperate to control their Indian brothers, they would kill them and enslave them
for the English, just to get at the riches the English threw to them. These few
bigoted, ignorant and hateful Indians are now ashamed how their ancestors
behaved that they now want to take it out on Australia. As they see Australians as
representing their former European masters.

I also concluded that these same Indians are bitter as their birth lands are now
controlled by Pakistan. This is why they often treat Pakistanis with contempt, and
exhibit great hate towards them, even though they are the same race as the
Indian populace. But it could be becasue they are Muslims.

Most importantly, I believe that the main reason that sections of the Indian
Government have been happy for this to boil over and for the India media to
spread lies is because Australia prefers China over India when it comes to doing
business, and we won't sell uranium to India.

Now I can't solve all your other probelms but I can suggest that if you convince
the Australian public to vote Liberals in the Federal election we will sell you
uranium, and then all these problems will disappear.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:22 PM
317
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jayant_Patel

Did you see the (mostly white) victims of this guy and their families protesting and
jumping up and down, holding traffic-stopping protests? Is there some kind of
organised anti Indian movement to stop the growing number of health
professionals from India who are putting OUR lives at risk? No, our Government
lets more and more in every year.
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:16 PM
316
@ Sasha

Statistically Victoria IS safer than India. Do you have data to suggest otherwise?
If you do, simply reveal them. Certainly the murder rate in Australia is 60% lower
than the murder rate per capita in India. This is FACT.

Is driving a taxi in Melbourne safer than sitting at home in India? Probably not.
But is that a racial risk or an occupational risk? Give me data if you have some,
but you need to be mindful that taxi drivers have had the crap beaten out of them
for years before Indians arrived.

Working late at fast food joints is dangerous too. If it isn't why do all of the white
teenagers have their parents insist on picking them up when they finish work?
Because walking through poorly lit streets at night is dangerous for all races -
even whites.

In terms of Brumby's statement that not all attacks are racist; how is that not a fair
statement?

The Indian press went into overdrive about Ranjodh Singh's death being racist
and has barely reported the fact that that 3 Indians have been charged with the
murder. In fact the Hindustan Times reported that Australians had been arrested
and did not correct the story. So just this example shows that NOT ALL attacks
are racist. It also gives an indication of the integrity of the Indian media.

Besides, it is mathematically impossible for all attacks to be racist. No group of
400,000 people in Australia is immune from assault or murder regardless of race.
As I have posted before 400,000 Australias are likely to face 3200 attacks in any
year. This is statistical FACT. SO is 3200 attacks on whites just bad luck and
every attack on Indians racist? How is that possible?

Brumby has no credibility if he says that all of the attacks are racist when clearly
many are not, especially when the attackers are Indian.

Yes, he can sit down with the victims, but will that stop some moron beating up a
taxi driver at 2am on a Friday night? Will sanctions or banning Aussie cricketers
from the IPL stop some moron from attacking someone when the threat of jail
doesn't?

As for your preference of Howard over Rudd; I find it surprising that you can show
such distain for Hanson but admire Howard who copied Hanson's rhetoric and
policies.
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
12:06 PM
315
Vijayrajan, you assume that the people who attack Indians are all vicious racist
white people. Look at the facts.
Did you know white people here get bullied and beaten up too? Yes by Middle
Eastern gangs. Indians are constantly riding public transport without tickets. Like
the British, they are constantly breaching their visas, with the Indians working
more than the 20 hours allowed. Do the "white" Australian authorities target them
or audit them for this unlawful behaviour? I agree there is racism and there needs
to be something done, but pissing people off doesnt score any points.
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:04 PM
314
All I have to say is everyone should also read an article published by this very
magazine on the very same day as this article, about the 'fairness' of skin debate
in India...
And don't forget to read the posts on there too!! Here's a link to it

http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?264026

If that doesn't raise issues about the colour of ones skin- I would say that this
article is just the pot calling the kettle black.
PRIYA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
11:47 AM
313
Sasha,

How is the debate going on in Delhi any different to that that is taking place here!

Indian groups are coming and protesting and screaming racists.
Governments saying, whoa wait a minute, lets have a look at the facts first.
Police groups admitting that some attacks are in fact racially motivated.

End result is just the same...lots of talk but no bona fide solutions!!

The Indian community does not want to discuss or debate the issue but simply
wants to shout down all other opinions.

Varun Shekhar - I expect the Indian media to report the facts and not
sensationalise or exaggerate events that are occuring in Australia. The first
response in the Indian media is to cry Racist Attack whenever something
happens even though the facts show otherwise (include attacks by Indians on
Indians, or insurance scams, or random assaults and robberies).
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
11:22 AM
312
Allan, Whatever form of legal work immigrants or anyone does, they should be
safe. Australia has a moral responsiblity towards it. We don't want this to become
another Joburg or LA. It's that simple. Like Delhi has an issue with safety for
women after dark. Indian laws and democracy allows the media there to debate
it, women's group protest for more safety as everyone knows it's a genuine
concern. Feminsits there accuse of the government being male chauvanists and
the debate continues. If India can allow such a debate for safety to thrive, why
can't Australia be open too? The delhi government till date has not come out and
said there are not rapists there. On the other hand, they sympathise with the
victim and they try and address it. Women are allowed to debate their concerns.
People migrate to Australia thinking it's a free country and it's the government's
responsibility to ensure this freedom---freedom to work in a safe envirnoment. If
they fail to do it, they should not be in power.They are here to proect everyone
and not behave like a mafia.

Union jack off my flag
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
11:12 AM
Ethnic Indians in Australia are being attacked, and the motive in many cases is
racial, if not racist. What is the big complication here? Of course, the Indian
media and government are going to comment adversely on it, since it happening
311
so frequently. It's not just one or two incidents. People are seeing a pattern. What
do you expect the Indian media and government to do, be totally silent. Or
perhaps suggest, as some posters here have, that the Indians are partly bringing
this onto themselves!
In response to Aditya, yes India has many social problems. It's a poor,
overpopulated,semi-feudal( though dynamic), extremely diverse country with a
legacy of poverty that originates in the colonial era.
Do these conditions by themselves disqualify all Indians, every single one of
them, from commenting on the attacks on ethnic Indians in Australia? That's a
ridiculous position, if you are maintaining it.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
11:06 AM
310
Yes there have been attacks on Indians Vijayrajan.

BUT - have there been more attacks than on non-Indians in the same risky
activities?

AND - were all these attacks by whites or other ethnic groups?

No one knows.

So if you've done the research perhaps you could enlighten us all? If not,
perhaps you'll stop showing off your ignorance?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
11:00 AM
309
Alan

If you are an Australian yourself then you must be eiher not reading your daily
newspapers or watching TV however biased they are. But the government on
record said that there have been attacks taking place on Indians in particular and
some of them indeed are racial.How many of those attacks you want to wait and
watch before you can conclude it really as racial- two,three or a dozen of
them.?The Australians have proven it often on cricketing field through their racial
remarks interpreted smartly by the Australian media as sledging in kind.You know
the Australian players are supposed to be educated and have some social
awareness.Right?
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:48 AM
308
Matt
Sydney, Australia
Thats not what I asked for nor looking for.Your links do not satisfy me.
Why dont you understand that racism is not new to Australia.We have seen it
since our younger days when we used to get glued to the TV watching cricket
matches and the Australians when ever feel threatened used the sledging
shamelessly.It was seen being done mostly against visiting Asian teams.Earlier
the Aussies started it as intimidating tool to create fear in the opposition but later
they started employing when ever the opposition got an upper hand over it.They
as well their crony umpires were found vulnerable if they sense defeat and will
employ the tricks not written anywhere in the book.Such are the Australians the
crap that the British left there while the British as such are more gracious.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:43 AM
307
Sorry my response is towards pete
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
10:39 AM
306
Vijayrajan, you haven't provided proof that Indians are being preferentially
attacked by whites in Australia yet. Why are you still saying they are? Would it
hurt too much to admit you're wrong?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
10:39 AM
305
Brian, If you can presume things I can presume things too. Finally what's the
difference between your presumption and my presumption. You said I'm 100%
Indian with an aussie passport. And I'm saying that you are 100% british with an
aussie passport.

Allan, The Australian government should meet with foreigners affected in street
crime and reassure them. Till now Brumby has said only one thing:that Victroria
is the safest place and all attacks are not racist. If he's a good statesman, he
should sit with the Indian community leaders and talk to themface to face and find
out what's going on. Listening is veyr important. It's good diplomacy too. How
comebrumby has gone all the way to India to meet Indian leaders but never
bothered to meet the victims of crime here? He's got all the time to speak to the
Indian mediabut no time to meet people affected. you get my point?

Reconciliation begins with talking. Not denying. There is no need to accept or
deny. But there is a need to listen. Brumby and Rudd has not done that and that's
surely because they are scared of losing white votes. They are bigots. Howard
was so much better. We knew what we were getting into at least.
Rudd is a snake
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
10:38 AM
304
Agreed Alan, and I am not telling him to go home at all, rather than to just simply
pull his head in and and to stop being so blinkered.

I think that Australian values are clearly at odds with Indian values. It's obvious
that we have different opinions on what constitutes racism, as well as differing
views on family life, women in society, multculturalism, the environment, human
rights, animal welfare, politics, economics, sport, humour..all sorts of things.

So, how do you resolve these differences ? or don't you ?

It is a two way street and both sides need embrace these differences. I think
mainstream Australia has some work to do in this regard however equally I think
the new Indian community has not embraced mainstream Australia at all.

It just takes time.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
10:33 AM
303
Aditya
I am not kidding but it seems you have rather misunderstood me.When I said
Indians are a tolerant lot I mean it and they are respected across the globe for the
simple reason that these god fearing people hardly interfere in the internal affairs
of any country they immigrate.That's why we see many Indian non residents
occupying highest posts in employment circle as well as in political circles.They
have earned it and are not received as gifts.As far as casteism is concerned if
you are interpreting caste as racism then the Hindus as such have never denied
that they are not suffering from its evil caste system.If Indians are most racist in
the world then they would have thrown a challenge to the Australian regime and
fought violent battles.What ever may be the differences the Indians may have
wihin themselves they have lived up with it and the discrimination is on the
waning unless some people with some vested interest,casteist inclinations are
interpreting it as so and say it as still flourishing.This world is very fierce and
highly competitive.When it comes to the best the best will go and not his caste
,region,reigion and colour along with him.
You must not forget fair skin is always attractive to black skins like how negative
poles attract.I am not either a fan of white skin.Its foolish to conclude that colour
has to do with everything.Its only an excuse given by one who has not
accomplished and wants to put blame on something else for his failures and
incompetence.
Here we are debating the issue of racism of Australians and not casteism of
Indians.Its you who is equating castesim to racism.Two wrongs do not make
Australians right in any way.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:21 AM
302
Vijayrajan:

"Why there are no attacks on other Asians living in Australia"

There are, but most are East-Asian crime gangs attacking each other:

http://news.smh.com.au/national/two-charged-over-fatal-sydney-stabbing-
20080320-20nj.html

But white australia also attack each other:

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/two-sought-over-suburban-
sydney-stabbing-20100121-mnnf.html

Of course, Indians also attack each other. Especially in India:
http://www.wluml.org/zh-hant/node/204
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:05 AM
301
I think it's pretty obvious what Sasha's doing Bryan, and he kind of has a point
silly as he is at times. The inclination of some Australians to tell people who have
every right to be here but are critical of the way things operate to 'go home if you
don't like it' is close-minded and unlikely to result in good public dialogue.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
10:05 AM
@ Sasha

I still don't know what your instructions are for the Australian govt after they have
300
interviewed all 130 Indian attack victims.

You said it was easy.

Please advise.
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
09:57 AM
299
You can do better than that Sasha.

I am not jingoist whatsoever, in fact I think that overt national pride is an insidious
tide that brings out the worst in people.

For a man (I assume you are a man, my apologies if you are not) to continually
slag off everything Australian, then have the audicity to claim the southern cross
as "my flag" is hypocrisy at it's finest.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
09:53 AM
298
I agree that it seems that Indians have a victim mentality. In some ways, I envy
them. If I am an idiot and I don't get a promotion or people in the office don't like
me, or I get a parking ticket, or I stub my toe, I don't have to do any soul
searching. I merely have to blame racism. It means I am not accountable for any
of my failures.

The Indian cricket team is an example. When a few decisions didn't go their way
on the last tour (and decisions were bad), it was racism. When Harhajan Singh
was suspended for his racist jibes to Symonds, ironically that was the officials
being racist.

By the way, most Australians agree that the Australian team displays poor
behaviour. But the Indian team is fined and suspended more than the Australian
team. (FACT). But their behaviour is shown up as a shining light for all to behold.

Want an example of Indian cricket sportsmanship?

Go to Youtube, Search on:

Harbhajan Singh v/s Kevin Pietersen.

There must be a racist get out of jail card there somewhere surely?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
09:29 AM
297
I would also like to add, after the 11th September attacks in the US, Sikhs were
getting beaten up and killed for being mistaken for terrorists...i dont recall such
rigorous reporting on the topic of inherent racism in America...the article in this
magazine doesnt serve any purposes other than instigating more outlandish
reporting.
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
09:24 AM
296
Alright, that's Brian the Jingoist speaking. Everyone please stand up.
You must be a dual citizen and that's why you want to hold on to the Union jack.
british agents...the bonds of Australia
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
08:58 AM
295
I really think you have something there Aditya. If a person is as highly sensitive to
race and origins as you describe for India, and that person perceives that they
are being treated unfairly (whether in fact or not), the inclination would be to
ascribe the treatment to racism.

Reading blogs like this, there have been numerous scathing Indian references to
Australian bad blood from convict heritage that have come from dills like Elan.

It really isn't a healthy obsession.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
08:52 AM
294
Sasha, I understand the issue very very well and have had 35 years experience
in Australia only the brilliant relationship that I and my family have with
multicultural Australia turn to cr#p overnight, and I am bloody angry about it.

It appears to me is that you only see Indian victims and have no sense of
perpective. Again, all you do is support my argument that Indians have a victim
mentality.

Indians see racism because they want to see racism.

They want to believe that the reason they are disliked in Australia is because the
whole of Australia is racist and it couldn't possibly have anything to do with how
their own behaviour here, how their media represents Australia, how their public
representatives whinge and moan or how their students/taxi groups behave.

Yes some attacks are racial but they are not racist (I hope you can tell the
difference).

...and finally it is obviously not your flag so do not please do not claim it. You
obviously have no understanding or respect for the sacrifices that many many
good Australians have made for that flag or what that flag represents

Although I presume you have an Australian citizenship you attitude shows that
you are still 100% Indian. Therein lies the problem.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
08:40 AM
293
@ Sasha

As I have posted before, 176,000 Australian are assaulted every year, so the
govt does not have a dept that goes around to interview them, other than the
police. That said, lets say the govt sets up a team to interview the 130 Indians (of
176,000) that have been assaulted. Then what? If 37,000 people are murdered
every year in India at a rate 2.4 times the per capita rate in Australia, it seems
that the Indian givt struggles with violence too.

What specific action do you want from the government? Do you want someone
from the govt to accompany Indians through parks at night that are known to be
dangerous?

You said it was easy? What do they do? (Hint: "Do something" is not specifc
enough.)
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
08:30 AM
292
"Indians are known as a tolerant and a truly secular and liberal lot" - Vijayrajan,
you must be kidding, Indians would have to be the most racist, discriminating,
prejudiced race in the whole world. You get discrimination at all levels there,
starting from the colour of your skin, religion, caste, north indian, south indian,
this indian that indian...the list goes on.

Might i remind you about the constant obsession with the colour of skin in India,
why on earth are there so many "fair and lovely" or "fair and handsome"
advertisements on tv and newsprint?? I recently cam back from a trip to India and
was astonished at the way they portray success with fair skin with these ads.

I think before you can start pointing the finger at other countries about racism,
tackle the issue a bit closer to home, and then get on the moral high ground.
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
08:26 AM
291
Will
Sydney, Australia

No one in this world is perfect and complete.If the people in the developed world
think they are so placed because the lesser developed are lesser in everything
else will be an under statement.
If the attacks are of a general nature and irrespective of the victim belonging to
any part of the world instead of picking up Indians alone then we could have not
seen its a s racial but merely the handiwork of some misguided Australians.Why
most Indians still have not reacted is that they are aware of what you are saying
in that all Australians are not racist.But unless and until Australians like you come
out on the street and protest when injustice is done to any innocent human being
like how many of you did it in the case of Dr.Hanif from India who was
apprehended by your police on suspicion of being a terror link to that failed
Glasgow airport bomb blast case.
Indians are not angels nor the Australians are any Saints.Being a democratic
country and once a commonwealth partner country the Indians expected a fair
treatment as there is a rule of law in place.But if the fence itself starts grazing the
pasture then even god cannot stop it.The attackers are emboldened by the lack
of firm action by the Australian government.Indians in Australia may never have
interfered with the internal affairs of the country nor reported to have made any
harsh comments on its population or how its own ethnic minorities or aborigines
are treated.So you have no business to talk of the caste system which the Hindus
never have denied it being an evil.Two wrongs after all cannot make one right.
Its the Australians that are sitting inside the glass house as poor Indians live in
thatched house or with no roof at all.when you sit inside a glass house it is
supposed to be air tight and those inside will hardly hear the cries of the innocent
Indians outside suffering at the hands of those cruel,racist,fanatic fascist white
thugs.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
08:22 AM
It's so easy to resolve this issue: Just do something to stop the attacks. At least
the government should have met the victims of crime. Not one official has met a
victim till date. Can you freakin believe it?
SASHA
290
FEB 02,
2010
08:03 AM
289
I have been waiting to respond after having read all my fellow bloggers
response. Racism is inherent in all of us at varying degrees and such dormant
prejudices we try to control and never allowed to come to the fore. It does come
to the fore from time to time even with our best effort to subdue it. Once up on a
time migrants from India were professionals and were inconspicuous. New
migrants, especially students are conspicuous-driving taxis, working at
convenient stores and service stations. Most of the students work at odd hours-
after hours- and easy targets for opportunists-drug addicts desperate for money.
Some of these attacks may be racially motivated. I dont think Australians, by and
large, are racists and are easy going types and give a fair go to their fellow
human beings, irrespective of pigmentation of the skin. I have had my share of
subtle discriminations of varying kinds and have ignored them and got on with my
life. I have to say Melbourne is the best place to live and the late Indian Prime
minister Indira Gandhi had concurred with my view. Last time she visited
Melbourne in the early 1970s for Commonwealth Prime ministers conference,
she said I have fallen in love with Melbourne. Moreover, so many times
Melbourne has been voted as the most liveable city at International forums.

Some of the attackers of Indian students are opportunists and others have some
grievances-like Indian students taking their university places and taking their jobs.
It is duty bound by the Victorian government to inform them that Indian students
are exorbitant fee payers and are not freeloaders at the taxpayers expense and
they are allowed to work certain hours to supplement the meagre amount of
money provided by their parents for their subsistence in Victoria during duration
of their studies. The grievances were reported in the Australian newspaper.
These are whinging Australians who have no intention to work at odd hours-after
hours- and are making their excuse for attack that they think Australian taxpayers
owe them a living and never get off their hindquarters and eke out a living.

The best advices to the Indian students have been issued by the Indian
government and follow those advices.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 02,
2010
08:01 AM
288
Alright Vijayrajan, I see you don't think you're one of the easily manipulated ill-
educated Indians I was referring to.

Perhaps you'd like to demonstrate statistically that Indians are being
preferentially attacked by whites in Australia? Of course you'll have to only
compare the attacks with risky professions such as taxi drivers that Indian
students take-up as a sample. You'll also have to prove that it was whites that did
the attacking.

When you've done that (because no-one else has done it), you'll be able to say
that there's a problem with whites attacking Indians.

Until you do that, I'm afraid you fall into that group of ignorant Indians easily
inflamed by their media and politicians with their own agendas.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
07:52 AM
287
Alan

You may be right.But why pick Indians alone when there are significant numbers
of other Asians coming and who have been staying in Australia. Whether poor or
rich unless abused no one gets inflamed.Havent we seen how highly educated
and well placed Muslims getting engaged with terrorism resulting in gory
incidents like 9/11,7/7 Glasgow airport terror plot etc.Do you mean to say that the
attacks on Indians by the racial and fanatical white Australians is only because
they are highly educated and developed while poor Indians seeking jobs and for
better prospects are invariably poor,poorly educated and ill mannered.?.Your
assessment is totally wrong.If so why pick the Indians alone and that too non
Muslim and non Christians from India.
I believe in natural justice.What the Pakistanis are facing today is because they
spilled the blood of the innocent Indians and Australia is not very far.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:44 AM
286
Sasha, most people agree with you about Pauline Hanson. There are morons in
Australia like there are morons in India. I'd like her shipped off somewhere, along
with a number of Indians that have come to Australia and committed crime. Just
this year, there has been a number of Indians charged with murder and rape in
Australia. Can we get rid of them too, or is their arrest due to a racist police
force?

I don't understand the thing with the queen either. Nice lady but why is some old
fart who lives 10,000 miles from here and never visits our head of state? And the
flag. Every time the Commonwealth Games is on I cringe because of 80 or so
Commonwealth Nations, the Australian team is one of only a handful of nations
that enters the arena with someone else's flag in the corner of their flag. You can
maybe understand some smaller, poorer countries that are still colonies, but what
has the Union Jack got to do with Modern Australia? As was the case in Sth
Africa, their prior flag that had the flags of 3 other nations was divisive. They got a
new flag and everyone there loves it. The Canadian flag is one of the best
recognised and loved flags in the world. Their government simply decided to give
them a new one. No referendum - nothing, and no one today would want to go
back.

On the whole racist Australia thing, I wont be convinced until someone provides
some data to support this case. Isolated incidents don't make a nation racist. If
that was the case, all nations would be racist. One hundred and 30 attacks
seems a low number to me, but India is playing Chicken Little here and people
like you and I are trying to rationalise one stance or another. Statistics take out
the huffing and puffing but despite all of the noise and millions of words printed,
no Indian journalist or politician has produced any data to support their case. Why
is that?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
07:37 AM
285
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, India

No one is permitted to visit any other country without a prior and proper visa.I
think you know at least this fact before vomiting something.Its because of some
UnIndians like you that we have become weak and powerless and being abused
and insulted often.

Only lazy and lethargic people shy away from being ambitious.Only beig
ambitious one can venture and that poor Punjabi farmer boy has done no mistake
trying to better his prospects.Australia is a developed and richer nation than
India.Why the hell their people at all would come over to India searching for some
jobs.The issue here is the racial attack over the Indians and not your preaching of
idealism or way of living to others.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:36 AM
284
"Indians are known as a tolerant and a truly secular and liberal lot."

That's not the way I see it Vijayrajan. To me the poorly educated Indian masses
seem very easily inflamed to anger and violence by the demagogue who knows
the right button to push, regardless of the facts of an issue.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
07:31 AM
283
Sure there is racism in Australia, but what do you expect from a country that still
has the Union Jack on its flag?

Most reporting of this makes dangerous generalisations (read racist) insinutations
that the majority of white Australians are violent and vicious facists. The reporting
assumes that all of the Indians are angels and innocent victims (wrong), and you
assume that all of the perpetrators of attacks are white (not reporting recent
murders of Indians by Indians in Australia), and of course you never acknowledge
the organised voilent racist groups in your country. And for your caste system?
Does the Australian media attack and vilify India for its cruel and unfair class
system?

People in glass houses should not throw stones.

If we cant have faith in the media to be responsible in reporting on this, then how
can we get people to understand and accept and respond positively to the
ugliness of the racism that does occur?
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:26 AM
282
Indians are known as a tolerant and a truly secular and liberal lot.If people like
them are targeted on racial and religious or fanatical ground it means there is
more to it than meets the eyes.Why there are no attacks on other Asians living in
Australia and significant amongst them being Pakistani Muslims.And out of those
reported attacks over Indians many of them are of non christian and non Muslim
Indian origins gives rise to serious doubts of selective attacks.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:22 AM
281
Good Allan. As long as you are open to change it's all good. i'm sure you will see
a rodney king in Australia soon.

Teach Empire's Genocidal history in schools
The empire was as bad as the nazi regime
Queen to the museum
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
07:21 AM
Thanks for that Vijayrajan. Another stunning piece of social commentary.

It really is an education watching this page. I used to be more worried that
280
Pakistan would use their nukes against India than vice versa. I'm begining to
realise neither country has the political maturity to be trusted with nukes.

I hope like hell we don't sell our uranium to India.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
07:19 AM
279
I think for Indian non Muslim and non Christians today Australia is the most
unsafe place to live on the planet than Pakistan.The attacks are both racial and
fanatical.I am sure there is a wider conspiracy to discourage the Indians coming
over to Australia through intimidation and creating a fear psychosis.The
Australian white racist thugs are emboldened by the mute response of the
Australian government and the lackluster and wavered response of the Indian
government.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:08 AM
278
There is no cure for jealousy of the Australians and there is no reason for being
apprehensive as Indians unlike other Asians do not believe in interfering with the
internal affairs of the country they are immigrating.Look how subdued is the
response of the Indian media and the politicians even when their own brothers
are being targeted.The response would have been significantly different if people
belonging to the vote bank minorities like Muslims or Christians from India were
targeted.This alone shows the attacks were perpetrated by the racial and fanatic
white Australians.They must remember that thy too have ethnic non-white
population which is increasingly getting restive because of the same treatment
being meted out to them by default.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:08 AM
277
Pete,
1) When the Empire sent its convicts here, they did not consult the natives what
class and creed of convicts they wanted. So why should we worry. Let them be
greek, Anglos, Indian or chinese. England needs those louts more than we do.
For example, I can surely be without Pauline Hanson in Australia. Brumby can go
too. Rudd needs to be fixed here. We'll fix him in the next Polls.
2) tasmania is Australia's pride. Empire greed wiped out cultures and people in
Tassie, Corporate greed is trashing the place now. It's nothing new.

Queen to the Museum
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
07:00 AM
276
... and finally Sasha, when I see the evidence you're talking about of
institutionalised racism in the police I'll revise my opinion.

In the meantime, you haven't said anything to show that Brian's idea of a victim
mentality is incorrect. Your comment on ambulances (which you haven't justified
in any way) only reinforces that.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
06:58 AM
275
Allan, I did not say it's not race. I said it's race and class. Middle class Indians
love thinking they are the anglo's closest ally or a natural ally. Even if some
middle class Indians are racially assaulted, they will not admit it because it's an
embarassment for them. That's how it works. But for the student class,most of
them come from rural Punjab where communities are socially and politically very
active. They will not accept racism. SOME of these communities have criticised
and attacked the Indian government for neglecting them for decades. These
students are political and it's a good sign for Australian democracy. What the
Australian government should do is to engage with these students and address
their issues. This problem could have been resolved years back. Instead, Rudd
and Brumby neglected it so badly and damaged relations between communities.
Boot Brumby Out,
Bigots back to Britain,
Stop trashing Tassie
Rudd Him Out;
Union Jack Off My Flag
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
06:55 AM
274
@ Sasha

I agree with you on some things, but what about bigots that are not from Britain.
Let's say I am a Greek bigot, or a Lebonese bigot or an Indian bigot. Do I get sent
to Britain too. What if I am of British decent the last 5 generations have been born
in Australia. Where should I go? The definition of 'Bigot' doesn't start with 'A
Briton who.....'

Secondly, I must watch the news more....what is happening in Tasmania?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
06:41 AM
273
Ah Sasha, so it's not necessarily about race in your view but class? Interesting
admission given the hysterical cries of racism levelled against Australia as a
whole we've been hearing.

You've just doubly done your dash with me on that one.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
06:32 AM
272
Brian and Allan, I say this because I work with Indian victims of crime. Police
abuse Indians when they come to the scene of crime. One of those allegations
was looked into and a senior police office was suspended. This report has not
come out into the media. There are video evidences of th Police treat Indians in
Melbourne. I'm sure in due course this will be leaked to the media. I'm not sure
why it hasn't come out yet although I have seen the footage myself. Most victims
have a common opinion about the lack of attention they get in general. Brian, just
because you work with Indian IT guys it doesn't mean you understand this issue
quite well.It's more complicated and there's a class issue compunded with race.
That's another reason why well to do Indians don't admit thgere's racism here.
anyway...

Stop raping Tasmania,
Stop fascist Brumby,
Ship bigots back to britain,
Queen off my dolla,
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
06:28 AM
271
33 Indians died in violent attacks between 2004 and 2009, says Federation of

I find it interesting that any supposedly reputable magazine would print the
statements of anyone like Gautam Gupta without actually clarifying the facts.
Australia does not hide the cause of death for anyone, not even Indians. What
this magazine fails to do is confirm the facts, then print them.

Of all the claims of violent death made by Gautam how many did the journalist
confirm? None. Did this journalist determine who killed these Indian nationals.
No. All killings in 2009 committed in Adelaide of Indian nationals were by Indian
nationals. And that was three to be precise. And the fourth one that died violently
killed himself after killing his wife. Australian police and welfare agencies then
had to look after the orphaned children, and help them with their grief.

An Indian was found to have had his throat cut and set on fire. Again by Indian
nationals. Another was found in a river in Brisbane, both the Queensland and
Indian police believe this was carried out by the womans husband and are still
trying to prove this. He was an Indian national.

If I can easily account for all violent deaths in 2009, and these were all committed
by Indian nationals, shouldn't this journalist be able to find these details and
determine the death of the 33 Indians.

So please publish facts when trying to claim that this article is trying to expalin
what is happening.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
06:16 AM
270
Sasha, your comments are typical of the India victim mentality I see regularly with
Indian new comers.

I have no car so regualrly catch taxi's (daily) and also work within IT in a large
company with numerous Indian contractors. As I have an Indian background,
many Indians feel comfortably opening up to me.

Many Indians, it seems to me, have a tendency to blame anything and everything
on racism.

Q.Why can't I get a job? - A.Racism,
Q.Why won't Australian girls go out with me? - A.Racism. Q.Why don't police
listen to me? - A.Racism?
Q.Why is my rent so high? - A.Racism
etc, etc,

I hear it all the time and it frustrates the hell out of me.

Indians somehow think they are being single out, when in fact the situation is the
same for everybody here.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
Sasha -
2010
06:02 AM
269
How do you know that you're getting lower service levels unless you've been a
non-Indian and able to make a comparison? To suggest ambulances give Indians
a lower priority is totally ridiculous (how on earth would you KNOW anyway?).
You've just put yourself into the 'too silly to discuss with' camp along with Elan.

And by the way, I suspect Indians are being targetted to some extent (although
not in all cases), so I'm not in denial in that respect. What I do deny is that the
greater Australian community (of all ethnicities) condones the violence in any
way.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
05:30 AM
268
Allan, That's because when you walk into the police station with a complaint you
are taken more seriously; that's because when you call for an ambulance, you
are attended to more urgently; the whole media bandwagon screams out for
attention too. Funnily, it's tough for some to understand this. Just like how
brumby is living in denial. You just don't see how Indians are being targetted in
Australia. If any white community was involved at the recieving end, there would
have been a riot in this city. Let's say if ten backpackers get beaten up, we will
know the difference. Cmon Allan, who are you trying to kid? Wake up from your
privileged lifestyle and try and understand what's really going on. Try and spy on
an Indian student while he's walking alone somwhwere. Try and go with an Indian
to a pub in st kilda. Seriously. You and Brumby and rudd are still living in denial.

Queen off my dolla,
Stop trashing Tasmania,
SHip racist bigots back to the UK,
Life sentence to Pauline Hanson
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
05:14 AM
267
Kevin Murray

What a load of tosh. and Brunwick...gentrified !! Ha!!

Do not try to intellectualise and rationalise what is simply mindless thuggery.

Do you honestly believe that the morons who bash Indians students on the
streets of Sunshine or Footscray are intelligent enough to resent Indians because
of their perceived "purpose and future" ? Utter nonsense.

They do it simply because they get a thrill out of it...its just something to do on a
Saturday night.

And your comment about cricket is equally ridiculous. We all know India is
passionate about its cricket. This passion translates in to anger in their media
towards all things Australian because Australians have shown little or no respect
for their cricket team (and continue to do so).

It has nothing to do with "Anglo values".

In case you didn't get the last test series in Brunswick, India beat us !!
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
05:11 AM
266
Jcollin.

You seem very hostile. Why? Was it because mummy rejected you?

You should do what I did for my parents and buy them a house near you. They
may love you even more. I bought mine an inner suburb, 3 bedroom/2 bathroom
on quarter acre block.

We do need Indian and Chinese Drs, due to the significantly higher levels of
medical care we give our people in comparison to the US and India. My family
are involved in training Drs in Australia. One thing that they are being offered by
Asian students are gifts to ensure favourable treatment. They have even had
cases where Indian students have been failed and the Indians family make an
approach with large donations for the University to have the fail changed to a
pass. The difference between here and India is this is recorded and refused.

We need Indian and Chinese workers to wipe our arses when we are old as well.
We'll make them use paper though rather then the left hand.

You claim to manage a BPO in India, this now explains the subsandard service
we are receiving from our offices in India. You would know, if you are semi-
itelligent, that multi nationals in India will cover up fraudulent crimes as it is not
good for business. Are you aware of the instance where Indian students based in
Australia were using the contacts in the ANZ BPO office in Indian to progress
loan statuses to a point where they could clear the funds illegally. They were then
buying cars, selling them on the cheap and returning to India. This was not
reported as it was not good for business.

Multi nationals will not complain and the focus is to offshore to drive down costs.

If you know as much as you claim, then you would also know that the most BPOs
in India will employ at a ratio of 3:1 to try and retain similar productivity levels of
the offshored job.

Please don't be angered by the truth.

It is not only in India we are identifying major fraud committed by Indians and
Indian students, it has been a problem in the US, UK, Germany, NZ, UAE,
basically anywhere Indians are, but most of all in India is where we see fraud
(some insight, yes we have found all nationalities to have committed some fraud
but our Indian staff are noted as the biggest risk).

It is not becuase Indians are inherently evil that we find a dispraportinate number
of Indians committing fraud based crime. As you may well be aware, it is not seen
as a major crime throughout most of Asia, South America or Africa, it is seen as
doing business. If you have been to Asia or Africa you would understand
'baksheesh' and all its variants.

So JCollin there is reasoning behind these claims. So try not to be so angry. It is
not racist to state these it is factual.

You see, I work for one of the biggest employers of Indian staff in the world. The
majority of staff my US based company bring to Australia are sent home within
three months due to substandard performance, they believe their own hype that
they are the worlds most intelligent and hardworking and that westerners are
lazy, but he fact is we do more with less, and they then stuggle.

We have also found a number of staff have committed serious crimes by signing
stat decs claiming they broke a law and they do this when they are moving back
to India, then do not pay the fines. They think this is funny. What they don't know
is if they are sent back to Oz for work they will be arrested and imprisoned, and
so will their Indian friend that was involved in the rort and who is the person that
broke the law. We try to explain this to them but they think we are only joking.

We do not allow our Indian staff to print reports, or have access to any recording
devices, including pens and paper, and staff are searched before entering the
office for the day (mind you none of this applies to our Indian staff in Australia).
The reason we do this is due to the large number of cases of our Indian staff
being caught stealing customers bank details, and this is widespread throughout
the industry. There were a number of cases reported in the Indian and US media
when managers in this company were caught stealing money from US citizens
accounts associated to Citi Bank.

Wasn't it the heads of an Indian company that were caught trying to sell
40,000,000 customers credit card details to the Russain mafia? It turned out to be
the BBC.

By the way JCollin. How is mummy and daddy?
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
05:07 AM
265
Interesting you should say that Sasha (264). I feel most unsafe in the CBD and
certain parts of Fitzroy/Collingwood too (I used to live in North Fitzroy). If I were
to bring ethnicity into the equation, it would be East Asians on the one hand and
Aborigines on the other. Funnily enough though, I don't see that as a racial issue,
even though racial slurs have been involved.

Ever thought that those who are the first to scream racism are those who think
most in racist terms?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
05:00 AM
264
Hi Alan

You said,

It seems there's:
- The majority of Indians in Australian who don't have a problem with the place.

(Yes, that is true and we are made welcome here by your friendliness and a fair
go attitude. We love it here)

You said,

- A minority of Indians in Australian who do have a problem with the place

(To these people get the hell out of here Right now)
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
04:53 AM
263
Varun

According to you my postings are blame the victim for the crime

According to me my postings are :

99.99% AUSSIES ARE NOT RACISTS. INDIAN MEDIA GET YOUR FU****ING
FACTS RIGHT

Refer to my post No 121

Who in their right mind would support these crimes? I absolutely condemn it.
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
04:41 AM
262
Kevin, I disagree. THis is again looking down on suburbs where ethnics live. It's a
big myth that Melbourne's West is unsafe. This is propogated by vested interests
who have invested in the South East. I feel more threatened walking in the CBD,
St Kilda and Fitzroy areas. You get more abuses in areas where there are more
anglos hanging out. The most unsfae spot for Indians in the west is Yarraville.
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
04:36 AM
261
I'll make another point. It is about integration. Humans are tribal. We like to
associate with our own.

English and Australian people are very similar people; (whether we like it or not).
The humour is the same, the values the same; and many of us even look the
same. And yet the thousands of Australians that backpack and base thenselves
in London all seem to hang around in Australian enclaves. They live there
together for 2 years and spend every waking hour crapping on about how bad it
is in England and how great it is in Australia. Then they go home and hang
around with more Australians.

Now imagine that you are from a rural area from India. You arrive in Australia and
everything is different. Would you assimulate or would you likely hang around
with other Indians?

Integration is a generational thing. Indians born in Australia will be more likely to
behave as Australians but we should respect that they will want to hold onto
some of their Indian-ness. In fact, immigration has improved Ausyralia so much.
Do we want everyone to behave like British subjects?

So can we stop all this talk about Indians not trying to integrate?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
04:33 AM
OK, I've been watching this blog for a while now.

It seems there's:
- The majority of Indians in Australian who don't have a problem with the place
260
- The majority of non-Indian Australians trying to have a rational debate
- A minority of non-Indian Australians making unhelpful but generally not overly
racist comments
- Indians who aren't from Australia expressing extremist views, ranging up to Elan
who has spat some of the most racist bile I've ever heard, that would not have
been out of place in nazi Germany (and given my father escaped from Austria
prior to the war as a jew, I think I have a right to draw that comparison).

Perhaps people from overseas should think about that balance of comments
before making ill-informed statements about how racist Australians are in
general.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
04:18 AM
259
As has been stated earlier, the reason that so many Australians are posting here
is that we offended at the branding of our entire nation as being racist. As few
assaults does not make a nation racist.

The assault rate in Australia across the general population is 800 per 100,000 per
annum. (FACT) This article says that there are 400,000 Indians in Australia. That
means that it is perfectly normal for 3,200 Indians to be assaulted each year. And
yet the Indian government is stressing over 130 assaults. (The number given in
this article) Can someone explain to me what the fuss is about?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
04:17 AM
258
No, Varun, there is no excuse for the way Indians treat foreigners. None at all -
especially in how they treat women.

As a rule of thumb, if you are going to criticise someone else for something, you
need to be pretty damn perfect yourself. Or as a wise man once said, "let he who
is without sin cast the first stone." (In this case, think of words as stone.)

It doesn't matter if a caucasian is a tourist or not in India, if you're on the street,
you will get singled out by many Indians for special treatment. So the point is,
whilst it is relatively easy for Indians to live and work in Australia, it is quite the
opposite for Australians to live and work in India. When that situation is rectified
and it is as comfortable for a caucasian couple from Australia to live and work in
India as it is for Indians in Australia, then and only then will I listen to arguments
about how bad Australia's racism is. But I cannot see that happening any time
soon - can anyone else?
DAVID BROWN
FEB 02,
2010
04:02 AM
257
Racism is a sleeping monster in Australia, as in many countries. Most of the time,
it dozes quietly away. In my part of Melbourne, we have had waves of migrants
from the Mediterranean, Middle East and now Africa. While many of them left
situations of civil war, such as Lebanon in the 1980s, it is remarkable that after
they arrive in Melbourne there is no sign of any tension between warring parties,
Christian and Muslim. You can see them mixing in many of the Lebanese
bakeries around here.

There's also a growing number of Indian restaurants and never a hint of tension.
But this is a gentrified area with high employment.

The problems seem to be coming from parts of Melbourne with chronic
unemployment. The outsourcing of manufacturing has meant that many unskilled
jobs have left the country, leaving those without education to fall back on alcohol
and drugs. I think the violence is partly resentment and envy at what seem to be
Indian students who have a purpose and future.

But a more obvious factor is triumphalism in sport. While Indians certainly rival us
in fanaticism for cricket, I think there is an underlying sense here that our success
in the field is to do with Anglo values - that we keep a steady head and play
rationally, rather than the more emotional players as might seem in the Indian
side. My hope is that Australia loses a cricket series, particularly against India, so
that we can question our Anglocentric worldview.
KEVIN MURRAY
BRUNSWICK, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
03:35 AM
256
As someone who comes from the subcontinent, came to Australia as an
international student and studied for 5 years, took 2 years to get my PR and can
now proudly say I am an Australian citizen- I can say that I have faced racism in
Australia.
HOWEVER, there has not been one moment when I have thought of Australia as
a racist country. That's because no matter where you go (including India)- there
are people with extremist views. For Example- the person called Elan in these
posts- or Van Thanh Rudd, the so-called leader of the Revolutionist Party. Why
hasn't Mr Sharma reported that his father is Australian, his mother vietnamese
and he has been well-educated in Australia without prejudice. He simply sees
himself as a crusader. Or a simple example- just because there's fighting in
Northern India does that lead everyone to believe that all Muslims and all Hindus
hate each other?

This argument can go on forever. But if Indians want to read this article and
believe that Australia is racist, Maybe take a moment to consider the
sensationalism behind it. Mr Sharma, although you are a good writer- you are a
bad reporter. Facts and impartialism should be the core of your article rather than
incensing one nation against the other.

Finally, here's an article from an Australian newspaper. He's someone who has
written an 'opinion' piece but by far his article is less prejudiced than Mr
Sharma's.
Happy reading.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/australias-racist-tag-is-myth-
heavily-hyped-20100201-n8s1.html
PRIYA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:26 AM
255
As an Australian and a lifelong resident of Melbourne I am extremely distressed
about the attacks on Indians in my city. That said, I feel that the press coverage
in India has been very one sided. In your recent articles you have quoted people
from Australia First, One Nation and the Radical Socialist Party. These are
marginalised groups, which in the the eyes of most Australians are complete
jokes.

I have been in India twice on business during the past six months. I love your
country and your people. I am always interested and friendly when I speak with
Indian residents in Australia and I employ one wonderful young Indian woman in
my business here in Australia.

India too has problems with racism - that doesn't mean that all Indians are racist.
Please don't lump all Australians in the racist basket. Most of us are tolerant,
interested, open minded and respectful of different cultures like I am.
MARK BALLA
FEB 02,
2010
02:05 AM
254
There have been a couple of 'blame the victim for the crime' postings, particularly
by Kartik. That's inexcusable. Are you sure that all the victims of the recent
attacks had it coming to them, because according to you, their documents are
fraudulent, their conversation is too loud, their manners are unacceptable etc?
You might want to look at the real motive: Indians are easy targets for the violent
elements in Australian society, because Indians, by and large, are passive, non-
confrontational and non-aggressive, and they work late hours, which makes them
even more vulnerable.
There have been some thoughtful postings by non-Indian Australians. One of the
worst messages was from the Chinese lady in Hong Kong, sounding very crude
and propagandist for China, and dismissive of the recent violence in Australia.
And ridiculously trying to equate tourists being charged more in India, with the
spate of attacks against Indians in Australia. Grow up, lady.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
12:49 AM
253
Wfile a lot of immoderate and hateful things have been said in this thread, I think
it has been on the whole a useful exercise. We may all be flawed, but we are not
devils. And at least we can talk with each other.
ANWAAR
FEB 01,
2010
11:11 PM
252
ram prasn haryanvi: "Kangrooes are of no interest or use to us."

Kangaroo meat is lean, makes a great Korma, and has none of the religious
issues associated with eating beef.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:30 PM
251
David from Melbourne, this is not a who has more problems contest between
India and Australia. The attacks on Indians in Australia are condemnable by
themselves. India has a good excuse for its social problems- it's poor,
overpopulated, underdeveloped, semi-feudal at the lower levels of society, and
carrying the legacy of colonial exploitation. Australia really doesn't have a reason
or excuse. What's going on there is absolutely atrocious.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 01,
2010
08:58 PM
250
"It is the Blood of Banished murderers from Britain to Australia, that makes
Australia worlds foremost Racist Country. White Europeans where ever they went
they carried out Genocide of native people and destroyed the native civilization
and way of life"

I see you forget the partition slaughter, internecine communal violence and
endemic rebellions in India as you criticise, very poorly, the nations you pretend
to dislike. Work on learning balanced argumentation. The Indian education
system is robust enough to teach you that unless Shiv sena has already eaten
your brains?
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
08:37 PM
249
It is the Blood of Banished murderers from Britain to Australia, that makes
and way of life - Americas and AUS-NZ are prime examples. This is gory-evil
past of the "Free/Civilized world" aka First World.
JAYKAY CHRABORTY
KOLKATTA, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:50 PM
248
@ Logan

"People respect each other a lot. Not too sure about the eastern states. Perth
seems to be good."

Interesting perspective as Western Australia is known as one of the most racist
states in Australia. Makes you wonder whether the local as well as international
media are focusing on issues that are not relevant to the majority of people.

Still, bad things need to be examined thoroughly. It's how you keep an open and
free society.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
07:33 PM
247
I am living in Australia for the past two years. I was totally unaware of australian
culture when I came here. But I made some good friends very soon. Hospitality
was good. Yes, on my way to work I have also experienced that 'Give me a
dollar', 'Do you have cigar' all those kinda stuffs. people were arrogant at times.
but thats normal. it happens everywhere. I go to lunch and dinners to my aussie
friends. I invite them to my place. People respect each other a lot. Not too sure
about the eastern states. Perth seems to be good.
LOGAN
PERTH, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:10 PM
@ Aquaman

Probably true. We'll just have to do what we always do. Wait for the stupidity and
hysteria on all sides to pass.
DAVID
246
FEB 01,
2010
07:01 PM
245
@Vincent:

Again I totally agree with you, a lot of Indians have somehow got a superiority
complex, and this has to do with the way we Indians are taught right from
childhood that how superior our thousands of years of culture is, when rest of the
world was living as uncivilised beasts we had already advanced so much blah,
blah. Lot of Indians believe that wherever human civilisation stands today,
maximum contribution has come from India. I am pretty sure this posting of mine
is going to bite many Indians very hard. I am also an Indian but before that I
consider myself a human first and I firmly believe that all civilisations/cultures
have contributed and are contributing to wherever we stand as humans. I am not
denying that various cultures/civilisations have subjected others to utmost agony
and pain but then one can't fix whatever happened in past by punishing the
current, I mean how can I have hatred for a white person since his ancestors
might have subjected my ancestors to slavery etc, this is totally illogical. I wish
there was some sensible section of Indian media, who instead of indulging in
these filthy tactics, could talk some sense.
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:01 PM
244
Racism and xenophobia is innate human behaviour, under conditions of social
and resource stress, regardless of ethnicity.

Indians are as racist as Australians are as racist as Asians.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:57 PM
243
David mate it just aint going to happen. State governments want the increased
tax revenue generated by Indian students but they want cop increased
expenditure on policing unless they are dragged kicking and screaming, and
probably still only a token gesture to appease the dissenters.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
2010
"infrastructure and services, e.g. more police, to sustain the living standards and
safety of increased population at levels enjoyed by Australians in past decades."
06:50 PM
242

Honestly, the old bs of more policing is a red herring. Creating secure
accommodation for overseas students, as the richer overseas students get may
help. Considering how much overseas students have to pay for poor
qualifications is a massive outrage. If we want people to study here and pay
massive fees, perhaps working towards the real infrastructure they need: Safe
transport, housing, proximity to their place of study. A visible police presence and
harsh sentences wont solve this issue at all.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:43 PM
241
I have worked with indians in Melbourne. I found the Indians that i worked with to
be racist against Australia and Australians in general. The indians i worked with
gave the impression that they were better and indians as a race more superior.
One indian a salespersons comment was, i will find a way to rip your aussies.
Hes only thought was making money. Racism goes both ways. Indians need to
look at the way they present themselves as well as complaining to all around the
world.
VINCENT
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
06:37 PM
240
I would further recommend that you do not get sucked in by the federal
governments guarentees of safety for Indian students. The more of you that
come to Australia then the more the situation will deteriorate, particularly for
Indian students.

While our federal and state governments are happy for Indian students to come
with their education fees in their droves, for them to become permanent residents
and tax slaves to sustain the needs of our aging population and for cities to
expand and become more dense, they are nor willing to spend what is required
on infrastructure and services, e.g. more police, to sustain the living standards
and safety of increased population at levels enjoyed by Australians in past
decades.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 PM
Karthik

Well as a citizen u can say that, but i cant :P! Hahah..Thanks

239
Goodluck to u pal!
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
06:23 PM
238
Vijay

You are on the right track mate. Keep up the good work. We need more people
like you. I wish you all the best at RMIT

Yes, these fraudulent clowns have let us Indians down.

Aussies are not racist, I AM

Indians students who disregard the rules and law here and absolutely have no
intention to make Australia home and are here to create disharmony amongst us
I have one thing to say

GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE..
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
06:23 PM
237
"To be very frank, something has seriously gone wrong with Indian psyche in last
10-15 years and I feel very ashamed of this fact."

Welcome to the wonderful world of populist crap selling newspapers to make
money. Capitalism at its finest.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:18 PM
236
From some one who has lived on the northern out skirts of Melbourne all my life I
can perhaps shed some light on why Indian students are being targeted.

Due to our ageing population our federal government has embarked on a
deliberate plan to increase our population massively through its skilled
immigration program. Clearly it has its eyes on both the money (in the form of
education fees) and the youth that Indian students bring to the economy.

The problem is that this is causing severe pressures on the existing population in
the form of increased traffic congestion, over crowding on public transport,
unaffordable housing due to the increased demand that the influx of Indian
students inadvertently cause, increased cost of living due to increased demand
on limited supply and particularly water.

Australia may be a large country but, unlike India, most of it is uninhabitable
desert and marginal arid land. Water is and will always be a critical limiting factor
on what population our country can sustain at an acceptable standard of living.
Desalination plants are all fine but the resulting water is very expensive and will
increasingly add to cost of living pressures.

The Australian population is starting to get angry with our government for being
excessively focused on economic factors and not focused enough on ecological
sustainability and social harmony. There is a growing debate centered around
what population level can be sustained by our continent and what population
level Australians will accept and at what cost to our living standards.

I suspect that Indian students, being a prominant part of the unpopular skilled
immigration program, are on the receiving end of some misplaced anger from the
less law abiding within Melbourne's population.

Any government ignores ecological sustainability and social harmony at its own
peril. Australia is not exception, despite the misleading size of our country and
nor is India. Over the years I have seen many examples of the result of your own
government ignoring ecological sustainability and social harmony as it refuses to
directly address your own over population problems. It seems that you Moslem
minority are a popular target when social pressures reach boiling point.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:15 PM
235
@Karthik:

I totally agree with 176. Another thing that I would like to reveal is that when
these 2 reporters from outlook were in Melbourne last week, they had interviewed
a very well respected and old Indian lady(she is very active among indian
community, senior citizens and social work in general, her picture appears almost
every week in local Indian newspapers) and she had presented the true picture to
these guys. And these reporters simply have ignored her inputs because those
inputs were quite contrary to what Indian masses have been fed by notorious
media and press over there. To be very frank, something has seriously gone
wrong with Indian psyche in last 10-15 years and I feel very ashamed of this fact.
I mean how could one justify labeling a whole country as 'racist' even without any
factual information in hand.
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:15 PM
234
To be honest minor constitutional changes are irrelevant to me. It's also not the
point of this forum regarding the article. I'd support a parralel indigenous body
with legislative power over their community similar to the council of chiefs system
in Fiji or the consitutionally recognized kingdoms in Africa today within a
democratic republican framework.

It's stupid to think a person representing less than 2% of the population as head
of state, which may be as anachronistic as having a foreign Queen as our titular
head of state.

Regardless, often the Republic issue is hijacked to endorse a type of Australian
nationalism I'm glad has been absent from our national agenda. We're a
commonwealth, not a republic, and from looking at the republics around the
world, I can't see that as a negative.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:10 PM
233
@ Karthik

Yeah, i totally agree with your comments. Although i donot much, its just been
6months since i've been studying at RMIT. I do find the people really friendly and
warm. I've seen so many Punjabis, no offense meant, but its a fact, talking out
very loud without basic manners,commenting on various people in Punjabi,
although i donot understand much of it, i can make some sense of it. Its really a
disgrace that because of such people, most of the people have this feeling that all
indians behave the same way.
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
06:07 PM
232
So david, do you mind having the aboroginal flag as our national flag? Do you
mind having an aboroginal elder as our figurehead instead of a relic who has no
connection whatsoever to this country. Such a move will better than saying sorry.
If you agree to it then I will compromise on a museum to showcase such quirks.
When it's a national flag, i feel there should be a genuine sense of togetherness.
How will it feel to other fellow Australians if some people want an Indian king as
Australia's figurehead.
Queen as the figurehead is blasphamous to many from former colonies.

Union Jack off my flag, queen off my dolla,
March towards a true reconciliation,
Stop bleeding Tassy,
Australia for all

Sasha
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
06:05 PM
231
@ Aussie Indian

Cant agree more than that. Most of them come here on fake documents. I think
the govt is partly to be blamed for letting these people come and pursue
cookery,hairstyling courses. But i think they concentrate more on revenue than
checking what courses the student has opted!
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
06:02 PM
230
aussie Indian, Vijay , David

Well said.....

read my comments 176
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
06:02 PM
229
@ Heath Callaway

Westerners are notorious for putting their children in International schools so as
not to involve their kids in the society of the developing country they live in.
Indians don't have that luxury.

Regardless. You don't have to act like an "Aussie" to live here. You can do what
you like, mostly. Not being part of the mainstream is no excuse for victimizing
someone. Trying to understand people who are guests in our country, regardless
of whether they ultimately wish to stay is a better answer than putting the onus on
them to not be SO DIFFERENT.

Indians by and large do not interfere, reject or actively try and change Australian
society. They are new to a foreign land and need reciprocal support from the
community instead of animosity.

Unfortunately, shoddy taxi drivers and those horrible call centre calls have
created a bad impression in people's minds. Funny though, as Australian and
multinational companies pay Indians to be in the call centres and the corrupt taxi
industry doesn't help either.

Cool, calm and kind heads need to prevail.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:00 PM
228
Just a brief comment from an Australian perspective. The vast majority of
Australians have never heard of the Australia First party, they certainly don't have
any members of parliament, local council or anything else. As far as I can tell
from this article, it may be no more than the one guy quoted here. It seems like
slightly dubious journalistic standards to quote this guy extensively without even a
mention from one of the major Australian political parties. That said, Australia's
politicians should be tackling the issue more strongly.
A little balance wouldn't go astray though.
HUW
FEB 01,
2010
05:57 PM
227
David:

Most of them (I mean those in courses like cookery and hairdressing etc) have
fake qualifications. Some of them may have better qualifications (but that
qualification probably wouldn't fetch them a PR, and hence join
cookery/hairdressing). But the bottom line is most of them are here on fake
documents.

Generally I don't waste my time posting in such discussions as I have found they
are useless. But somehow, I have been really perturbed by the totally insane
behaviour of Indian masses, press, media etc and that is what compelled me to
jump in. I think Aussies have nothing to defend. These are law and order
incidences which could happen anywhere in world and should be treated as such
by aussie authorities
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:52 PM
226
David - I think we are on the same side - arguing semantics.

I don't believe you'd be thick enough to try to live in India without bothering to
learn something of the culture and language. It's common courtesy. Why would
you move to India to join an Australian enclave?
HEATH CALLAWAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:52 PM
225
David:

Firstly, good work because most of posts make true sense and i agree with them.
:)

Yeah most of them are from Punjab, who are doing these vocational courses like
cooking, hairstyling etc. Even the majority of taxi drivers are Punjabis. I think their
main objective is to obtain a PR ASAP rather than selecting a genuine course for
their study. Like Aussie Indian said, the UK has recently banned all the visa
applications from North India.

Cheers
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
05:48 PM
224
@ Aussie Indian

Interesting. I'm just curious as to how many of these people already have
university qualifications or higher education? I met a number during my own time
doing cookery (which I found to be a mistake for me)who obviously had an
education level far superior to the crap they were studying.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:41 PM
223
David :

Yes most of these people are from Punjab and I must say if they are called
'students' then we will have to redefine the meaning of the word itself, I mean by
no stretch of imagination I would classify them as 'student'. For your info, recently
England had to suspend the visa application processing from this part of India as
they could easily sense the fraud going on (http://tiny.cc/2Z926). In fact, most of
the Indians settled in Australia had already recognised this fraudulent entry of
these so called students in Australia long time ago and were concerned about
how such a crap was being allowed to enter Australia?
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
Sorry, reposting it as the previous one got cut again.
2010
05:29 PM
222

http://tiny.cc/SZtql
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:25 PM
221
Question to our Indian friends commenting:

Does anyone know the social status and education level of the majority of Indian
students studying in Australia? I've read here some classist attacks on Punjabi
people and Northern Indians. Is Punjab the place where the majority of
applications come from?
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:21 PM
220
Here is the link again, it got cut in my last post :

http://www.hindustantimes.com/indo-ozzie-bhai-bhai/h1-article1-503607.aspx
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:18 PM
219
Hi,

Before I post my comment let me be upfront about myself - I am a person of
Indian origin, living in Australia for last 10 years and IT professional and I come
from upper cast Hindu family.

I have no hesitation in claiming that I never encountered even a single incidence
of racism, I am very well assimilated in Aussie society. All my neighbours come
from different ethnicity and a lot of them are white aussies. I must admit the kind
of respect and love I have received in this country, I wouldn't have received it in
India. I am really appalled by the kind of insane jingoism that is going on in India
about these opportunistic attacks on some students. Its just outrageous that how
even without waiting for the results of investigation, whole India is jumping up and
down. I think the whole situation has been summed up rather well by Ray of
Sidney in response no 163. Somehow, lot of Indians have fooled themselves in
believing that India has become some kind of super power. On the contrary the
fact is India is a third world country and will continue to be for next 100 years with
its myriads of issues like corruption, over population, illiteracy, totally fractured
society etc. To sum up my comments I will like to quote one of the most
respectable Indian scribe Mr Khushwant Singh at
(For my aussie friends, the word 'bhai' that appears in the title is a Hindi word and
it means brother)
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:08 PM
218
"B: 'Family orientated' is another way of saying racist. It means 'I don't want my
child marrying that freak's child'."

No, it means they work and live to improve the lives of their families. Just like
many people do.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:04 PM
217
"It's funny how some anglo australins ask immigrants to leave their culture behind
when they themselves haven't gotten over their past."

My family are jewish migrants from Poland. We have no interest or affiliation with
the British Crown or mother England. I just believe that we should keep some of
our unique quirks while striving to build a multicultural pluralist society. They are
not contradictory.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:01 PM
216
Sasha - I admire your ideological conviction, but I think that you may have
misread my initial post. I'm a republican, and very much in favor of
multiculturalism. What I am not is delusional. Racism exists, but social convention
rules - in all countries. Do more to appreciate the latter and you'll suffer less of
the former.

David:

A: Probably not, but some Pakistanis and Afghanis may have different ideas.
How does a customs official exercise due diligence without racially profiling?

B: 'Family orientated' is another way of saying racist. It means 'I don't want my
child marrying that freak's child'.

c: If Elan's claimed academic achievement is genuine we all have reason to be
afraid.
HEATH CALLAWAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:50 PM
215
@ EA MacIntyre

That is the most cogent, balanced and intelligent post I've seen. Please dont
think Australians are on this website for nationalistic reasons. We are genuinely
upset that people perceive us as racists whereas many abhor and despise the
type of moronic violence seen recently.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
04:45 PM
214
David, using that logic India should have 4 union jacks on their flag and the US
can have a few too. How can Indians who grew up with tales of their parents and
grand parents fightin the brutal empire accept institutions of a country that
worships the queen. It's funny how some anglo australins ask immigrants to
leave their culture behind when they themselves haven't gotten over their past.

Queen off my dolla,

Sasha
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
04:28 PM
213
My question is what is the need for skilled Indians to go to Australia?. I studied
Microelectronics in RMIT University during 2003-05 and returned to India and is
currently working in India. At that time there was not much violence in Melbourne
and most Indian students used to attend universities to get degrees. I used to live
in Footscray which is heaven for thugs and notorious for drug junkies, yet never
experienced the kind of violence that is prevalent now. It's only during March
2005(The month i returned) that i noticed lot of young people from Punjab have
arrived to do hospitality courses in TAFE's and colleges the reason being not
studies but to get permanant residence. In contrast many of my classmates,
through they are permanant residents of Australia returned to India and is
working in Semiconductor industry and there is no dearth of opportunities here.
What is the use if you drive a fancy car and lead a high life in an alien country
and there is nobody proud of you?.
SUDHIR SALIGRAMA
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 01,
I am a person of Australian of South Asian origin and have lived in Sydney for
2010
04:20 PM
212
more than nearly forty years. I have seen a lot of change over that time. This blog
however is an eye-opener to me because it seems to show how little people in
both countries know about the other - even people who have traveled, or maybe
especially people who have traveled who believe that a short time in a country as
a traveler makes you knowledgeable about the country.

I am not sure that blogs like this really help because in the emotion and heat they
generate, it is really very hard to properly consider the arguments. I will however
make the following observations.

Hugh McKay a leading Australian social commentator makes the observation that
the biggest change that Australia has undergone within the last generation is not
immigration, economic globalisation or changes in cultural and social tastes and
habits - but it is the attitude of the "haves" towards the "have nots". Thirty years
ago, Australia was still a place where the ethos of "mateship" really did mean a
sense of obligation on the part of the well off to help provide a leg up for the less
well to do. A generous welfare system was the means to this end. That welfare
system though still in place is creaking - with a real change in attitude that blames
poverty not on circumstances but on the personal fault of the have nots. There is
no longer a sense that the collective good requires a re-allocation of resources
from those who have more to those who less. This I think holds the key.

You bring people from India who can afford an education and allow them to settle
in areas where a large underclass lives - abandoned as it were by the society to
which they belong, and any person can tell you that this spells trouble. Add to this
a situation where the Federal government has been running a migration
programme in the guise of a student programme, where the student in the eyes
of the local people gets an education they cannot afford themselves and also get
to stay and take a job. That the students pay for the education they receive from
their own funds and helps subsidise Australian students will be a detail that does
not matter to the locals.

The Federal government however was very happy with all this. It had effectively
has acquired skills the country needs without spending a cent. This all seemed to
work quite well until the lid blew off. This was thanks to the India press which first
blew that lid. The Federal and Victorian governments were apparently aware of
the problem for two years and worried - but did not do enough. What they failed
to do was the first thing that is required to be done when situations like this
develop - and that is to openly air the issues and try to deal with the problem in
full light of day rather than brushing it under the carpet and trying to fix things up
quietly.

The Indian press I do not think can be blamed for blowing the lid - even though
some comment is over the top and the cover on Outlook is sensationalist and
inflammatory. As to what one Australian commentator says of the Indian press,
see http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=18963 This is a news
website run by a Roman Catholic Order in Australia.

The blame I think must lie with the Australian and Victorian governments, both for
an ill-conceived and slightly "smart-arsed " scheme under which they thought
they could fill skill gaps at no cost to it through a hidden migration an skills
training programme effectively financed by India (and other countries such as
Pakistan, Bangladesh and China) without thinking through the consequences. I
think that the Indian government even though it has been very restrained (its
travel advisory is fair and balanced) could have done better in warning its citizens
earlier of what the problems are. Detailed travel advisories are common in many
countries. The Australian government for example does provide detailed
warnings including identification of no go zones (usually in Europe) for
Australians with dark skin. I always take care not to go to these areas when in
Europe without precautions.

So where do we go from here?

The short term solution is already working its way through - as we see in a sharp
drop in new students/migrants and increasing numbers of people cutting short
their study and returning to India. The solution proposed by some of the people
on this blog "go back where you came from" is already taking place. Sadly for us,
it means that there will be people in India who will take back with them an image
of Australia that will be very hard to erase. All I can say to you is " sorry for what
has happened" - although I wish that it is our politicians saying it.

Without meaning to excuse the Federal government, I think that its inept handling
of the situation is partly due to shock. I think they are honestly at a loss to know
what to do. They fully well see the problem and see the damage to a bi-lateral
relationship which the mandarins in Canberra see as becoming one of Australia's
most important along with the relationships with China and the US. The long term
solution ultimately touches on some basic questions about Australian society
which no political party has the guts to tackle head on.

As for the long term solution? The Federal government needs to accept that it
dropped the ball three decades ago and focus on repairing the damage to
Australian society wrought by three decades on neo-liberalism and in particular
providing opportunities for the underclass that is rapidly developing in both urban
and rural Australia. When that is done, the country will be better able to absorb
immigration (in the 50s proportionately much larger immigration intakes were
assimilated in Australian society without problems on the scale we now see).

And what about racism? Having lived in Australia for nearly forty years, I observe
a long trend of a decline in racism. Racism exists in pockets but is not all
pervasive. Yes - it is part of the mix in the violence we now see, even if many of
the perpetrators of the violence are people of non-Anglo-Celtic background. Put
upon minorities often assimilate the prejudices they perceive as appertaining to
the majority - often in an exaggerated manner - as a means of entry into society.
When I was at school in the 70s, the worst racists were often people of a non-
Anglo-Celtic background. We see the same thing in India where some of the
worst violence against dalits comes not from the upper castes but from those just
above them in the pecking order. However, in the end, in Australia it is the long
term failure of the Federal government to look after large parts of the population
that is the fuel on that stokes the fire of racism.

For the folks in India, I have tried to set out the picture as accurately as I can. If
you want to blame someone, that blame does not lie with the ordinary Australian
who is basically a good and decent person just like the ordinary Indian - blame a
badly conceived policy of the Australian Federal government. I do not believe that
the Federal government forsaw any of this when the embarked on their ill
concieved scheme - but that is no excuse. We elect governments becuase we
expect this of them. If any good comes out of all this, hopefully, it is to jolt the
Federal government into some deep thinking that takes us well beyond the
immediate problem to address some very basic questions about the character of
Australian society and going to the need repair some broken bonds that once
held us all together under a social democratic compact.

Please understand the people perpetrating the violence are a small minority even
within the disadvantaged communities to which they belong. They (as well as
some of the intemperate comments on this blog) do not reflect the country as a
whole. I say this with the experience of forty years of living in Sydney.
EA MACINTYRE
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:19 PM
211
I am 38 years old and have lived in Melbourne my entire life. My wife is
Japanese, we have two children. My friends are Jewish, Japanese, Indonesian,
Indian, British, American, Greek, Italian... My colleagues are from all over the
world including several from India.

Sadly, some Australians are racists and some crimes committed in my city
against Indians have racist motivations. But racism is everywhere in this world
and I don't believe for a minute that Melbourne is predominantly a racist city. Far
from it, Melbourne is a pluralist and open society.

The fight against racism in Australia is as long as the history of Australia itself.
When Australia was founded around 1788, people were worried about Catholic
Irish immigrants. Then during the Gold Rush it was the Chinese. Then post world
war two it was the Greeks and Italians. After the Vietnam war it was the
Vietnamese. More recently, it has been Lebanese and now we are seeing
problems with racism towards Indians.

As migrants from new ethnic groups came to Australia, it brought a racist
backlash from the tiny minority of Australians who are racists. Such a minority
exists in every country in the world. Each one of these backlashes was ultimately
defeated by the tolerance and good will of the majority of Australians. It will be so
again this time.

Racism cannot easily be solved just by throwing more police at the problem - it
has yet to be solved anywhere in the world. Australians have shown great
vigilance towards racism; we will continue to do so.
RUPERT
FEB 01,
2010
04:13 PM
210
"Sasha: I'm with ya about the flag. It is an insult to the large portion of Australians
that don't have British heritage, including the aboriginals, it reeks of Australia's
immaturity as a nation and more recently it is the choice of some of the racist
Anglos in showing their displeasure at multiculturalism."

I think the aborigines prefer it largely as it is proof that the nation is built on two
seperate cultural backgrounds, namely, that we were colonised by Britain and
have strong cultural links to it. Same as Fiji keeps the union jack in its flag
although it's been a republic for over 20 years.

Secondly it is a nod to our historical background. No idea why I'm debating the
flag issue which is a non-issue with 0 relevance or importance to this debate or
important issues facing Australia.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
04:05 PM
209
Sasha: I'm with ya about the flag. It is an insult to the large portion of Australians
Anglos in showing their displeasure at multiculturalism.

A new flag is needed but don't hold your breath.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
03:56 PM
208
"Whether Aussies like or not hordes of Indians are rearibg to go rather to migrate
to the land of the Kangrooes.And they will migrate too with the existing Laws
.Change the migrations Laws if you don't want Indians amongst you.Alternative
choices are Chinese or Talibs ."

Thanks. I don't care how many overseas students want to come here or get
permanent residency. Everyone wants a better life. I'd rather Indians who come
from a democratic country, with a high level of education and good work ethic
than some of the people we allow in under asylum laws.

A: Indian students don't want to blow us up;
B: They are family oriented and work hard;
C: They usually have excellent qualifications.

It's a shame the only way they can come here is being tricked by migration
agents to pay $20,000 a year to study a course that is well below their education
standards.

Everywhere Indian migration has happened, the host nation benefits alot. We
need to get rid of cash for degrees and let people come here to work and live like
anyone else.

If Indians had as much money as the Indonesian, Chinese, Malay etc students
they wouldn't be treated as badly because they wouldnt have to work at
Macdonalds, as taxi drivers and service stations.

I would be humiliated if I went from my country with my qualifications and had to
work in unskilled jobs that the Indian students would NEVER do back home in
India.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
03:50 PM
207
Heath Callaway:: I'm in touch with level headed Australians who want a free
society. I denounce racist thuggery however hard you try to justify through your
false modesty.I denounce rednecks, you don't. That's the difference. It's not
about me being in touch with failed sociologists. Racist bigots in Australia should
be shipped back to the UK, just like how thiefs and thugs were sent here from the
UK.
Union Jack Off my Flag,

Sasha
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
03:46 PM
David

You seems to be one voice of reason among lots of angry shouts.

Whether Aussies like or not hordes of Indians are rearibg to go rather to migrate
206
choices are Chinese or Talibs .

Have your pick !
A K GHAI
MUMBAI, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
03:33 PM
205
I think the story should be; Why do Aussies hate Taxi drivers.

Thugs in Australia don't discriminate; they'll beat the crap out of taxi drivers of
any race. Unfortunately 70% of them are Indian.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
03:05 PM
204
Having read through the comments, I can't help but to put forth a couple of
points:

1. Elan should consider the very real possibility that the the thirty-odd years of
perceived discrimination he suffered has nothing to do with his ethnicity, and
everything to do with him being a dickhead.

2. Sasha would do well to meet Australians other than failed sociology students.
It might help her overcome her persecution complex.

3. Gordy Gambino should concern himself less with adult conversations than with
remembering to put the fries in the happy meals he's passing through the
window.

4. Karthik is right on the money in a number of ways. Many (not all) of the Indian
students I have come into contact with are loud, inconsiderate and ill mannered.
They are unrepresentative of the Australian Indian community at large and the
Indians I work with professionally. While this certainly doesn't excuse any
violence against them, it is a plausible factor in understanding why the violence
occurs. I don't accept that violence against Indian students is wildly
disproportional to any other group, but rather than quibble over the issue, I feel it
would be much more productive to look at how it can be avoided. If these
students devoted a small amount of time to integrating themselves into the
culture of their host country they would not only be safer, but undoubtedly enjoy
their experience far more. On the whole, I think they are targeted far less for their
ethnicity than the fact that they are easy prey for cowardly thieves. Learning to
avoid danger would help.

As a multi-generational Anglo Australian, I can't pretend that racism doesn't exist
in Australia. It's most prevalent in regional areas and among the economically
and socially disadvantaged. Ignorance breeds fear, as they say. It also breeds
with its cousin and doesn't think that 'country music' is an oxymoron - but that's a
discussion for another day.

The reality, however, is that racism in Australia manifests itself largely as humour
and naive curiosity, rather than serious animosity. Most of the real angst seems
to be imported - amongst new arrivals vying for an improved place in the pecking
order. The idea (as put forward in this strange piece) that I might be in some way
intimidated by the influx of smart, qualified Indians is too silly to even be funny.
We can use as many smart people as we can get. What we don't need is more
bad cooks and hairdressers. We breed enough of them here.

Pratyush asked why Australians are posting on this article. Fair question, even if
the inference that we're not worthy is a little racist. I can only answer for myself.
When I read that Australia is a racist country I take it personally. They're saying
that I am racist, as are all my friends. The only way I can hope to dispel this
misconception is to add my voice to the discussion. Is this a bad thing?
HEATH CALLAWAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
03:00 PM
203
@ ram prasn haryanvi

Australia is a party to free trade agreements the same as India. If you sell things
we need, we'll buy them. Same as with China. I doubt those Australians who are
racist towards Indians feel the same way about the Chinese.

We are a primary producer nation with a strong service sector. India is starting to
become a manufacturing centre. China still produces way more products to a
better standard than India so more of their goods are imported into Australia.

My point is, you seem to want to punish Australia and harm relations between
two commonwealth countries because of a perceived rise in assaults on a section
of the Indian student community. Is that sensible or just anger not helped by
hysterical reporting in your media which unfortunately has become as
nationalistic and populist as Fox news in America.

This news magazine is one of the few that stand out as trying to be objective.
Which is what journalism is meant to be about. You should try it too.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
02:54 PM
202
'it also shows how little you understand geopolitics and the role of globalization."

David

Globalisation later first Uranium we need .Kangrooes are denying us under one
or the other pretext.So why we need Australia kindly advise ? Otherwise too trade
balance is shifting in your favour .
RAM PRASN HARYANVI
AMBALA CANTT, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:53 PM
201
I wonder if the recent arrests made in relation to the murder of 2 "Indian
nationals" in Australia have been reported as widely as the racism story?? In both
cases, those arrested were also Indian nationals - an Indian man who murdered
his Indian wife, and an Indian couple who bashed, set on fire, and left on the side
of the road an Indian man. Not a racist, white trash Australian in sight. One of my
aunts is Indian-British, another Greek. My brother in law is Polish-German,
another Italian. Mine is a fairly typical Australian family nowadays. I have visited
India in 2005, and whilst it was an amazing adventure there is no doubt that the
crimes you commit against your own people in terms of the caste system are
dreadful. I am sorry for what has happened to the innocent, whatever their
nationality - but please report honestly.
SHARON MCDERMOTT
NEWCASTLE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:41 PM
200
"Racism towards Indians and no Uranium sale to India.Kangrooes are of no
interest or use to us .Best course is discourage students going to Aussi colleges
and cool off trade relations.Many Aussi companies specially in Oil Sector are
working in India .They are enjoying immence facilities here .Tighten the noose
.We have better alternatives available."

Why would that work to help Indian students? It would only work if it was
government policy to abuse Indians, which is the opposite of what every level of
government and the vast majority of society wants.

Another arrogant view with misguided nationalist chauvanism. Living in a free and
democratic society, only the police and justice system and the goodwill of the
people will improve the situation.

If Indian students genuinely don't want to come here that's fine. It might make
those Indian migrants who assimilated into Australia while keeping their culture
feel safer. So yes, by all means find alternative arrangements if you like.

Punishing a whole society and damaging bilateral relations because of media
hysteria and misunderstanding and the actions of a few idiots is not only foolish, it
also shows how little you understand geopolitics and the role of globalization.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
02:35 PM
199
@ JCollin

Sounds like you need some sleep. Do you normally post on websites like this at
3am NY time? I know lots of Indians are up at 3am in Australia, but they are
normally driving taxis and don't have easy access to the internet.

Has your BPO planning meeting just finished?
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
02:34 PM
198
Do we really need Australia and Ausi education ?

'Until recently, Australias exports to India primarily comprised mining and
agricultural products. Now its service exports alone (mainly Indian students there)
exceed Indias total exports to that country. The trade balance will tilt further
towards Australia when the $20-billion Gorgon gas supply contract becomes
operational."

Indo Aussi Trade ::2008-09

Exports to India from Australia ::A$ 13525 Millions
Exports to Australia from India :: A$ 1831 Millions

'Uranium supply
While Dr Manmohan Singh explored the possibility of uranium supply, there was
no positive movement on the issue. Mr Rudds response was both misleading
and contradictory when he asserted that there was bipartisan consensus in
Australia to not sell uranium to India. After India had negotiated the civil nuclear
cooperation agreement with the US, Mr Rudds predecessor, Mr Howard, had
decided to sell uranium to India. It remains the policy of coalition parties in
Opposition as well. "

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/11/27/stories/2009112750230800.htm

As a developing Economy India has many leverages available.

Racism towards Indians and no Uranium sale to India.Kangrooes are of no
.We have better alternatives available.
RAM PRASN HARYANVI
AMBALA CANTT, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:34 PM
197
Stpehen Jose

waste of time !!!!

Cheers
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
02:33 PM
196
A Mustafa:

"There is a problem in this country with The Poor White Trash Class. They are
given everything in terms of education, health care and social security payments
yet they feel the need to attack Indian students which, in at least one case, has
resulted in the death of an innocent student."

What you haven't said is that most of the areas where attacks take place are
migrant areas. Do you think when a Sudanese or Lebanese or Italian person
attacks an Indian in Melbourne this is white trash racism?

My brother is a lawyer and defended some aborigines who beat up an Indian and
robbed him. They called him a 'curry' etc. Are indigenous Australians racist as
well?

Or the other possibility, that these are disadvantaged, uneducated people that will
harm another weaker individual for economic and personal gain.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
02:28 PM
195
jcollin

I think you are having convulsions and seeing too many stars

Ch***rs M**te
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
02:24 PM
194
There is a problem in this country with The Poor White Trash Class. They are
resulted in the death of an innocent student.
The associated problem with these assaults is the spineless politicians who will
speak up and say the truth as it applies to the attacks. The Labor politicians dare
not speak up and identify the perpetrators because the perpetrators are
constituents, by and large, of Labor electorates. The politicians don't want to
upset their own constituents by labelling them as violent racist thugs. They dare
not upset the present rotten social order in this country by prosecuting and
punishing the Trash Class.
MUSTAFA AHMET
FEB 01,
2010
02:23 PM
193
Karthik- you are the type of Indian who calls all the males in the neighborhood
has your Dad.You Ma F****r,you were conceived when your mother slept with
someone when your real dad was out working you maggot.You are crticizing your
motherland in favor of these pie faced sausage suckers.Aussies suck man and
they like you cant pont their fingers to a single dad. Their generationd cant do it
and they have no dignity you Bas***d.
Rahul all the best in the US. At least you are getting off from these sick C***s.
STPEHEN JOSE
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:19 PM
192
@ Rahul

"To all the Australians here comparing India to Australia and telling Indians to
stay home - have you lost your mind or is your logic just that weak? Indians know
better than anybody else that there are problems in India - that's why they leave.
The choice is between Australia and other developed countries. You dont choose
where you were born, but if you're lucky you can choose where you live."

Agreed. As a children of migrants I can sympathise with wanting a better life for
yourself and your family. The rest of your post is moronic vitriol.

Making comparisons between India and Australia is like trying to compare a
water buffalo to a kangaroo. Bound to make you hopping mad.

Indian overseas students make up roughly %15 of the student intake. The vast
majority of people who study here are often affluent asian students who live in
secure student accommodation from the centre of the city to wherever is close to
their university.

As I have observed, quite a number of Indians coming to Australia already have a
higher tertiary education than most Australians, so it begs the question why they
really want to come here to learn how to cook when Indian cuisine is far superior
to the crap they teach in a commercial cookery class.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
01:18 PM
191
CRAIG,

You Aussie L**R, everyone is right Aussies are loosers, and mentally sick,
Australian bureau of statistics reveals that 1 out of 5 aussies are mentally sick,
they need migrants from India, China to run not just taxis, janitors, supermarkets,
but hospitals, aged care etc.,

you Aussie L**R can't take care of ure parents throw them in aged care and need
Indian and chinese doctors and carer, You are mentally sick, and you would need
a doctor most likely Indian or chinese cause you're running out of doctors.

I run a BPO with operations in India and they are the most hard working people I
've come across who works cheaper than my people (who are lousy and arrogant
like aussie S***R).

I had few aussies whom I have kicked out as they were not just arrogant but
morons.

I'm not sure if the indian worker you were talking is your boss cause he definitely
looks smart enough to make you hate him (poor aussie C**T).

First your pals were kicked out by britishians, B*******D and kicked out and then
gave you technology and tools to make your country (mostly they were
americans and britishians) who built your country).,

And those indian memebers who were found to be faking degrees, you're b****y
liar, it would have become the hot story in my country, you L**R you really can't
handle truth.

Better accept truth before your next generations suffer b'cos of your arrogance
(learn from our mistakes), looser
JCOLLIN
FEB 01,
2010
12:57 PM
190
Well said Rahul. I hope you do well in the US and I hope you can return to this
beautiful country once we finish fighting these red necks. I'm sure we will see an
Australia that respects its indigineous communities; I'm sure we will see an
Australia that does not look up to the queen for inspiration; I'm sure we will have
an Australia that allows people its people to live in dignity; I'm sure we will live to
see an Australia that ensures its citizens freedom to express their thoughts
without having to lose their visas. Let Australia be the hope for the under
privileged. those who do not believe in this Australia can leave. Freedom to
Australians!!!! We want to be young and free of racist thugs
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
12:46 PM
189
I've been in Australia for about 8 years now, didn't come here as a student -
came as a skilled migrant. Enjoyed my first first few years here - I made some
great friends from all over the world and loved the lifestyle. However, since about
2005 I have noticed an increase in the amount of racism and xenophobia in
Sydney. It used to be subtle, but last year I had a beer bottle thrown at me as I
was riding my bike and told to 'go f**ing home', I couldn't talk about it with any of
my aussie friends for weeks. Have been shouted at while driving, been called a
'black c**t' as I was crossing the street - all this in the last year. Then there's all
the subtle racism. - the condescension and the poor service, the 'bag check'.. A
guy I was talking to at a prty who's white and South African was complaining
about xenophobia in Australia as well..

I'm leaving Australia this week to go to the US (yes, with it's bad economy and all
it's problems). The reactions from Australians on this page have confirmed for me
that this Australia is not the one that I came to 8 years ago.. I don't know what
happened (Howard's children came of age?), but I feel sad leaving.. I own a
beautiful house here that I'm going to miss, and I can't imagine what my
weekends are going to be like without my friends, but I just don't feel safe living
here any more.

To all the Australians here comparing India to Australia and telling Indians to stay
home - have you lost your mind or is your logic just that weak? Indians know
where you were born, but if you're lucky you can choose where you live.
RAHUL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:35 PM
Alright everyone..some of us really bummed around today. that's the moral of the
story.
188
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
12:30 PM
187
Sasha !!! LOL . wasting space here!!!

Chittu

Thanks mate!!!
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
12:29 PM
186
Ian,

Your last post was very credible (in fact I was tearing up) until you suggested pity
for Collingwood supporters.

I am OK with any race. Send more Indians if they want to contribute. Even
refugees; Tamils, Afgans, Iraqis give the poor buggers an opportunity to further
enrich our society.

But if another boatload of Collingwood supporters lands on Christmas Island, I
say we start shooting.

As John Howard once said; "We decide who comes into this country and the
team that they support."

And any Adelaide supporters who think that's funny, wipe that smile off your face
'cause you're next.

Is it racist to hate Collingwood? Just wondering.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
12:25 PM
185
Thanks Ian.You have a good one! DOn't you have any islander colleagues?
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
12:22 PM
184
yup got it Karthik ... :) Your english is really amazing ... You must be from one of
the reputed grammar schools here, I bet ... ;)
CHITTU
FEB 01,
2010
12:22 PM
183
Karthik, you are the worst of the lot. You speak absolute BS! Seriously. I wonder
how you got here. And I really don't think you r from India either.U reek of upper
caste chauvanism. Seriously champ, geta life.
If you do not know that Chinese have Nukes and they can annex Australia in a
second, then you are an idiot. Do you kow that the Fiji Islands have been taken
over by the chinese? They are the best strategists. They are the new americans.
And they are right at Australia's door step. They have already contained Australia
and having a PM like Rudd does not help. He's blatantly Anti-Indian and that's
why we are in this soup. He's getting orders from his chinese bosses. I have just
one request people...I want the Union Jack off our flag...and I want white racists
to shut up or go back. It's a genuine, patriotic demand! I believe Australia should
be arepublic with strong hate laws. I want Tasmania to be freed of tyrants! India
is a natural ally to a democratic Australia. Forces against it are red necks and
chinese agents. Simple! This is a fight for a true and liberal Australia. Shun
racism, shun Kevin Rudd, send Brumby back.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
12:19 PM
182
Oh well, have to go home now.

After working with my American, Korean, Mainland Chinese, Hong Kong
Chinese, Malay Chinese, Australian, English, Scottish, Canadian, Czech, Polish,
Argentinian, Indian, Sri Lankan, Austrian, French and Korean colleagues
peacefully and productively, I'm going home to cook a curry for my Hong Kong-
born wife.

Today we have learnt:

1. Australia is a generally fair and tolerant country, albeit with a few ratbags who
we all hope will be caught by the police.

2. The Australian immigration and education system is being rorted by
unscrupulous criminals, but they are slowly being put out of business.

3. A lot of Indians enjoy living in Australia and very nearly all Australians are
upset when new arrivals don't feel welcome, even ratbags like Elan and Sasha.

4. The media sucks (yet again)and enjoys a beat up.

5. Politicians who use racism and hatred suck.

6. Karthick is a very funny guy.

7. If there is room in this world for pity and forgivenes, the Collingwood Football
Club deserves it more than most.

Good night all - thanks for the conversation.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:17 PM
181
Violent crime against Indians in Melbourne is no greater is no greater than
anyother ethnic group. If there is racism involved it's not because of hatred it's
because Indians are seen as easy targets.
Mainstream media likes to portray the racism as white extremism, but the truth is
the perpetrators of these crimes are other ethnic minoritories. Most street
violence in Melbourne is commited by Asians, mostly Thai and Vietnamese
organised crime gangs and to a lesser degree middle eastern street gangs.
NEIL
FEB 01,
2010
12:12 PM
180
Oh yeah Chittu I forgot one point

They have horrible english

US refers to us Indians who are "well settled" here

"They" refers to those Indians who are tying to Unsettle "US""

Got it ???
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
12:11 PM
Manish Banerjee and G Natrajan has hit the nails right on its head. Let's call a
spade a spade.
RICHARD TANNER
179
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:04 PM
178
I recently read on NDTV that the NZ (yes, NZ) government were looking at further
safety measures that can be installed in taxis.

Look at boosting the police presence in troubled areas and increasing the size of
the police force. Develop student housing (where they pay of course) closer to
less crime prone suburbs. Fix the job debacle many of them face - increasing
their hours/pay slightly will not severely affect the economics, but may prevent
them becoming late night fodder.

Crimes with the hint of racism should be dealt with more severely than if it was
just a petty theft - in all cases not just involving Indians.

Nathan Jarman, the advice of the police was not to flaunt wealth/mobiles/ipods,
and further, not to speak in their NATIVE LANGUAGE while on public transport.
What kind of advice is that?

But I am not a politician voted to lead a nation, whom I hope has better brains to
tackle such problems.

As to the actions of Shiv Sena, it is merely a response to one who claims
"Pakistan is a good neighbour to have".
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
12:00 PM
177
Sometimes, you refer to Indians as 'us' and sometimes 'they' ...what are you ?
half breed? :)
CHITTU
FEB 01,
2010
11:57 AM
176
Yes, the Aussie government made the biggest mistake by letting these so called
PR factory colleges open

The students I have seen coming to these colleges are a disgrace to us Indians
here.

They

1. Do not have any manners
2. Talk too loud everywhere
3. Refuse to learn the aussie culture
4. Refuse to mingle with the locals
5. Do not have any interest to study
6. Want to get PR ASAP
7. Came here with fraudulent documents
8. Trying the same thing here as most of these colleges are owned my Indians

And I cant understand how Australia is going to benefit from these clowns other
than to make a quick buck.

Do you call these people Skilled Migrants. Is the Aussie government insane?
They would not even get a job in India let alone Australia......

I call them garbage migrants. Kevin Rudd wake up .......Get actual skilled people
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
11:51 AM
175
Pratyush,

Please pardon my spelling in the previous post - I'm typing too quickly :)
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:50 AM
174
Have always been intrigued by the fact that most Indian movie stars are of the
lighter skin variety. Can someone explain why this is? This is a serious question
as I am completely at a loss to explain why Indians seem to prefer them over
those with darker skin colour.There are plenty of African American actors along
with the queen of the talk shows, Oprah Winfrey
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:47 AM
173
"The thing that is pissing Indians off is that there does not seem to be any
concrete measures being taken. Some sort of constructive dialogue, something
should be done - more police, better security. Or at least outlining how they plan
to deal with it. Something."...There is concrete measures being taken Praytush.
And you should be at least aware of that. Our prisons are overflowing..and the
police here have advised Indian students many times about how to travel more
safely at night. Not that they listen. And it's hard to have constructive dialogue
when Indian ministers and Indian media make hysterical cries of racism and
comparing us to apartheid South Africa every 5 minutes.
When the Indian media tells constant lies about the reality of modern Australia
you can't be surprised that Australians will try and defend their countries
reputation. If Australian ministers and media were telling constant lies about India
,wouldn't you expect Indian people to reply to such comments?..
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
11:46 AM
172
Oh the irony of the racist and in tolerant Shiv Sena making the banner news
when we open up this topic page! "sena demonstrates outside srk's residence"
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:46 AM
171
Pratyush
Melbourne, Australia,

What "concrete" action can any Australian government take? We can't stop
Indians walking through parks at night, in areas well known or gang violence and
(in particular) knife attacks, Yarraville. If Indians choose to do risky jobs like
security guards, night shift shop keepers, or taxi drivers, because that would be
discriminatory. So what is it, specifically, that Indians expect Australian
governments to do?
FLAVIAN HARDCASTLE
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:39 AM
170
Pratyush,

I agree that the timing in the upswing in racial abuse is interesting.

2005 was the Cronulla riots when the Anglo-Celtics fought back against the
Lebanese who were assaulting people, including members of the Surf Life Saving
Club, on the beach.

It was also the time of the Pakistani and Lebanese rape gangs targeting Anglo-
Celtic women - thankfully all caught and convicted (the NSW Police don't muck
around like some police forces).

Why was the Cronulla Police Staion closed that year, forcing the locals to
become vigilantes? There were more Anglo Celts prosecurted than Lebanese
even though the retaliatory attacks were far more viscious, including burning
down a Tongan Pesbyterian Church.? Why was there little media coverage of the
retlaliatory attacks? Why didn't the police release the videos of the retaliatory
attacks for 5 weeks? (The officer who "lost" the tapes was demoted by the Police
Commissioner, Ken Moroney).

Police staions in the city are not closed due to budget cuts, but due to politics.
Perhaps you can join the dots here? Seems "someone" was trying to create a
racial tinderbox. Let's hope they've choked on their own hate.

The end result was the passing of more draconian laws in NSW.

It's not fair, but you may well have been tarred with the same brush. I'm sorry if
that was the case. When politicians use racism to further their own ends, we're all
in trouble. Which is what this discussion is about today. And Cronulla is why
Australians never want it to happen again.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:38 AM
169
Pratyush,


Club, on the beach.





Australians never want it happen again.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:37 AM
168
I am an Indian & have been living in Australia for a few years now, though NOT
as a student. Came as a skilled worker to Australia (yes took one of the OZ jobs
and I now feel ashamed) mainly because my son used to fall sick in India, after
we decided to move back from the US.

Have made lots of OZ friends in the course of time, love the barbie, enjoy a game
of local footy with my local friends & a stubbie or two, enjoy the boys weekend at
the Murray., Yes, basically have just started to settle into the brilliant OZ culture..
My son goes to a OZ public school & the only anthem he can sing is the Australia
one.. I do own a car (call me rich if you want to) unlike the students who use the
trains mostly, and never have I experienced any so called, 'on the surface racism'
whatsoever. I don't know if there was any 'in the surface' racism though. We
enjoy the company of many of our OZ friends that come home to enjoy my wife's
home made Indian food ... and we too are invited for barbies/morning
teas/afternooon teas to their places...& we too enjoy the bacon & the sausages
as much as they enjoy the Indian food.... :)

However, the recent events in Melbourne, and especially the way they are being
portrayed in the media like the one here are really worrying. The frequency of
phone calls from back home has increased in the last few months !!! All my mates
here have been reassuring me not to worry and that everythign will be alright.
This definitely does NOT seem to be the work of white Aussies (as portrayed)
and there is suspicion that it is being done by immigrants from other countries.

I however just wonder sometimes though, if I would be next !!!
CHITTU
FEB 01,
2010
11:36 AM
167
"But let me tell you one thing - racism, or even perceived racism, is a scar that
remains for a long time. Even one incident a year does remains in your thoughts
for a long time. Continuous exposure is enough to make cynics out of anyone -
perhaps what happened to Elan.
The government should have seen this, and started dealing with it then. Only
allow Indians to immigrate slowly, and gradually, rather than suddenly, increase
numbers. But the lure of the quick buck was too much, and the government
allowed these ridiculous courses to open."...

You seem to think racism only goes one way Praytush. The amount of times I
have had vietnamese,lebanese,african and islander people act in an aggressive
and racist way to me I could count in the hundreds. And don't get me started on
the italians,greeks,yugoslavs,and turks who have been here for 40-50 years but
still whine that Australia has "no culture".
Of course what they really mean is Anglo-Celtic culture has no value. Yet it's the
same Anglo-Celtic culture that provided universities for their children and
grandchildren to go to. But has this left a scar on me?.. No! And you want to
know why?..because idiots come from all backgrounds.
As for the government,these dodgy PR student visa courses were in fact started
by Howard. Would you have preferred Rudd to have suddenly closed these
schools down when he got elected?.. Imagine the public relations fallout that
would have caused. You would have seen headlines from Mumbai to Mysore
proclaiming loudly how Australia has robbed the "noble Indian student" of their
"hard earned" money. The current government was handed a speeding train by
Howard and it will take some time before the train can safely pull into the station.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
11:35 AM
166
More irresponsible and just plain wrong reporting from India. The standards of
journalism over there appalling.

This constant anti-Aussie reporting in the Indian media is just inflaming the
situation and is driving the wedge between Australians and Indians in even
further.

Pratyush, I have also been in Australia a very long time and I consider myself
100% Australian.

I have not experienced a single racist incident in my time here.

Australians now see Indians as being ungrateful, hypocritical whingers, so I can
understand where the "f*** off back home" comments are coming from.

The fact that these attacks are occuring is bad, make no bones about it. No doubt
some of them are racially motivated. However I think that the behaviour of the
new Indian community in Australia and the Indian media in general have greatly
contributed to make it worse than it should be.
BRIAN
FEB 01,
Nathan
2010
11:31 AM
165

You again are missing the point and are just further screwing the relations of
Australia and India.

India has had some tough times with regards to China, especially with regards to
the Sino-Indian War, and the rather outrageous claims that China are making
over some North and North-Eastern Indian states. There is also the growing
Maoist movement in India, many claiming that they are being funded by China.

The point is, there is SOME sort of basis to the strained relations, least of all the
title of being the biggest and best in Asia.

The fact that some of you people are spending so much time trying to fling s***
on the Indians is quite comical. Are you feeling really threatened by an Indian
magazine, who OBVIOUSLY will put an Indian spin on the issue?

Do you guys remember what happened to Schapelle Corby, and the virtually
hysterical reaction of most Australians to her? I remember a poll where 80%
Australians (or something ridiculous) saying she was innocent. I remember the
entire judiciary system of Indonesia being lampooned. It's not cool when it
happens to you, does it?

The thing that is pissing Indians off is that there does not seem to be any
to deal with it. Something.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
11:30 AM
164
Sasha!

Everyone here talks sense except you.

Where the hell did nuke and army and all that come from?

From your post I realise you just want to win the argument and hate what others
have to say

YOU WON... happy???? Now can you talk sense please?
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
Sorry maybe I didn't make my comments clear enough. I was taking the piss out
2010
11:22 AM
163
of this whole manufactured debate perpetrated by the Indian Press. India is
desperate to be acknowledged as one of the success stories of the 21st century
brought abount mainly by western investment due to low wage costs (Very little
else) It all smacks of a country saying hey guys we are succesful now so respect
us! Perhaps a result of colonialisation for so many years which resulted in the
atypical obseqious Indian character which they are so desperate to distance
themselves from due to some modest economic prosperity in comparison to what
has gone before.
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:20 AM
162
Alright Mark, BRad, SMith, Shane, dave and Steve....let's look at it from another
angle. Tomorrow if China knocks on our doors with Nuke missiles, you will only
have the Indians to protect you. America is almost under the mexicans anyway.
So think rationally now, so that you can avoid an embarassment later. Why
commit atrocities now and say sorry later. Don't forget that Indian soldiers were
fighting the nazis for the anglos...they don't even get a decent burial..they don't
even count...

What if white aussies were political prisoners...they may have been sent to
Australia for fighting the late empire to free India. You never know why some of
these convicts were sent here...So Indians can assume that ancestors of white
aussies stood for Indian independence and their government punished them and
that's how they became convicts..so there's scope for friendship...
Pratyush, to you I have just one thing to say...Don't try too hard to fit in. You will
fall flat on your back...

and hey you Prathyush, don't try too hard to fit in...we can see through your
game. Just coz you have two anglo friends, it doesn't mean there are no racists
here.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
11:19 AM
161
Well, some of these posts, Pratyush from Melb, I'm reading Outlook as a follow
up on the article in today's Age. Australia, is mainly a non racist country. Worst
racism I've encountered was in Singapore and that was from the Chinese ethnics
to the Indians. My Dr is an Indian and she is lovely.This whole racist thingi has
gotten so outa control, blame the media. Years ago a person's ethnicity wasn't
even mentioned either the assailant or the victum- whay happenned. My only
clue to some racism towards Indians is since the telco companies moved the call
centres offshore to India. We are bombarded with these calls and obvious Indian
accents. Stop the call centres and you may halt some of the ill feelings.
Generally, though Australia is not racist not on the scale of your own caste
system and comments from Indians in regard to students coming from certain
Indian states. Check out your own backyard and don't support the shonky
colleges (owned by Indians)looking for PR. Earn it . Cheers Linda
LINDA DOM
KIATA, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:11 AM
160
"Cut it out guys we are dealing with sensitive cultural issues here which require
our understanding and compassion in order to avoid having Australia further
vilified in the Indian press!"...Ray,you just don't get it. The Indian media already
hate us. We have become the pantomime villain to which India can blame so
many of it's problems. And why are they doing this?.. Because pseudo
nationalism sells..because there is very little real trade between us to
jepordise..and here is the clincher..because China has much stronger ties to
Australia! I'm willing to bet many aussies here aren't fully aware of the internet
flame war between India and China. Just go to Youtube and see how many
videos there are that proclaim that the world hates India/China..or how
India/China will rule the 21st century.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
11:06 AM
159
Pratyush comment 156, I agree completely that the fault lies with the Australian
government. When there were small numbers of immigrants it wasn't an issue.
Now Australians are seeing their lifestyles going downhill at the same time as the
government flooded the country with immigrants and international students, many
of them Indian. Any nation would see people start to react to this. Unfortunately
the Australian government is far too stupid to understand that they are creating
an international incident and to now limit the numbers of immigrants coming in,
and let students finish their courses and leave rather than letting stay on
permanently. If they took major action now they would defuse the situation.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:05 AM
158
@ Ray

As you are well aware, a key part of the Australian culture is laughing at
ourselves and others. This is known colloqually as "Taking the Piss", and is our
egalitarian way of demonstrating when we think something is ludicrous to the
point of ridicule.

This is not a sensitive cultural issue. This is the result of a number of tabloid
newspapers across two continents inciting uneducated people into a nationalistic
frenzy in order to (1) convince their readership that they are in someway superior
to members of another culture and (2) sell more copies.

Remember that India was once joined to Australia.
http://polardiscovery.whoi.edu/antarctica/images/gondwana2.gif
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:03 AM
157
Oh Jassi, how did you ever get PR which such crap English skills? Or are you still
in limbo, trying to transfer your dodgy course into PR?

I can assure you that my views are manistream, though we are equally angry at
the Australian Govt. for allowing these PR scams to occur.

I note no response from an Indian to my comment on Sri Lankan Tamil "asylum
seekers" travelling all the way to Australia rather than crossing the 40 mile Palk
strait
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:58 AM
156
@Nathan Jarman

Mate, I have been living in this country since I was 10, and before that I was in
India. I am as "aussie" as can be. I am merely relating the troubled times many
other Indian students are having.

In the late 90's to early 2000's, I barely experienced any racism, but post 2005,
the racism suddenly ramped up - on public transport, while walking down the
street, etc. I played cricket for club, and while walking to training, I was frequently
told to "f*** off back home". I mean, Australia was much more of a home to me
than India, I've lived here most of my life.

But let me tell you one thing - racism, or even perceived racism, is a scar that

allowed these ridiculous courses to open.

I pity those making excuses, almost as if they are justifying these attacks, by
referring to the problems in India. India is expected to grow phenomenally in the
coming decades, much more than what was expected after being exploited by
the late British Empire.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
10:57 AM
155
"Be it USA or UK or Canada these countries have becaome not just immensely
rich but also recieved tremendous impetus in their science and technology, and
socio cultural development."...The problem with people like you is you are always
wearing rose coloured glasses. Having been to Britain I know full well that most
people of Indian descent there are not professional university educated people.
You always seem to highlight the 15% that work in fields of science and not the
50% that work in manual labour. And as for socio cultural development,surely
Indian take away restaurants don't count..or do they?..
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:56 AM
154
I do not believe that Indians are hated, it's only because in the state of Victoria
there are too many criminals. How do I know that? My only daughter was
murdered on 17 May 2007. By whom? By the Victorian police force and up to this
date the Victorian government with the police are trying everything they can to
stop me from exposing these CRIMINALS! they have also gone to the point
where they attempted to harm me in the cemetery. They dragged me to the
Magistrates court for 18 months to obtain an intervention order against me. This
case now has gone to the County Court and due back 10 March 2010 which also
happens to be my daughters birth date. The Premier found the opportunity to
resign, the Coroner was forced to resign, the police commissioner refuses to
reply to my letter and 7 days later she takes off, the police media director and the
assistant commissioner are exposed from corruption in other matters 2007 and
both of them involved in the murder, The new Coroner is refusing to hold n
inquest in to the death of Maritsa (Marie) Chiotelis. So you see it's not hate it is
psychopathic criminals that exist here. I know, I have lived here for over 38 years
and I say to them p??ta?a? ??e ?a? p?? ?a ?? pate?
VAGELIS
FEB 01,
2010
10:54 AM
I couldn;t pass it up. jabi123@gmail.com, you seem very bitter, and it appears
you live in my home town. Have you looked at the international tables on
education. When you are as rich as us, when you live as long as us, when you
are as educated as us, when you feed your people rather than building nuclear
weapons, when you treat people as humanley as us, when you stop enslaving
153
your women and children, when you stop being one of the greatest traffickers of
humans in the world, when you are noted as being as religiously tolerant as us,
then you can, and only then feel free to criticise us. If you are so bitter go home to
India, and make your life there as you appear to despise us. Guess you can't as
you have to pay money to your family so they can laud it over their neighbours
back home in India. You obvously don't read, as you would see Australia has
recognized the brilliance of some Indians in Australia, I just get the feeling you
think you are one of them. But obviously you are not.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:54 AM
152
Only .05 % people are like Grant and .05% are worst than Grant eg. Criminals.

Grant, please dont mind but you are performing negatively and making bad
impressing.
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:53 AM
151
I am concerned at the number of posts on this forum from Australia. If this
continues I will have to become concerned that this attention to the sub continent
could result in passionate even anti-Indian views being held by a large
percentage of the population which up until now has not even been on the
average Australian's radar
Cut it out guys we are dealing with sensitive cultural issues here which require
vilified in the Indian press!
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:53 AM
150
Hi Ian
Soon mate !!!!! :)

Hi Alan

My blood boils when I read such articles by the media. They have one and only
one agenda in mind.

That is to make money of innocent people who will listen to any crap they say...

They think they know the power of the media.... ???? Well .... SO do I so here I
come mate!
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:51 AM
149
That was the best description of the situation I've read yet Prasanth. You ought to
apply for a special comments postion at some of these Indian papers.
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:49 AM
148
@ Craig

Night Craig. As soon my Indian Boss signs off my timesheet for the time spent
with the South African Project manager, I'm going home to pick up my Chilean
fiancee, then going out to meet a Transexual Pom and her Japanese housemate.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:46 AM
147
Guys,

99.9 % Australians are good. Only few bad people do all the crime against all and
stupid Indian media says its against Indians only and its racist. Rating stunt of
Indian Media
all crap.

Guys enjoy your day! Don't fight with each other.

Cheers
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:46 AM
146
Actually, if India is so civilised, please explain why Australia ends up with
boatloads of Tamil economic migrants (aka "refugees") every week yet their
compatriots in Tamil Nadu are just a few kms away?

No different to your "students" it would seem - taking economic advantage of our
misguided Governmental policies.
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:46 AM
145
"If you are being paid illegally low wages, report your employer. He will owe you
back pay."...If your job is 30 hours a week and your student visa is 20 then they
will most certainly not. Why do you think employees are hiring so many Indians?
Because they know full well they want and need to work more than 20 hours a
week. This is why they offer them lower wages..beggars cannot be choosers.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:44 AM
144
@Rob-Multiculturalism is NOT a failure; you look at USA or Canada for that
matter. Indian American entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley have created thousands
of jobs. Obama administration alone has around 20 Indian Americans in high
profile posts. I am a proud Australian proud of my Australian passport (equally
proud of my Indian roots). This country gave me an excellent education, an
excellent job and a fantastic life style. Just like you Rob, I am also concerned and
alarmed about Indian media's irrational sensational branding of Australia as
racist. Australia is a beautiful country, beautiful people, who are friendly, warm,
tolerant and helpful. There are also this very small group of uneducated jobless
gangs who is involved in attacks and bringing bad name to this beautiful country.
Of course Australian government has to choose whether they want to make a
quick buck by giving PRs to cookery students and "hair stylists" ($14 billion/year).
Or Australian government can emulate the American model by giving visas only
to those students who have the brains, finances (and admissions to high quality
Aus Universities like RMIT, Monash etc).I really wish Indian media stops these
irrational sensational reports which are truly damaging the image of Indians in
Aus also damaging the otherwise strong diplomatic/economical/defence
relationships between these two liberal democracies. And on my previous
comment about students getting paid $8 , this practice is too widespread (almost
all service stations in Melbourne and almost all markets/Asian groceries in West
Melbourne) to be tackled by a single complaint in government authority. It is the
SYSTEM that has to change; individual complaints wont fix the system,. And
people PLEASE PLEASE dont make it an India Vs Australia issue, its all a
misunderstanding, fuelled by irresponsible Indian media + slow Vic police+ low
life junkies on the street. Dont let the brainless junkies dictate the relationship
between these 2 countries!! And immigration is not the culprit BUT uncontrolled
mindless immigrations is (eg: giving PR to lure students of substandard courses
etc).
PRASANTH
MELB, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
@ Grant.
2010
10:44 AM
143

I have nothing against Indian supermarket clerks, except they keep insisting on
putting things into plastic bags, then putting the plastic bags into the offered
reusable "green" shopping bag.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:42 AM
142
Well enough anti Indian rants from me for today, so I apologise if I offended all
the Indian accountants out there. I'm now off to a meeting with a Chinaman, a
Norwegian, an American, and a couple of Poms, and shock horror some evil
white Australians. To assist with the Hate all Indians campiagn I have not asked
my Indian worker to attend, initially it was because I have him working on a
different project but now it can only be because I hate him.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:41 AM
141
Geez Karthik, where've you been mate? You're exactly what these sorts of
boards need.
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:37 AM
140
Dear Indian,

We have enough taxi drivers and supermarket clerks to last a lifetime now.
Please try Canada?

Love,
Australia
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:37 AM
139
If you look at the history of Indian migration across the globe you will find that
Indians have made substantial contribution to the economy and the culture of
those nation. Be it USA or UK or Canada these countries have becaome not just
immensely rich but also recieved tremendous impetus in their science and
technology, and socio cultural development. Be it the email which Sabeer Bhatia
(Indian) developed who migrated to USA after getting educated in India., or many
million other examples.

USA and UK have been extremely appreciative about the contribution of Indians
till date., unfortunately because of the inheritance of Aussies they still do not
come to the grim reality that if they are lousy and idiots (mathematics is their
biggest weakness) they cannot blamce Indians.

I think they are better off without Indians and rather live with their young spoilt
generations who drinks beyond their capacity and extremely bad pareting (no
culture) at all, so if someone says Indians are abusive then I guess they are
better off with their drunkards who are spoiling this country.

Lastly, the tolerance of Indians is always considered weakness but this tolerance
only brings out the harmony in diverse cultures, the best example is India itself., if
Aussies can learn one thing they should learn tolerance from Indians.

Cheers
JABI123@GMAIL.COM
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:35 AM
138
Hi Craig

1. Have you ever been ripped off by an Indian taxi driver... A RESOUNDING
YES. How do i know? I have been ripped off........

2. If you have been to India has your female partner ever been molested by
Indian males.......

A RESOUNDING YES..How do i know.. I have lived in India for 20 years
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:31 AM
137
Dinesh Kumar. We don't hate you all, we only dislike some of your crickters like
Harbajahn Singh and idiots like Elan and the tool from FISA, Gautam Gupta.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
See.. look at all the Xenophobic Australians. We hate accountants. We think all
10:30 AM
136
people who are good at maths are pooftahs.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:30 AM
135
Karthik,

LOL - when does your morning radio show start? :)

Peter MC,

I think we've already worked out that Elan has never been to Australia - if he had,
he'd never be a Collingwood supporter!
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:27 AM
134
@ Pete

Carn The Pies!
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:24 AM
133
Exactly right Matt. My accountant is too expensive, so we need to drive down his
wages, as he puts it up above inflation every year. Mind you he finds an extra
thousand each year, so maybe he is worh it. Acountant rage, should replace the
mythical Indian rage, then everything would be solved, unless of course we bring
in more Indian accountants, then we would have Indian Accountant rage. Such a
vicous cricle.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:23 AM
132
Sorry I went quiet for a while because I enrolled and completed a 'criminology'
degree at one of the crappy bogus colleges that some Indian guy runs in the city.
Took me a few hours to complete my entire degree, but I still have enough time
to do 5 part time jobs (20 hrs each).

Now Elan, the guy who was entertaining us with his words of wisdom earlier. I
have done a profile on him; I'm now a criminolgist afterall.

- Spent 30 unhappy years in Australia (I am guessing he left around early 1990.
- Thinks everyone is at fault, except him. The authorities are crucifying us, he'd
say.
- Tattoos
- Illiterate
- No teeth
- Tends to spend September gardening.
- Highly emotional and bitter.

Are you guys seeing what I'm seeing?

Yep, you guessed it. He's a Collingwood supporter.

No wonder he is bitter. Forgive him Lord for he knows not what he does.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
10:22 AM
131
Why the Aussies hate us...there are too many of us, we break their rules, we are
dirty and inconsidrate, we are loud mouthed and show off. Enough reasons for
anyone to hate us!
DINESH KUMAR
CHANDIGARH, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:21 AM
130
Actual fact:

Australian police are some of the most professional, smart and highly skilled
people in the world.

They are kind and treat everyone fairly and with respect irrespective of race or
gender.

They are doing a fantastic job under immense pressure and a tough and
dangerous working environment.

Victoria police had to drag Indian students a year back because students
IGNORED their fair warning to clear a public area

(Anything wrong with that dumb ass Indian media?)

They where disrupting traffic and the great Melbourne lifestyle.

As reported in the Indian newspaper Times Wow and wirtten by editor-in-chief
Arebaba Gotnoclue

Busted .......OZ police atrocities against Indian students. Shocking images
attached!!

Melbourne: Tell me ......When Indians are going to stop suffering deep down
under? How can this happen? questions editor-in-chief Arebaba Gotnoclue

(He sits in India and has never been to or tasted the great Aussie lifestyle and
unbelievably friendly people.)

Arebaba Gotnoclue interviews an Aussie Indian student*** who has been in
Australia for 1 day and 32 minutes!!!!???? (Huh???)

Got a minute you 1-day-32-minute-student? asks Arebaba Gotnoclue

Yes yes i come to Australia and all Australians racist we get hit everywhere
says our proud student in broken English (I mean how the hell did he pass the
English test?)

So there you go Indian people .... Look at whats happening Deep Down Under
here CONCLUDES Arebaba Gotnoclue. ( I really mean CONCLUDED)

***It was later found out that the student graduated and got Masters in
Engineering in India, Applied to study nursing through some dodgy agent in India,
representing dodgy Colleges operated in Australia by Indians .... He got a fake
statements of funds available from a dodgy bank manager in India ..................

Phew the story hasnt finished yet .....

Upon arriving he realized he was enrolled in hairdressing (WTF).... and had to
work as a taxi driver.....
What the hell?????? All Aussies are Racists our 1-day-32-minute-student
CONCLUDED

Join TIMES WOW editor-in-chief Arebaba Gotnoclue for a special debate on this
issue with Motawala Chief of police ( Stands first in the most corrupted cop list )
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:17 AM
129
Can I make a basic suggestion. With all the call centres in India and with the cost
of labour being minimal and the cost to collect data over the phone nominal,
could not Outlook poll all 250, 000 Indians in Australia and collate and analyse
these stats to determine the truth. Also then do the same with all Australians and
non Australians residing in Oz and you could then formulate an informed opinion.
But remember it needs to be objective, so maybe include some questions like,
Have you ever been ripped off by an Indian taxi driver/ If you have been to India
has your female partner ever been molested by Indian males? Did you feel
Indians are racist when you were being stoned in India becuase they were caling
you white shit?
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:15 AM
128
I wish that the Indian Consulates in Australia would look at the example of the
government of the People's Republic of China. After a couple of attacks on
mainland Chinese students in inner-city Sydney (Redfern and Alexandria from
memory - they're favoured by overseas students for being close to both Sydney
and New South Wales Universities and are relatively cheap), the Chinese
Consulate and the New South Wales Police quietly joined forces to educate the
Chinese students about personal safety in these poor suburbs. The crimes were
solved (not carried out by Anglo-Celtics by the way) and the number of attacks
dropped immediately. Has the Indian Consulate in Melbourne tried to join forces
with the Vicotrian Police in the same way? If yes, then that's great - it's just that
we haven't heard about it yet.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:07 AM
127
Yeah Right Mate

Why Aussies hate Indians ... true that is .01 % of the population!!!!

How About "WHY AUSSIES LOVE INDIANS AND ANYONE COMING TO THIS
FANTASTIC COUNTRY.... AND THE AUSSIES WELCOME THEM WITH OPEN
ARMS"

..... TRUE AS WELL that is the other 99.99% of the population

You feel stupid now don't you MR Editor-in-chief Vinod Mehta ?
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:07 AM
126
What sensationalist rubbish you have printed!
Why don't you expose the real reason behing Australian's resentment of Indians -
namely the fact that tens of thousands are gaming Australia's immigration system
by enrolling in dodgy courses like hospitality purely to access PR.
We do not want such an influx and so it would seem that society is unable to
accept such a massive rorting of our hospitality.
If these so-called "students" really wanted an education, they would not be
studying cookery courses.
Stop spreading lies and deal with your indigenous issues instead.
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:06 AM
125
@ Craig

There we have it. There are plenty of jobs here that Indians can do that
Australians would never be caught doing.

Like being accountants.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:04 AM
124
prasanth, if Indian students are being underpaid then all they need do is go to the
appropriate government body within each state with evidence, which they should
have unless they work illegally, and they will be back paid, with interst. Unlike the
majority of the world we have a minimum wage and if they are adults in is
approximatelty $16 per hour. Now if they are working illegally, then suffer, as they
are then dealing in the black economy which is against the law. If they need
support on this matter they should approach FISA as according to their
spokesman he is their to help. Mind you he is primarily their to help himself, and
has caused and is causing a lot of the problems that are now presenting
themselves between our two people. As with many issues realting to this matter,
Indian students claim they are never assisted, but then they often have not gone
to the authorities for fear of being deported and instead run off to the media (15
minute syndrome I suggest).
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:00 AM
First of all, you pathetic souls who lambast Australia for its convict past need to
quietly shut the hell up. A nation of "convicts" which consistently ranks in the top
5 of the Human Development index and has an annual GDP not far off India's
despite having over 1 billion people less. Yeh, what a racist primitive hellhole we
123
live in! The labours of Europeans made this country so liveable and millions of
immigrants have partaken and reaped the benefits, yet you retards can only
come up with brilliant arguments like "white people go home."

As for the main issue, pretty much all Indians I have met have been polite and
respectful, although somewhat timid and an easy target for thugs. I applaud the
writer for pointing out that its likely that other foreign immigrants are carrying out
these attacks. Growing up in Melbourne I witnessed too many times the penchant
for violence that young Lebanese thugs, who in no way should be labelled
Austrlian, have.

Nonetheless, failing to understand basic social etiquette, like eye raping white
girls and singing Indian folk music on trains has caused some resentment in the
wider Australian community against Indians. A fair few female friends of mine
have complained of the rudeness of Indian men.

However there is a greater issue at stake here, the fiction of multiculturalism.
Modern day political correctness dictates that what you should think is more
important than what you actually DO think. Believe it or not people actually like
living around people of the same ethnicity as themselves. The mantra "diversity is
strength" is a mere poignant buzz phrase, as the only real strength diversity gives
is a better selection of restaurants. A Harvard study recently concluded that
racially diverse areas are actually less civically active and prone to people
distrusting each other.

Sure the vast majority of Australian would never violently attack immigrants,
however pretty much everyone I know has said something derogatory about
other ethnicities which they would not dare say in the public sphere, all the while
the Government keeps trying to portray a picture of racial unity. As Indian
numbers increase, just like it did with Asians, these comments become more
common. Labelling Australia a racist country is pretty stupid, as pretty much
every country which has experienced an influx of foreigners who find it difficult to
adapt finds itself laden with tension. When Indians were low in number and were
a novelty to see in Australia there was little problem, but when they start
becoming so numerous people are quick to comment. Of course that sounds
quite racist and intolerant but its basic human nature.

My only hope is that a lowered amount of immigration and students will allow the
Government to better educate Indians on how to act in Australia and to avoid
danger, ie walking through a park in the western suburbs at night.
ROB
FEB 01,
2010
@ prasanth.

10:00 AM
122
Minimum wage is $14.31 an hour.

http://www.fwa.gov.au/

If you are being paid illegally low wages, report your employer. He will owe you
back pay.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:53 AM
121
Fantastic post Prasanth

I have lived In Australia for 8 years and I am a proud AUSTRALIAN. I carry my
AUSSIE PASSPORT with pride because this country has given me so much.

1. A fantastic education
2. A fantastic job and business
3. Some of the friendliest people on earth
4. The best lifestyle a person can have

Editor-in-chief of Outlook Vinod Mehta , Mate, get a life and F**k off.....Why dont
you look at you own servants you have in your house and look at how you treat
them first......

Get your own crap country right first ... You dont need to tell us here what is right
or wrong.

You are making our lives difficult for us here.

I am sick of this crap saying Aussies are racists
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
09:52 AM
120
The vilification of Australians needs to stop. It's just aussie bashing, pure and
simple. It's juvenile, and it's irresponsible.
It's not the first time a developing country has decided to attack us for their own
domestic purposes.
It would be very easy for the Australian government to point out the crimes,
including rape and murder, committed by Indian citizens in our country - there are
many. It would also be very easy for the Australian government to point out the
crimes committed against Australians in India - there are also many. It would also
be easy for them to highlight the extreme level of hypocrisy at play. The reason
they don't is that it is irresponsible to vilify an entire country of people - that is
actual racism; it breeds intolerance and hatred - which is precisely what the
Indian media and some members of their government are doing.
It is obvious that Australia is not a racist country; we have a diverse population of
people from 190 countries, practising every major religion, and living,
overwhelmingly, in peace, prosperity and harmony. That is one reason why so
many people want to live here and take advantage of our open immigration
system.
There are cases where people migrate to Australia, and continue reliving old
feuds with people from other countries; if you knew Australia, you would know
that such behaviour is hated and condemned, and the general feeling is that
people come to this country to get away from racism, and to leave their
predjudice at the door.
Obviously with such a diverse population you indeed can get racism; but it is not
prevalent - I understand a relatively closed country like India would have trouble
understanding the reality in a multiracial country like Australia.
I am concerned that crime is higher than I would like in Melbourne; low by
international standards, but higher than we would like by our standards.
I think the best thing our Government could do is ensure the Indian students who
come here have adequate financial resources so that they don't talk risky night
jobs and live in rough suburbs far away from campus and can afford a car instead
of catching public transport late at night.
TONY
FEB 01,
2010
09:49 AM
119
I am not an accountant. I'd rather be a chai-wallah than an accountant.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:49 AM
118
The headline screams out "Why Aussies hate Us" Well the word hate implies a
high level of passionate awareness of India and Indians by all Australians to
develop hatred towards them. I can assure you that 99.9% of Australians do not
occupy their minds with such things to cause hatred. they are too busy going
about their daily lives to indulge in such a negative past-time. Also recession was
given as a reason why there is a backlash against Indians where in fact Australia
has avoided the world wide recession caused by the Global Financial Crisis.
(almost alone amongst developed economies) Neither is it mentioned that
regards the murder of an Indian student in rural New South Wales last year three
suspects have been apprehended and happen to be, wait for it, Indian Nationals
living in Australia. I can assure you that I deplore any attacks on students
studying here and the more hysterical the reaction from India and the more
publicity that generates gives rise to copycat crimes being committed. Have you
accused the English of racism with their threat to boycott the Commonwealth
games in India this year? As far as I know Australia will be there. The recent tour
by the Pakistan cricket team was conducted without any incidents and there was
mutual respect shown by both the teams. In fact many Australian cricketers
commented on the friendly attitude of some of their players. So in closing yes
there are elements of racism in Australia as there are in India and every country
in the world but to present as fact a very biased report on why Aussies hate us
does no service to the standards of journalism in India and is merely provoking
further tension between the two countries
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:45 AM
117
If Indias really believe we are such a vile nation, why do they not refuse entry to
all Australians and their atheletes for the Commonwealth games. I think this
would send a very strong message to all people that the Indian Government
truelly believe what is being said and are supportive of the Sihks and Indians that
are being slaughtered by the 1000s in Australia. I note the difference of Sihks and
Indians as does the Indian media. One advantage of banning us from the games
is England would then dominate the games, so good for their egos. Also whilst
they ban our visitors and atheletes send home our planners, Engineers, Project
Managers, and stadium specialists that have gone to India to assist with the
building of games infrastructure in New Delhi. I guess in the end they need
Australia to attend and assist so they are not shamed in front of the world.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:42 AM
116
@nathan jarman
@nathan jarman
I must say that you have absolutely no idea about a student's life in Melbourne. I
was a student few years back and I KNOW. You think a student can get $280
/week by working 20 hours?? ($14/hour). WRONG! If you ever come to Footscray
market or sunshine markets ask the Indian student working in the market how
much he get paid?!! They are getting paid $6/hour!!!! An Indian at a service
station is getting paid $8-$10/hour (BP pays $16/hr though). It is the failure of
government since they failed to punish the predatory employers who are
exploiting the hapless students. Hence students forced to work more than 20
hours often at late night shifts. And you are right, only those who can afford
should come to Australia for studies,I agree.
PRASANTH
MELB, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:39 AM
115
@Prasanth (Comment 114)

Well said :)
TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:28 AM
114
Now Elan, will you please please stop your comments, if you think you are
helping Indians you are wrong. You are not only embarrassing all Indian
Australians like me but also creating a bad image of Indians. Same for you
Sasha, your comments are extreme and lacks logic.
I am an Australian citizen of Indian origin who lived in Footscray for 3 years when
I was studying for my Masters in Deakin. Now, I have NEVER experienced any
racist comments from anyone in 5 years of my stay in Australia. This country has
given me everything and I am so proud to show my Australian passport to any
Airports in the world (I also keep an overseas Indian origin passport and am
equally proud of my Indian roots). I have many friends who had been attacked
while at work or travelling. Undoubtedly many of the attacks had been racial in
nature since most attacks were followed by racial abuse. Interestingly roughly
only 50% of racist attackers are committed by "White Anglo " gangs, rest are
either Asian, Sudanese/Somalian or Islander(Fiji,Samoa, etc) gangs. These
gangs are made of jobless uneducated alcoholic thugs who are living on
centrelink payments (doll). THEY DO NOT REPRESENT Australian society and
Indian media and those Indians who have never been to Australia MUST
UNDERSTAND this fact. Victorian police/govt is equally responsible since I have
been hearing about this attack on Indians since 2005, but Victoria government
ignored this till it became an international issue last year.
Majority 99% Australians are friendly and VERY WARM AND HOSPITABLE. But
Indian students should also learn some manners and should be trained in how to
behave at public places. Indians are the most successful ethnic group in USA
(with highest national income). The reason being, Americas immigration policy is
tilted towards bright high quality students (as opposed to cookery, hair styling
student focus of Australia's). Undoubtedly only the worthy can get in to USA and
become a citizen. Those American Indians are highly successful and contributing
immensely to the American society. Australia should follow the same American
model and give PR to only worthy individuals, not semi literate cookery students.
Finally Indian media should show some restrain and allow Australian police to
carry out normal investigation and please stop branding the country as racist.
And to those "patriotic" Aussies commenting here thinking you are defending
your country by asking Indian immigrants to go back, you are only re
emphasising the (false) imaging of Australia as a racist nation.
PRASANTH
MELB, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:26 AM
113
Craig - I think there is something wierd with anybody openingly admitting to be an
accountant - especially on a first date.

There was a case in NSW a few years ago when a number of Doctors (from
Pakistan I believe, not India) failed the exam that all foreign doctors have to sit
before they are able to practice medicine in this state. Rather than go off and
study, they chained themselves to the fence outside parliament house, and cried
that they were being discriminated against.

Another case - A friend of mine works for State Rail. He was verbally abused by
an Indian co-worker, who then went off and played the race card, accusing my
friend of initiating the attack. Fortunately, the whole interchange was caught on
security camera. The instigator was eventually dismissed for cheating on his train
driver exam.

As somebody who has lived and worked in another culture where I didn't speak
the language, I am well aware of the need to adopt local customs to fit in. I never
stopped being Australian, but I had to learn to fit in with the local way of acting
and doing things to be accepted in that society.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:23 AM
112
"If I worked 20 hours a week at award wages, I would barely pay for my rent! The
Australian government is playing a two faced game, allowing them to study here
and yet, by the work restriction laws, forcing them in live in crappy
conditions."...Actually most award wages pay at least 14 dollars an hour..which at
20 hours a week would be 280 dollars. Now if you can't pay rent on 280 dollars a
week I suggest you look for someone cheaper to rent. You seem to miss the key
point of studying in Australia..it's to study.
Australia as well as any other foreign country owes you ZERO obligation to work
while you are here. The Chinese students here understand this,but the Indians
clearly don't. If you don't like it,come here with more money like the Chinese or
study at home in India.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
09:23 AM
111
"Elan"
I have been to India a number of times- each of which I have been shocked by
the cruelty of it's people to one another. You have a cast system placed upon
your society!
You should really focus on your own back garden before criticising others.

As its been stated the Indian media is particularly encouraging this negativity
between our countries, of which in the long run will do more damage for India
than for any Australians or our reputation.
As long as you keep pulling out the race card, this unnecessary hatred will
continue.
YOU HAVE A CHOICE!
NIN
FEB 01,
2010
09:17 AM
110
Stephen,

By your own words Stepehen, the UK government wants genuine students, not
just people trying to immigrate. I believe that the agents in India are Indian? It's
no different here. The system was abused, it's now being corrected and the
agents are looking for a new system in a different country to abuse.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:11 AM
109
Ian, the Indian Accountants and Engineers don't need to go through the dodgy
shcools. They need to sit the appropriate exam within Australia to gain their
accreditation. It is not a racist exam, as anyone from any country where the level
of accreditation is not the same level as Australia must sit it. Same goes for Drs,
plumbers, fitters and turners etc. What is being observed is that Inidans along
with nationals from a couple of other countries show excessively high numbers of
their nationals presenting fraudulant documents. I work for a company where of
the 420 staff hired in December 2009 in India it was found the number of staff
that presented degrees and masters from Indian unversities 280 were found to be
forged. So I think this shows you need to be vigilant when people claim to be
Engineers or Accountants.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:06 AM
108
To Ian=UK Government stopped Visa processing FORM north India not due to
fraud but for the overwhelming application compared to the same period last
year.learn to read English properly.Fraud was commuted by Australian sham
colleges agents in India and the Govt here conveniently pimped for it.The Uk also
mentioned that it does not want immigrants and want genuine students=that
means we do not wan tot cheat Indian students by promising them PR which
Australia did.Learn form your cousins how to be honest and truthful.
STPEHEN JOSE
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:00 AM
107
If the Indian media and government presented the facts you will see that very
little out of the ordinary is occuring relatibve to the Indian population. The
assaults have predominantly not been committed by white Australians as often
presented. You government has been given a portfoliio on the attacks and from
this they are selectively realeasing information. Why don't you demand that the
Indian government release all the details they have been supplied, and that your
media report accurately on the report. Indians are being arrested for murder,
rape, fraud, and theft in Australia on an ever increasing scale. Do I or most
Australians believe this then represents all Indians in Australia, probabley not as
every Australian I socialise with mix with educated professional Indians, not the
fraudulent Indian student who cannot speak English, and is involved in visa fraud,
and who attends vovational colleges set up by Indain companies in Australia
which are the ones constantly being caught for visa fraud.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:57 AM
106
Pratyush,

Agreed that Indians are some of the brightest people around - I work with them
(IBM, TCS, HCL etc). But you'd have to agree that Elan can't count himself
amongst that group? None of my Indian colleagues spout the hate speech and
vitriol that Elan does.

Please note that most of the dodgy training schools pandering to the Indian
market were owned by former Indian nationals the same way that most of the
dodgy training schools pandering to the Korean market were owned by former
Korean nationals. And it was quire clear that the UK had an increase in fraudulent
student visa applications from North India (majority) plus other South Asian
nations, some African nations and Brazil. The Australian goverment has also
cracked down on student visa appliactions from these countries, but not as
strongly as the UK government.

The change to the training legislation by the Howard Government in 2006 is what
got this dodgy training school business started in the first place. It's quite
ridiculous that an Indian trained engineer or accountant has to go through this
silly pretense to gain permanent residency here. That's what I find racist.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
If India can regulate it's citizens going to the middle east why cant we regulate
2010
08:53 AM
105
them coming to Australia. Look how Britain has stopped processing north Indian
Visa applications where as Australia looked at it as convenient way of getting
Indian money,which their nationals do not want.China similarly has banned it's
citizens coming to sham colleges but only to mainstream universities.For Indians
mainstream uni's are also not suitable because Australia does not have that
many institutions.
Recall the recent BBC focus magazine survey which sasy-Australia is a nation
number one in sin.Envy is high on their minds and Lust behind none.These guys
are they capable of teaching Indians Morality and ethics.xxx Indians accept that
we have problems but we dont project it on others as some comments but we
dont go around the world and cheat people saying this is a peaceful society and
the best place in the world.Only stupids like north Indian punjabis will listen to this
and come here thinking of getting good education but eventually get bashed up
or go home back in coffins.
The Punjab Government should seek advice from successful Punjabi's living
abroad and set up institutions that can train it's youngsters and make use of them
in nation building. What Aussies know about punjabis,the most prosperous and
enterprising people in India and the world and loathing Aussies can no where
come near them.
STPEHEN JOSE
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:50 AM
104
Rajneesh Batra is correct Indians are outperforming us everywhere. It has been
three years since a non Indian cleaned my car, drove me in a taxi, or served me
in a pertol station or 7/11, and now only one cleaner at work is a non Indian. At
the University of New England in 2007, of the 204 thesis presented by Indian
students for their Masters in IT, 200 were found to be fraudulent (google it if need
be), and once again you outperformed us in that, as no non-India was found to
have committed fraud. Of all the actual murders of Indians in the past twelve
months in Australia all but one has been found to have been committed by an
Indian national, and that one is still being investigated. Man you beat us again. Of
all the rapes and sexual assaults committed by taxi drivers in Adelaide in 2009,
all were found to have been committed by Indians. Damn you guys are good.
Like anyone I can be selective and prove how violent, racist, arrogant,
misogynistic and uneducated all Indians are, just as if I choose I can prove the
opposite. And this is the major flaw with the whole Indian media, Indian student
union and Indian politicians side of the argument.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:47 AM
They have started to arrest the people attacking Indians and they are other
Indians. The only racist people involved are Indian.
103
RAJNEESH
ISLAMIBAD, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:42 AM
102
Elan.

You have fallen for the media hype in toto. You see CONCLUSION there is
racism in every country on the planet. It is how that country deals with it that
counts.
So Elan how do you explain that at least three of these attacks were made by
Indian Nationals. What is racist about their attacks?
SCOTT GRUNDY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:37 AM
101
Please do not villify Elan. Elan my brother. I have a number of a good psychiatrist
in San Jose. He is an Anglo-Indian. He fled communnal and racist violence in
India. I am sure you are. Please forgive us and our racist hearts and return soon
to Australia. We will greet you with open arms and help you overcome your hate
for the nation that allowed you to have freedom until you migrated to the US. One
question. Why did you never return to India? The Indians in America are native
Americans. Were you a little confused believing that you were going to India, but
ended up in the US. Don't feel ashamed. A famous explorer once made the same
mistake. Also if you do return you can join the disprapportianate number of Indian
'students' that have presented with mental health issues in Australia which the
Australian taxpayer then needs to support, as the Indian Government, and the
students families disown them due to having a mental illness, found to have
constistantly been brought on by the stress of being removed from their famiies
but most importantly the pressure put on them to provide for their spunging
relatives in India.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:35 AM
100
A special post, just for Elan:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/6161691.stm

Get over it.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:34 AM
99


Get over it.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:27 AM
98
Elan,

Any school leaver can get a bank job here, no matter what race or culture you
come from. Graduates too.

You've never been here have you? Liar, liar, pants on fire!
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:27 AM
97
Burnt Gurudwara really is a big thing. I am really sad for this and this is really a
big concern. But you cant blame this to everyone in Australia. I dont want to
argue with anyone that who is wrong or right because there is no ending to this
all I can say is there are always bad elements everywhere in Australia or India or
anywhere.

I would assume 100 incidents were recorded in Australia out of these 100, 3 were
with Indian people and Indian media made these highlights saying RACISM.

CONCLUSION They just want five star rating by highlighting this as RACISM
because everyone will read this because its hot topic these days.

They should complete all investigation.

Police is definitely slow but lets hope for truth to come out for everything.
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:26 AM
Hey Ian

The reason that the UK has suspended visa applications from the North (only the
North) region of India is over-application, brought about by people leaving
Australia and applying for the UK.

96
And Ian, saying that Elan will form a "hair dressing school" is just ignorant.
Indians are the MOST successful ethnic group in the US - having the highest
earnings, and the highest education level among any other ethnic group (even
the whites). One particularly illustrative statistic is that almost 1/3 NASA
employees are of Indian origin.

Simply because they work crapper jobs here does not mean it is echoed
everywhere.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
08:19 AM
95
Elan says he was professionally a victim of racism in Australia. With his grammar
and moronic outburts, maybe there were better candidates for the jobs he was
applying for.

Sometimes there is racism, but Indians use the 'racism' word because they know
that whites are over-sensitive to it. It's a bit like being critical of Israel's policies
and then being accused of being anti-semetic.

It is a no win situation for whites because if you try to defend you are accused of
being in denial. The judge and jury do their job and an entire nation is charged
with racism in the meantime.

Sad.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
08:12 AM
94
hey jassi it your gurdawaras getting burned in mebourne and sydney
ELAN
SAN JOSE, UNITED STATES
FEB 01,
2010
08:07 AM
93
there are documented stories of conflict with greek/italians and white north
european australian migrants mostly irish slaves and english convict descendants
so these irish slaves and english and scottish convict descendants basically
fought everyone beginning everyother migrant group that came

if australians on this board do not think racism in australia is a problem they need
to worry about why are they on this board trying to everyone that would listen
which is not many that there is no racism in australia sounds like typical convict
aussie logic to me D.B is inflaming racism on site with his extreme right wing
views what can you expect from an ill bred and ill born son of a whore in my 30
years plus in australia most white australians i met were ill born and ill bred and
school leavers ofcourse you could get even bank jobs being a school leaver and
a white
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
08:05 AM
92
DEFINITELY, INDIAN MEDIA IS PLAYING VERY BAD ROLE ON THIS ISSUE.
THEY DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE ISSUE AND JUST MAKE
EVERYTHING IN THEIR HEADLINES AS RACIST. SHAME ON THIS FREE
MEDIA. THEY ARE AFTER MONEY.. JUST WANT FIVE STAR RATING.

NOW SOME TIMES I DOUBT WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT PAKISTANS ROLE IN
INDIA TO PROMOTE TERRORISM. I THINK THIS CAN BE JUST A MEDIA
STUNT AS WELL..
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:01 AM
91
DB, I don't know why you think it's inflammatory. have u ever criticised some of
the real racist remarks have emerged on blogs? ok..aren't you with me to build a
just Australia? Don't you believe in reconciliation? do't u think tassy needs a
break from the looters? if u do not suipport my views, you are un australian! So
who should go back>? u decide.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
07:59 AM
90
Elan and Sasha,

What nasty pieces of work you are! I pity people with hate in their hearts like you.
Elan, if you hate Australia so much, why do you keep the Australian passport?
Why did you stay for 30 years? Actually, I think you're fibbing, whiling away the
hours in a call entre in Mumbai, surfing Wikipedia - you've never been in Australia
have you?

Please also note that, as of yesterday, the UK Government has suspended all
student visa applications from India for three month due to a massive increase in
fraud in the last three months of 2009. Obviously now that Australia has tightened
up its system and put the fradulent schools out of business, the criminal agents in
India are targetting the UK.

Where next Elan? Maybe San Diego in the USA? You could run a hair-dressing
school there.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:49 AM
89
I am Australian born and bred. I'm caucasian (on the surface), have a private
education, live in a good part of town and have been in a professional job for a
few years. I'm connected to India by my grandmother who is Indian and have
been raised to have a strong connection to both countries.

Melbourne is a wonderful, friendly, clean, city. You walk down the street, go to
the office, go to university, catch a train and sit next to Indians, South Americans,
Africans, Muslims, Christians, Hindu's, Jews.

I believe that Indians have been targeted. But by who? And Why? Like in any
country in the world, with any easily identifiable minority group like Indians here,
there are bad elements of society namely, racists, extremists, crazy extreme right
wing politicians, people who are angry they are out of work and looking for
something to blame, or murderers who would go so far as to abuse or beat an
innocent man for no reason other than their own demons. It's sick. But not me...
And not millions and millions of other Australians. it's decidedly un-australian. We
are in a strong majority as sympathetic and as disgusted as any Indian.

Australia thinks it's sick and would do anything to stop it. And if we aren't doing
enough, we should to more.

Indians in Australia should band together as one and stand strong and proudly as
part of Australia while they are here. Not fear. But don't point fingers and blame it
on the entire country of Australia. It only creates unproductive animosity between
the countries. India has had it's own struggles with racism throughout it's history,
and I wouldn't label Indians racist... All I ask is that you hold close that Australia
and India will beat this together and make our guests a future residents proud
and comfortable to be here.
ANDREW (MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA)
FEB 01,
2010
07:48 AM
88
Sasha, comment 82, you need to realise that your attitude,as an Indian living in
Australia, is obscene, and the statements you make about Australians could be
used to incite violence against Indians by mindless mobs in the same way as this
article could be used to incite violence against Australians by likewise mindless
mobs. You need to think more clearly and show a little gratitude to the nation that
allowed you to move there. If I thought you were in any way a true example of
Indians in Australia I would be out demonstrating to have you all removed. The
fact is that most Indians are very nice and decent people in my own experience,
and it's unfortunate that some like you have been allowed into my country.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:48 AM
87
given the number of white australian married to chinese and indians my own
sister in law is white australian very soon all white australians will have a indian
or chinese grandmother or grandfather wow so much for white australia ha ha ha
and then add to that all your ddays marrying a thai at the age of 60 and having a
few more kids where does exactly white australia stand in another generation or
two nowhere i suppose
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:43 AM
86
D.B

FUCK OFF YOU CONVICT BTURD
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:43 AM
85
Looks like this board is descending to the lowest common denominator as usually
happens. If I may make a suggestion - don't respond to a post that's clearly
inflammatory. It only fuels the media circus that's causing many of the problems
to start with.
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:42 AM
84
Brothers and Sisters, Let us build an Australia devoid of racism. let us build an
Australia that is honest about reconciliation with its native people. Let's restore
the lost glory of Australia. Let Australia be the beacon of freedom to the millions
of underprivileged in this world. Let us invite refugees, let us adopt more kids
from the under developed. We have a moreal responsibility. Let us build true
brotherhood between Aboroginals, Indians, chinese, lebanese, vietnamese and
the anglo saxons who are willing to believe that a true and just Australia is
possible. let us shun this farce of a democracy, let us shun the Union jack.
Australia forever. We will live and die for a just Australia.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
07:38 AM
83
D.B.

i am an indian that carries an australian passport and it my right to enter and live
in australia like any australian so if you were to tell me to levae i will tell you to
fuck off you filthy convict bloody basturd i would advise sasha to tell you the
same
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:38 AM
82
DB, I think you must leave. I know you are threatened with the truth. Do you
really think you have a choice anymore? I mean seriously. U really thought you
could set up a white nation in Asia? How much more ridiculous can that be? U
really think Australia as a white nation will sustain for another 50 or 100 years? u
have to be kidding. I mean seriously..what happening in Zimbabwe and South
Africa? Let's look at it logically. I'm only saying it's not sustainable. Stop Looting
Tasmania, Stop looting the mines of Australia. Go back!
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
07:36 AM
81
tejas oza

i lived in australia for 30 years thanks very much faced racism at each and every
and every step all the time every time I qualified with several degrees faced
racism at each and every job got good jobs but racism and politicking was too
much i still have property and family in australia but for professionals reasons
whether they respect people for skills and talent i moved to USA I know every
nook and corner of Australia and Australian racism that i could do a thesis on on
it I knew Indian and chinese community leaders long before the general public
knew them I know exactly what I am saying
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:33 AM
If Sasha is an Indian living in Australia I would ask you to please leave. We don't
need your kind here and you have a country of your own to go to.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
80
FEB 01,
2010
07:31 AM
79
To Pratyush, comment 68, international students are supposed to be allowed to
work up to 20 hours per week, but they work illegally, for much longer, and for
pay that is below what Australians can live on. The US has struggled with illegal
immigrants doing this to their people as well, as so has England with the Poles
and Ukrainians. Australians have right to be angry about that, and really, foreign
students should not be allowed to work at all. They should be entirely self-funding
or they should not come to Australia.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:31 AM
78
you aussies do not even own your own country the mayor of melbourne is
chinese australian for ages hey the australian ambassador to india is an indian
origin australian man you aussies have lost your country to others America
elected its first black president while Australian unofficial policy is to kill blacks
remeber the somali refugees you mistreated hey Australians threw babies of
refugees at sea that teh norwegians had teh heart to rescue and the australians
reverse accused the refugees of throwign their own babies to sea to show how
ugly refugges were until the truth came out
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:30 AM
77
This is an extremely poorly-written article. Pranay Sharma, the journalist, is, at
best, inaccurate and at worst, inflammatory. For instance, Sharma cites three
specific incidents to illustrate vividly the danger Indians in Melbourne face daily.
This is an article focused on the allegedly racist attacks experienced by Indians
here, yet race (as the term is commonly understood), can only be included as a
factor in the attack on Kanan Bhargawa at Sunshine station, as he was subjected
to racial expletives in what appears to be an opportunistic attack The two other
incidents do not actually involve race. Xenophobia is clearly present, but race?
No.
Additionally, Sharma also claims that Victoria is crime-prone (on what basis? I
mean, compared to other states/provinces around the world, surely Victoria
would rate quite well?) and uses spokesmen from the Australia First and One
Nation parties - tiny, right-wing fringe parties, neither of which has a seat in
Australias 226-member bicameral parliament - to provide comments from the
white Australia perspective (along with a filmmaker). I could go on
But dont get me wrong. Foreigners (whether Indian, Pakistani, British or from any
country) being attacked/abused in Australia is unacceptable and race remains
an issue here. The question is whether these attacks are racially motivated.
Despite my misgivings about this article, Im aware that there are far greater
examples of sensationalist, inaccurate reporting (both in India and Australia)
about this issue. I wonder if any of these journalists (and their respective editors)
consider the irony of this type of reporting. Just see some of the bigoted,
prejudiced, ill-informed comments from both Australians and Indians. I suspect
that at least some of the attacks on Indians here have stemmed, at least in part,
from the sensationalist media coverage.
STEPHEN ALEXANDER
FEB 01,
2010
07:29 AM
76
@Elan (comment 67), I do not think you are making any sense. In history of each
country, you will find issues of racisim and many other negetive points in
someway or another. If you are trying to help the caues of supporting Indins, you
are not doing any favour here. We need to stop playing by the media and see
realities.

You are not in Australia and I do not think you know many facts either starting
with the population figure of Australia, which is over 21 Million. On what basis you
say that 90% of Sydney is 'owned' by Indians and Chinese? What a funny
statement to make!

Anyway they key point is we need to stop jumping on judging and generalising in
the way we are doing here. This is true for both Indians and Australians. Neither
know the other country and its people that well to start judging.

Let us stay out of this and let governments handle this.

As I mentioned earlier (see my comment number 39) , media is trying to sell and
we are buying it without thinking twice....
TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:28 AM
75
realities.

statement to make!


Let us stay out of this and let governments hande this.

TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:26 AM
74
Hey nathan jarman, people who do not respect the laws of the land should
headback and that surely includes white australisn who raped Australia without
showing any respect to the existing laws and cultures. U ripped it apart and set
up ur own rulesa nd u want others to go back. That will nto work anymore. The
genocide against aboroginals have to be taught in world history across the world.
indians will campaign for it. no doubt. it was a genocide, much worse than what
Jews went through. With due respect to jews, i have to say that. At least the jws
managed to document the atrocities against them. The aboroginals have nothing
left behind. My logic is only this nathan. if u cannot respect the law of the land,
please go back. No matter how many generations u've been here, we won't miss
you here. We are actually full of racists and we want to deweed australia of this
venom. and btw, if u give me the logic of generations, i can give u the logic of
moving plates. If you look at aboroginal way of life, they have more in common
with tribes in south india. So historically we belong here. Indians coming to
Australia will be rewritten to a Home Comign Policy and Brits ae the real
immigrants. they are the ethnics. Not Indians. This is home for us. We belong
here. We are full and don't want racists here anymore.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
07:26 AM
73
aussie get a mighty shock when after leaving their island they find that there are
so so so many Indian in USA and UK and in Europe so when you hear thses
weird aussie accents that Americans laugh at at Los Angeles airport or at UK
airports when they arrive to work as nannies or bartenders and they find that hey
most of American technology is also taken up by the chinese and Indians and
almost everything in UK belongs to Indians Aussies get mighty frightened so they
hit on Indian websites to try to salvage what every little shit they have got left for
themselves
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:21 AM
72
TO PRATYUSH

do not worry about Dave that is typical racist aussie response they will tell you
first you do not know english then that you misspell etc and finally that you are
black Dave himself is asshole school leaver ask Dave why he is on an Indian site
I know aussies like him I carry an autralian passport and kick Dave aussie asses
at will Australia is now totally occupied by the Indians and Chinese so what does
Dave do Dacve gets on a Indian site and tell Indians that they cannot spell
english or that they are incoherent

i ma doctor most doctors in Australia are chinese or Indians Dave is a garbage
collector
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:20 AM
71
I wouldn't worry about Elan. He spends all of his time on these sorts of boards
giving radical although incoherent opinions.

Interestingly he lives in the US (or so he says), which has a better documented
history of racism that most countries. If he uses examples of colonial times as
proof that attacks on Indians today are racist, one only imagines that he refers to
the US slave trade when someone issues him a parking ticket in the US.

Trawling the internet to provide examples of another countries misdeeds is hardly
a mature way of dealing with this issue. If Elan disagrees then maybe we should
ask him if he thinks the rape of a 9 year old Russian girl in Goa recently should
should be taken as evidence that all Indians are racist rapists.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
07:18 AM
70
D.B.

I obviously made enough impact for a dumbo aussie like you to refer to my post
you talk typically like the descendant of convict and prostitutes thats your
pedigree pedigree is for dogs but you are worse than that you are school leaving
illiterate dole bludging ugly beach bum and you dont know who your slut mother
fucked to have to here fortunately for her as with most aussie mothers she
abandoned you and so you grew up to to a heavily tattoed drug addict with the
sole purpose in life to beat up everyone that doesnt look like you your world is
shrinking so ask yourself who cares whether you read others opinions
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:18 AM
69
@ Elan

Personal attacks and ad hominem arguments of all sorts are a weak way of
getting your point across. The more external criticism of a liberal, pluralistic
society by citizens of nations with appalling records on human rights, the rule of
law, media freedom, economic inequality almost beyond understanding and a
broken social welfare system makes criticism from those quarters irrelevant as
you believe our arguments are.

Argue on the merits of the issues, not soap box musings without any real basis. A
pot should not be calling the kettle black. Mirrors are reflective remember.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
07:18 AM
68
I love the way many Australian people claim to "know" India - at times, even
better than Indians themselves!

To those who refer to the repressed dalits and lower caste people, yes the caste
system is atrocious, but it had nothing to do with race! And it is not part of any
religion - it is a social construction. As socio-economic barriers are being broken
down, so is the caste system.

People are also justifying the stick they give to Indians based on India's treatment
of foreigners. But people disregard the turbulent history that India has had at the
hands of the British, Portuguese, and others. Given this, I'd say foreigners are
treated very well in India, much better than some other countries such as South
Korea.

At Dave, I do not understand what hate filled sentiments I have expressed, nor
what is particularly poor worded about my earlier comment. I am a civil engineer,
and I have seen how much money unskilled labourers earn in Australia. Many of
them earn more than me - plasterers sometimes charge up to $20,000 for the
plastering of a two storey house. I have seen the cementers throw beer bottles
and then cover it up with cement. And that's when they turn up in the first place.
When unskilled labourers can earn more than a qualified, experienced, (and if I
say so myself) decent engineer, you can understand why many people would
wish to migrate here.

Please note, that I am not claiming Australia as an overall racist country, but
many of the comments here are disgusting. There is a huge shortage of jobs in
Australia, hence encouraging Indians, Chinese, and other migrants to come here.
To claim jobs will be "lost" by maintaining such immigration levels is absurd,
especially when students are only allowed to work 20 hours a week legally! If I
worked 20 hours a week at award wages, I would barely pay for my rent! The
and yet, by the work restriction laws, forcing them in live in crappy conditions.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
07:12 AM
67
D.B.

while you aussies are getting your racist asses kicked by everyone from
americans to the english to the chinese logonto their media to listen to what they
are saying am i really worried that you out of your pitiful population of 18 million
may not read my opinion we are making the impacts where it matters also given
that 90% of sydney is now owned by the chinese and indians suggest you find
another country to got to
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:03 AM
66
To Elan, unfortunately your inability to write coherent english or use punctuation
means I'm forced to ignore your comments. I hope you're not saying anything
valuable or pertinent because I would have to miss out on it, although I doubt you
do have anything of real value to say, because if you did, you'd have learned how
to make yourself clearly understood by now.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
06:33 AM
65
While not condoned I believe the expectation from Indians in Australia and in
India is that they receive a level of support and assistance above other persons in
Australian society, including its own citizens. So to answer the question on your
cover, because of your breathtaking hypocrisy. Thousands killed in mob violence
linked to both race and religion. Where my Indian Dr friends don't go out in the
sun because their skin might become a little darker and they might be confused
for lower caste. Effigies burnt and lives threatened at the drop of a hat. You would
be still practising suttee if the English didn't keep hanging you for it. If Indians are
concerned about violence here and not satisfied with the response from
police/government the solution is simple - stay in your paradise.
ANGUS
PARRAMATTA, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
06:30 AM
64
THE United Nations special deleate on indigenous rights says the intervention
into remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory is clearly
discriminatory, and that there is "entrenched" racism in Australia.

THE intervention into remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory is
clearly discriminatory, and that there is "entrenched" racism in Australia, the
United Nations special delegate on indigenous rights says.

James Anaya didn't pull any punches after his two-week visit of the country.

He said the Rudd Government should reinstate the Racial Discrimination Act in
the NT "right away" because the intervention was discriminatory.

"It undermines the right of indigenous peoples to control their own destinies, their
right to self-determination," he said.

He also said the Stolen Generations should be paid compensation.
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:29 AM
63
5 hours a story from Brisbane

Delmae Barton aged 62, a prominent Indigenous Elder and an opera singer, lay
for more than five hours on a bus stop seat near Griffith University's Nathan
Campus in July 2006, unable to reach out for help after vomiting from a
suspected stroke or diabetes attack.

For five and a half hours, commuters, students and bus drivers ignored her plight
until two young Japanese men asked if she needed water and help.

Her friend and the director of the Gumurri Centre at the university Boni
Robertson, says it is a disgrace that Auntie Delmae's plight was ignored by
hundreds of commuters as buses came and went.

She said 'nobody would stop to help me. Is this all I'm worth?' She believes
people thought she was a drunk or a drug addict, and that the colour of skin
encouraged them to walk on by.

The then Premier Peter Beattie told parliament he was 'really disappointed' by the
incident and apologised on behalf of Queenslanders.
A story from Townsville

Aborigines can no longer receive a fair trial in Townsville according to survey
results to be released in July that show a majority of residents would be unable to
expel racist attitudes in court. The survey was conducted to demonstrate the
need for the Lex Wotton Palm Island Riots case to be moved from a scheduled
hearing in Townsville to Brisbane to ensure a fair and just trial.

In the survey, commissioned by Sydney-based law firm, Levitt Robinson, over
half of Townsville residents claimed they could not disregard negative beliefs held
about Aborigines, even if instructed by a judge in a courtroom setting.

These results bring to light a segregated city rife with racist views with only one in
ten Townsville residents having a positive attitude towards Aboriginal people in
the community.

Ignorance seemed to be a major factor with only one in four people correctly
attributing the cause of the Palm Island Riots to a death in custody.
A story from Sydney

In April 2008, a world-renowned Aboriginal composer, buzzing after a standing
ovation at the Sydney Opera House, was turned away from half-empty Kings
Cross haunt Hugo's. He and his friend were told, "You can't expect us to just let
anyone in."

William Barton, a son of Delmae Barton, who has been to some of the world's top
bars over his acclaimed career, was told the venue was "at capacity" as he tried
to get it at 9.30pm on a Sunday to celebrate a friend's birthday. His friend
immediately fronted Hugo's door staff - and was rudely told: "You can't expect us
to just let anyone in."
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:28 AM
62
I have lived in the west for the past 30 years. There is some truth in these
reports. However, there are two facets to this problem-
1. The attitude of Australians towards Indians
2. The naivety of the Indian students

Generally speaking, on the surface, people are polite. However, the institutional
and inherent racism exists deeply. for example- I consider myself reasonably well
integrated in the society. When we arrived at the Sydney Airport, the customs
person snatched the bag from my hand and stared at me with anger. On other
occasions, salespeople ignore when asked for assistance. There are many such
incidents that also go unrecorded. My brother was declined service in Armed
forces because he was Indian. When he requested for details, they offerred
employment but did not reveal the reason for earlier decline. There are many
such experiences and some of them trivial to print.
The second aspect of this issue is that many Indians who are arriving into
Australia are simply naive. They live in poorer neighbourhoods, work at cheap
joints (at odd hours)and don't have the finesse to get out of difficult situations.
They are easy prey to bad social elements in Australian society. It may be better
if the Indian government ask all Indians travelling abroad to take a mandatory
course to familiarise themselves of the new environment.
VIREN AGGARWAL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
06:28 AM
61
Racism in Australia
Australia has a long history of racism dating back to the founding of the first
colony in Sydney Cove. The establishment of the British colony in 1788 was
justified by a racist ideology later expressed by the 'Terra Nullius' concept, in
which the colonists believed they had first rights to the land over other groups.
Racism is closely tied to nationalism, and the use of immigrants as scapegoats
during lean economic times.
Lambing Flat massacre

Australia's experience with the Chinese on the goldfields probably established
the pattern of discriminatory practice towards Chinese in particular and Asians in
general. Early Asian immigrants in Australia generally took jobs unwanted by
Europeans such as railway workers, shepherds on new land, fruit pickers and
clearing bushland. By the early 19th century, with 24,000 Chinese immigrants in
Australia there was a perception about Australia being 'overrun'. More
particularly, Chinese miners were a perceived threat to the Australian economy.
The discovery of gold in Australia and a subsequent Gold Rush saw a boom of
Asian immigrants against extreme difficulties posed by white settlers such as the
Poll Taxes of ten pounds in Victorian ports and widespread anti-Chinese
violence.

In 1857, just before the outbreak of a major anti-Chinese riot on Victoria's
Buckland River goldfield, Henry Parkes, best known as the 'Father of Federation'
and owner of the Empire newspaper, railed against the 'unnatural vices and
practices' that supposedly prevailed in China. In June 1861, just before another
anti-Chinese riot at the Lambing Flat goldfield (near Young, in New South Wales),
the Empire warned that:
... there is a good deal of the animal about the Chinaman ... the white population
is becoming demoralised by the presence of hordes of idolatrist barbarians,
destitute of religion and morality, as well as every social virtue which makes us
proud of our Anglo-Saxon race and institutions.[1]

The bloody riots at Lambing Flat in the 1860s were an indication of the depth of
feeling aroused. The miners had accused the Chinese diggers of 'stealing' their
gold and taking their land. The massacre marked the beginning of
institutionalised anti-Asian racism in Australia. The Lambing Flat massacre (or
Lambing Flat riots), were a series of violent anti-Chinese demonstrations that
took place in the Burrangong region, in New South Wales, Australia. They
occurred on the goldfields at Spring Creek, Stoney Creek, Back Creek, Wombat,
Blackguard Gully, Tipperary Gully, and Lambing Flat, between 1860 - 1861.
Many unarmed Chinese miners were beaten to death or chased off the goldfield,
with their possession looted by the mobs and their houses set on fire. Later in
1861, the Chinese Immigration Regulation Act passed the New South Wales
Parliament, which prohibited the naturalisation of Chinese citizens in the state.

During the same period, Tasmania had seen Chinese workers in the North-East
where they displaced Europeans on the tin fields. When numbers had reached
1000 in 1880, a public meeting was called to oppose them. The Bulletin weekly
magazine came to the forefront of expressing racist sentiments of the time by
proudly proclaiming on the front cover masthead: 'Australia for the White Man'. In
1887, after praising the Australians as egalitarians emancipated from the
tyrannies of the Old World, it declared:
All white men who come to these shores - with a clean record - and who leave
behind them the memory of class distinctions and the religious differences of the
old world are Australians No african, no Chinaman, no lascar, no Kanaka, no
purveyor of cheap, coloured labour is an Australian.[2]


purveyor of cheap, coloured labour is an Australian.
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 AM
60
one should read about the constant assault on indians in australia they recently
also drew criticsim for a black face comedy skit on hey hey its saturday telivision
show australia was a white only country until the 1970 i lived in australia a long
time i would say australia is one of the most racist countries in the whole world
ofcourse australia was settled by uprooting its aboriginal population then the
australians took away aboriginal children to make them more like them the
australian goct recent apoligised to the aboriginal people only last year for
atrocities committed for hundreds of years until the 1990 it would be impossible to
find an african american person in australia only recently australia allowed some
somali refugees but there have been complains of treating them very badly
australia had asian chinese laborers coming to work in the australian gold mines
and farms they also owned farms just before the world war reports suggest soem
chinese also fought for the australian army after the war the chinese were sent
back to china and their lands taken away from them it was only after the white
only policy was lifted that they were allowed to come back seom 40 years later if
with the white only policy australia preferred southern european whites like
italians and greeks prior to that even italians and greeks were not allowed settling
in australia italians and greeks had a hard time settling in australia that was
followed by australian reluctance to allowed asian immigrants chinese filipinos
indonesians etc indian immigration followed and now the chinese and indian
communities are fairly big ther are some 100,000 indians students that study in
australia annually and the indian community locally is also big but recently indian
students have been attacked repeated with 1or more averaging a month many of
them beign fatal while the australian police has termed soem of these attacks as
oppoortunistic but have refrained from terming them racist even though in some
of them explicit racist overtones existed in the attacks like indian australians
repeatedly stabbed and being told to go home the indian community now lives
very cautiously in australia the australian police is faily lax generally speaking and
they have not being able to either stop these attacks or investigate and prosecute
the culprits indian bashing in australia and takign away their iphones and
blackberry and laptops has become a game for many criminals in australia
recently a chinese researcher was fatally attacked while walkign home from
university campus attackers mistook him to be an indian in the dark and told the
court later that that night they wanted to attack an indian to get his ipod the ex
president of a state medical association in australia an indian from uk from
atatcked so severly while strolling in the park that he suffered a massive brain
damage and apparently had to learn such basic things as speech one read
timesofindia.com and the age.com.au to understand the current australian
situation
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 AM
59
Overall the article does bring out several points about why Indian students seem
to be more under attack than other indians or even other students. The headline
is very mis-leading though and only serves to add fuel to the anger and hate that
the average Indian has developed for Australia. Very disappointing Outlook, very
disappointing.

I am not a "rich" indian and dont live in a posh suburb in Melbourne (yes,
Outlook, there can be suburbs that dont house the dregs of society or the uber
rich). I am offended by the fact that you group indians in australia as either poor
students or rich migrants. There is a strong group of hardworking, professional
indians who are quite happy living in this country and appreciate all that it has to
offer. I haven't been subjected to any racist attack but that does not mean I dont
think there are racist elements in australia.
Your article talks about the more liberal australians and mentions that the One
nation party etc are not popular, but I dont think you stress that enough. And in
not doing so, you continue to feed the myth that 'white' australians dont like
indians.
Your article also only focuses on young white kids as the perpetrators of these
assaults. Which again is only half the truth, as a lot of the violence that
Melbourne sees is caused by asian, african gangs (sydney I believe has the
lebanese who cause problems).

All this media coverage and the hateful comments over the last couple of months
from both sides just makes me think that some people will continue to believe
what they want to, irrespective of the facts
SUMERA
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 AM
58
"Alright all white Australians. It's time to behave or leave Australia. Go back to
your homeland. There's no excuse."...Actually,for most white
Australians,Australia is their homeland. Most white Australians have had their
family living here for the last 150 years,and have never been to their ancestors
lands of Britain and Ireland. By your logic every person of Indian descent who
lives in USA,Canada,Britain,Malaysia,Singapore,Fiji,the West
Indies,Kenya,Tanzania and South Africa should be heading home to the
"Motherland".
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:26 AM
for Australians everyone around them is a fake and everything around them is a
myth that is anything that is not Australian according to them the author of the
article has no clue about Gandhi liberated a nation of one billion against violence
what does the author suggests that all Indians in Australia subject them selves to
57
the violence against them by Australians to compare a self defeating Australian
attitude like tall poppy syndrome with Gandhi transigence against his violent
colonial rulers is taking the empty and vacuous Australian culture or the lack
thereof too far it is just plain silly to do that comparison it does not look like the
Australians get it assaulting others that look unaustralian will only get you so far
read the newspaper from uk to the middle east to Asia to asses the damage to
Australian reputation internationally looks like lanmandragon does not get it
above all Gandhi was uk educated barrister who went to south Africa to practice
law was far more literate than his English peers and that is the key Indians are in
Australia do as they have done elsewhere focus their energies now literacy and
education and further their professions like they have done in silicon valley in usa
or in uk where majority of doctors and infact the richest person in uk is Indian or
in Canada where British columbia recently boasted its first Indian origin premier
or in Australia where the Australian ambassador to India is Indian and along the
way if a few obstacles come in the form of assaults and being victimized that is
only to be expected and really so what Australians are good only at being
envious of other people success Australians lack the tenacity to undertake
hardship to struggle and put themselves outside of their comfort zones to educate
themselves either professionally or more importantly outside of their narrow
minded antiquated views on culture and race when Australians travel one usually
finds them working in a pub in uk or as nannies and closeted in their own
Australian habits and tantrum unwilling to expose themselves to new
environments even if it means that is a western English environment like the uk
or usa Australians have a habit of irritating their hosts even in those countries
which they claim to have the same culture as theirs indeed the Australian accent
is laughed at and derided at uk and usa pubs or perhaps compliments by patron
occasionally for some drunken jolly good times Australians though are completely
oblivious of what image they portray and how they are perceived because a true
Australian trait is a complete lack of introspection and self improvement
Australians believe what they want to believe Australians read what they want to
read Australians hear what they want to hear unfortunately for Australians the
world has a different view
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:20 AM
56
Wonka in HK:

"One other thing I'd like to add - if India is so concerned about its citizens beeing
treated fairly & equally overseas then why does your government (at all levels)
officially seem to think its OK to charge visting guests considerably higher
prices."

That might be because foreign tourists have more disposable income and to
allow all citizens of India, who are the owners and inheritors of the cultures that
prededed, we pay a relatively small amount to see an amazing work of
architectural brilliance.

See how much you have to pay to see Avatar 3D in contrast to an ancient
monument that needs foreign money to help keep their treasures open to all and
maintain them well for your photo op in front of the gleaming mausoleum.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:53 AM
55
"The Australian government should stop issuing student visas for irrelevant
courses like hair styling , nail manicuring and cookery. Another good idea is to
prevent shoddy colleges offering such courses from admitting students."...The
current government is in the process of doing that now. But you know what will
happen when that occurs?.. Indians will cry "racism" because they are no longer
allowed to "study" cookery or hairdressing in Australia. We should also point out
that it's not just Indians doing these bogus student courses. We have people from
all over south east asia and even Brazil doing them nowadays. The difference
between them and the Indians is they come here with far more money and don't
live in the worst areas doing the worst jobs. And as for Prahran..the only
dangerous places there are near the nightclubs where you have thousands of
people drinking and taking drugs.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:48 AM
54
Lots of interesting & valid comments here.

One other thing I'd like to add - if India is so concerned about its citizens beeing
officially seem to think its OK to charge visting guests considerably higher prices.

Of course an Indian will pay, what 10-100 rupees to vistit the Taj Mahal - but I
must pay well over 7 times that amount - approx US$35.

I think issues of inequality ... and lack of respect ... are far greater in India. And
ultimately Racism is cancerously inherent amongst your own people. I'd love to
see India open up as a Multi-cultural society & operate free of problems -
absolutely not!!!!

And what about the Caste system ... although officially outlawed it still has an
enormous presence in everyday life. Isn't religion a clever & powerful way of
keeping the downtrodden eternally downtrodden.

As I wrote earlier I think if you polled ALL Indians living in Australia where they
would rather be I'm sure you'll find most would rather stay down under.

I've spent a reasonable time in India on 3 occasions over the last 15 years and
lived in Mainland China for 7 years. I hate to say it .. but China's rapid
development over the last 25 years (economically & socially) only highlights
India's enormous failures.

Honestly India there are far greater problems of Violence, inequality, and
predjudice in your own backyard that you need to sort out!!
WONKA HUNDSHEISEN
HONG KONG, HONG KONG
FEB 01,
2010
05:44 AM
53
Also for a last piece of perspective. Considering the hysteria in the Indian media
towards Australia, is there the same level of anger towards the overt
discrimination that people of Indian ancestry receive/received in such places as
Fiji, South Africa, Uganda, Malaysia etc where one ethnicity was jealous of Indian
ingenuity and hard work and LEGISLATED and openly victimized those who had
lived in such countries for over a century.

Makes you wonder whether this is a massive media splurge of populism,
chauvinism and ignorance? Is some of this anger also derived from, and driven
by,Indian nationalism rising and India wishing to assert its power?
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:38 AM
52
I just had a thought as I'm sitting at my desk. I went to school and Uni with
Australians whose families migrated from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka etc and
never noticed any racism directed towards them.

Many doctors, lawyers, business people, academics and so forth are of
subcontinental descent or background.

As Victoria Police doesnt', I believe, keep records of the ethnicity of victims of
crime, what proportion of Indians who migrated to Australia as a family or skilled
migrant get assaulted or robbed?

I ask this as Indian Australians of a higher socio-economic level and familiarity
with Australia don't seem to be the target of racist attacks. Considering racists
are mostly ill-educated and ill-informed wouldn't they attack people who look
"Indian"?

There was a case where the head of the Australian Medical Association (A Dr. of
Indian extraction) was viciously attacked and robbed. No race related connection
as concluded by the victim, courts and police.

Apart from this instance, wouldn't it lead some to speculate that the attacks occur
routinely against vulnerable people. Students walking alone, to work, taxi drivers
etc.

If there was a racist intent I would expect to see Indians from all socioeconomic
backgrounds being represented. This is not the case. The vast majority as those
who live in much less affluent areas and are subject to the same dangers all
people face living in a deprived area.

Im sure there's quite a few suburbs of Mumbai, Dehli or other large cities in India
that are 'no go zones" for those who look more affluent and prone to opportunistic
robbery and violence.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:36 AM
51
D.B Sydney well I don't know anything about Indians breaking the rules, or
working illegally. But being a taxi driver in Melbourne is a very dangerous job. A
survey done by WorkCover in 1996 showed that 40% of taxi had been victim of
assault at least once while doing their jobs. If they are over represented in jobs
like taxi driver, as well as security guards and nightshift store keepers, then it
would be no surprise at all if they are also over represented in assault stats.
FLAVIAN HARDCASTLE
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:30 AM
50
David Brown,

>> whether there is a difference between thievery or racism is beside the point

True, for the victim it makes no difference. There is always a problem in
condemning a whole people for the malfeasance of a few. Many things are being
said in the heat of the moment which will be forgotten by the time of the next test
match.
ANWAAR
FEB 01,
2010
05:20 AM
In response to Flavian Hardcastle, comment 47 (love you name, by the way!), the
article here alludes to, but doesn't dare confront the whole truth of why Indian
students are over-represented in robbery statistics. Their habit of carrying their
money around with them and not using banks is because so many of them are
breaking the law and working far beyond the hours that international students are
49
allowed to work. Unfortunately, knowing India very well myself, Indians commonly
have no interest in following the laws, whether they are at home or abroad, and
Indian students have made themselves targets of robbery in Australia because of
this. Fortunately, the appalling situation of Indian students illegally driving taxis in
Australia's large cities may be eventually dealt with as the public outcry is getting
to be very loud about the shocking and dangerous driving, poor car and driver
cleanliness, and drivers not knowing their way to the easiest and most well
known destinations. Unfortunately Australian laws were originally written with an
assumption that most people would follow the rules, never anticipating the
government would flood the country with people who aren't interested in laws or
rules at all.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:14 AM
48
So many views on this subject, some so well presented, and some not so
balanced. All in all, a fair write up except the headline.
My experience is as an ethnic Indian having migrated, over 10 years ago and
settled in Melbourne. I keep hearing about Australia being racist - the notion
being that the whole country is racist? Can anybody point me to one single piece
of legislation or policy that is even remotely racist in modern Australia. Sure there
are a few misguided souls around here, but nothing even close to say - the
legislation in Maharashstra concering son of soil policy.
I have encountered reacist behaviour in my 20 odd years of working life. But I
have to say that about 90% of that was in India, where discrimination against my
ethnicity, language, caste etc was prolific.
We make it a point to visit India every 18-24 months. But the feeling of stepping
back into Melbourne is one truly of coming back home. Home where my aged
chinese neighbour keeps her best garden grown tomatoes and zucchinis for
us,where my Mauritian neighbours will often look after our kids they way their
grandparents would have,where my colleagues regardless of colour will put in a
day of back breaking work, im my lost cause garden, for no more reward than
chilled beer and companionship.
Do not tell me that Australia is racist - I know much better and am willing to show
you too, if you will listen.
SKYFISH
FEB 01,
2010
05:11 AM
Ok, some of your statistics are bit misleading.

For instance:

"130 Indians attacked countrywide, the Indian high commission says. Of these,
30 were students."
47

You haven't really proved any baseline for comparison here. But actually,
according to nationmaster, there are about 141, 000 asaults in Australia per year.
That's about 370 assaults per day.

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_ass_percap-crime-assaults-per-capita

Indians represennting about 1.5% of the population in Australia, they should be
subject to about 1.5% of daily assaults, or a bout 5-6 per day.

Ergo, 100 in a year is not a very high number of assaults at all. That should be
how many Indians are assaulted in the three weeks, all things being equal.

"1,447 incidents of crime against Indians in 2007-08 have been reported in
volunteers, to police a population of four million."

I think that's actually a misquote. That stat was reported, origininally, by the
Victorian police. They used the term "violent crime", and it was against "people of
Indian descent". It's a bit puzzling as to how they obtained this stat, as Victorian
police don't log the ethnicity of crime victims. At any rate, the Vic police recently
clarified that anyway, saying that Indians aren't over represented in assault, but
they are over represented in robberies.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/01/20/2797173.htm

However, I do commend the author for at least conceding the possibility that an
attack against an Indian might not be racially motivated. This is a real quantum
leap in the reporting of this issue by the Indian media.
FLAVIAN HARDCASTLE
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:09 AM
46
Alright all white Australians. It's time to behave or leave Australia. Go back to
your homeland. There's no excuse. If you want to live in Australia, you will have
to adhere to demoratic values. We will not tolerate your racist attitudes anymore.
The union Jack will shed soon. We;ve seen how you have treated the
Aborogninals and managed to wipe out cultures from Australia. This will not
happen anymore.We will defend this country to our last breath. We will drive back
forces of demons back to where they came from. Look at them still shamelessly
plundering away australian wealth through minning and converting the entire land
of tasmani into paper pulp. Devils, they are devils tryingto plunder Australia, rape
this beautiful land to the last branch. No Brumby, No Rudd. We had enough of
these skin heads. We will not tolerate racism in this land. If you want to be a skjin
head, your home is in the UK. We are full, so FO! BACK TO WHERE YOU CAME
FROM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
05:07 AM
45
COLONEL of BRIGHTON BEACH: Your below post has merely evidenced the
fact that Australia is a racist nation. Firstly I will point out that this article
addresses RACISM dowry murders are not racially motivated and therefore
irrelevant. Secondly I will note that per head of population Australia has a much
higher murder rate than India so again your comments are a waste of space (as i
suspect you are). The fact that you immediately resort to claiming 'they steal our
jobs' proves everything said within the article.
REA
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:03 AM
44
A fact left out of your article that really shows how bad your media is. Three of the
people arrested over these attacks. INIAN NATIONALS. So now we see it racist
attacks in Australia by Indian Nationals are Australians being racist.
http://www.smh.com.au/world/anatomy-of-hate-as-magazine-unleashes-
antiaustralian-rage-20100131-n6n4.html
SCOTT GRUNDY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:59 AM
43
Kingsley, comment 11...you say you teach at a university and yet you show
disgustingly poor grammar and even worse critical thinking. Perhaps this is a part
of the problem. Australia has geared up to make education, particularly fraudulent
education as a back door entry to permanent residency, a huge industry that has
destroyed true education in the country. Classrooms filled to the brink with non-
english-speaking students who manage to pass in a course that is taught and
examined entirely in english has to be a clue that education in Australia is a fraud
perpetrated on all students, whether foreign or not.

Australians are rightly angry that the government is allowing, literally, millions of
people in under its insane immigration laws and educational back-dooring.
Indians would be just as angry if tens and hundreds of millions of foreigners were
arriving in India every year and taking jobs and undermining the culture...in fact,
as I recall, India has already SHOWN that it gets very angry about those sorts of
things, but I never see articles calling Gandhi a racist.

Indian students should stay away from Australia if they are interested in
education. India has a perfectly good education system, and I would think it now
far superior to the excuse for education they would receive in Australia. Indian
students looking for advanced education also have to understand they have no
"right" to an education in Australia. If they don't like the conditions in Australia,
then they have a right to seek education anywhere they like. Australia is under no
obligation to them, nor they to it. The only reason any student in India is going to
be upset is because they see the cooking school road to Australian residency
becoming more difficult. Be aware, that is changing anyway. Australia no longer
will guarantee you permanent residency once your cooking school graduates
you, and with more pressure, it is most likely that in the near future foreign
students will be required to leave the country upon completing their studies,
which is as it should be.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:58 AM
42
I came to this web site from a link on the Melbourne Age news web site. I am a
person of Indian origin and once lived in Australia before immigrating to the US. It
is indeed sad to be following the non stop reports of violence against people of
Indian origin in Australia. When I lived in Australia, I was close friends with many
wonderful Australians of Anglo Celtic heritage. They were very nice people. I also
came across the riff-raffs on the streets, generally white Australians with low
education, blue collar jobs, who in some cases held 1970s White Australia views
and would not hesitate to yell out profanities at any non-white. Having lived in the
US for a decade now, I find some fundamental differences in the life experiences
of Indians in Australia and the US. Australia is a mono culture of the Anglo
Saxons heritage, and they traditionally see themselves as the only rightful
"Australians" and everyone else as Chinese or Greeks or Arabs etc. There is a
high tolerance of violence in Australia and the judges are very liberal, appointed
for life, and have more sympathy for the criminal than for the victims.
Punishments are very mild and there is thus no deterrence for violent crime. The
police is an all white force, are very few in numbers, and generally are ineffective.
With the result that the streets in many parts of Melbourne's suburbs are a no-go
zone in the night. Western Suburbs which have the lowest educational levels
were always a problem. Prahran is a mix of low income apartment dwellers as
well as richer people in big houses especially on the Yarra river side. There is
definitely a glass ceiling for non Anglos in Australia. The white-Australia policy
was removed by executive order and there never was a referendum or public
discussion on it and a section of the Australian white population never accepted
the removal of the policy. Politicians have also traditionally played the race card
and John Howard and Pauline Hanson are two prominent politicians in that
regard. What is the way forward? I think Indians need to stay away from
Australia. There are more opportunities for young Indians in India today due to
Infosys, Tata motors, Wipro, Reliance etc. India will be the 3rd largest economy
in the world by 2040 (China the largest by 2019). This is the Asian century and
the shoes will soon be on the other foot. Simply aping the west is not an option
for Indians. Australia too instead of linking its economy with the fastest growing
economies in the world is going the insular Japanese way that will have long term
consequences. It will be a lost opportunity due to the short sightedness of the
political leaders.
RAM
MINNEAPOLIS, UNITED STATES
FEB 01,
2010
04:57 AM
41
Coming from Australia and having studied cookery myself at a local college I met
a lot of Indian overseas students. One thing I noticed was, they, like me, already
had tertiary qualifications, were middle class and conscientious.

Some Australians do exhibit racist tendencies when new influx of migrants arrive,
like my family experienced arriving in the 1950's. It was usually innocuous and
devoid of violence towards migrants.

It would be useful to note that quite a few of these attacks have been perpetrated
by children of migrants themselves: Lebanese, Sudanese, Greek, Italian etc. A
number of aborigines have even been arrested over the robbery/attacks.

It's erroneous to think this is simply white people attacking dark skinned
foreigners. It's a more complicated issue of identity, economics, employment
opportunities and geography.

I know that sounds vague but the fact is, there have been racist attacks, but to
typify it as a broad social trend or a majority sentiment is ludicrous and hysterical.

Interesting to be on the receiving end of spurious reporting, selective quoting and
a general hatchet job of an article.

It's usually the western media misapprehending the situation in developing
nations, not vice-versa. Something to think about for all sides of impartial
journalistic integrity.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
04:53 AM
40
The attacks on Indians in Melbourne are a national disgrace. That people have
died is indefensible.

The Indian government has shown incredible restraint. The Australian and
Victorian governments have downplayed the problem. They may well not want to
stir up the racist streak that still runs through this country. However behind the
scenes the Australian and Victorian governments seem to have been very
concerned. The police file prepared by Victoria Police shows swift action to
apprehend most offenders.

We need more information on what exactly is the problem. Are Indians really the
focus? Or are they targets of convenience for offenders with many other
problems on their minds?

In the meantime some tougher government statements that violence will not be
tolerated and some agile police presence in problem areas are needed.

I read Outlook whenever I am in India and rarely see anything about Australia. It
grieves me that we appear in your pages this way. There is a more positive side
to the place.

When these tragic attacks stop you may want to do another story on the Indians
who are quietly making their way in so many places in Australia and who are, just
as previous waves of immigrants have done, redefining this country for the better.
RFI SMITH
FEB 01,
2010
04:47 AM
39
Funny is the word! @Colonel(comment 35), the way you are using words shows
your class. Most other educated Australians who have commented here, have
shown that they do know how to communicate, You clearly do not. You do not
even understand the migration system of Australia either. Similarly, @Pratyush
(comment 11) has shows his class. Absolutely dirty worded post by him.

I am an Indian Australian, who studied in Melbourne in 1998-99 and now live in
Sydney. I think the whole issue has been blown out of proportion by the Indian
Media (this article still is more balanced then most others while the cover is surely
of 'cheap press' type).

Seating in India and looking at media reports there, people will not know what the
real situation on the ground here is.

Fact is - in day-to-day life, there is absolutely no element of racism that I can see.
Indian people are everywhere. In good jobs, senior positions, in businesses even
in local governments. They are doing well in some sports locally and doing
exceptionally well in schools.

There have been issues in Melbourne. Baring some incidents, most others are
related to Criminal activities rather then racism.

Yes some racisim related incidents have been there in Melbourne. There will be a
few people who may have some issue against Indians or other non 'westeners'.
But it would be absolutely irresponsible to generalise that for the whole of
Australia or all Australians or to see the country as a racist country. Generally
speaking, Most Australians are friendly and peace loving people. Yes True. I
have been helped by Aussi friends so many times when needed and there have
been many Australian friends who asked for help from me as well on occasions.

Out of proportion media coverage (where they do not really understand the
realities), will in fact make all of us Indians look bad who are in Australia or in
general. It will only detoriate the situation. We need to let the governments handle
the affairs rather then people getting involved in protests etc.

I am a proud Indian. But I can see that Indian media/publications have been
generally biased and half cooked in reporting. They are trying to sell their stuff.
Unfortunately, we are buying it without thinking twice.
TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:44 AM
38
This would have to be the most fair and balanced article I have read regarding
racism in Australia. Unfortunately it does not touch on the less obvious forms of
racism and abuse suffered by any NON WHITE nationality that enters our land.
Australia IS a racist nation one need only review our governments past AND
current treatment of our own aboriginal populations compared to that of our
'white' population to know that racism is so well ingrained into the Australian
psyche that we ourselves rarely recognize what is blatantly obvious to the rest of
the world!
REA
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:36 AM
37
"They smell bad" - Do you think that's good enough reason to kill them. If each of
them wore deo/perfumes they would not be racially targeted? Sure?
For others well there's a different in perception as "racism" is not as black and
white as dead or alive. What is humor for some is racism for others. I believe that
Australia needs to take in most "compatible" students and need to educate the
Aussies that how they gonna help build the country.
I for one can boast to have attracted employment for 5 Aussies from an American
company that would have otherwise gone to Malaysia. Believe me educated
Indians are much better than those bogans Centerlink supports.
SAMMYB
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:30 AM
Until recently my perceptions of Indians and India have been shaped by positives
- its democratic values, Buddhism, Gandhi etc. My doctor is an Indian immigrant
and I have the highest respect for him. I known a few Australians of Indian
background socially, and to tell the truth I dont even think of them as Indian. Im
a bit of a military history buff, and in the Indian/Pakistan conflicts Ive always seen
36
the Indian side as being more balanced and less chauvinistically driven. These
positive view were somewhat dented by the racism directed to Andrew Symonds
by Indian crowds, but overall it was maintained.

The latest campaign of misinformation directed against Australia by Indian media
(including this article) and politicians however has made me realise that those
overall positive views were unrealistic. It would seem that Indias democracy and
public opinion is based on a large majority of easily swayed and largely ignorant
people, and that the politicians and media are well aware of this and use it for
their own purposes.

Thanks for the wake-up call Ive taken off my rose-coloured glasses regarding
India.
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
04:13 AM
35
Lets face facts folks. When it comes to racism no one holds a candle to the
Indian caste system and what are dowry murders about that never get
investigated- estimated at close to 10,000 females last year alone.
I would like to see what would happen if 100,000 Australians landed in Mumbai
and started taking jobs of the locals . There would be riots at the blink of an eye ,
but dont worry ,there is more chance of being hit by Haley's comet than 100,000
Australians turning up on your doostep.
The reporting in this article is disgraceful and proves the point of any Australian
who has ever visited India, that its full of liars , thieves and rip off merchants.
Bottom line is that India is a shithole , run by shifty caste driven self righteous
politicians who are looking to deflect from their own narrow based internalised
racist attitudes. No wonder every Indian worth his salt is trying to get into
Australia under the guise of doing some study. Lots of us are laughing here about
your moaning and groaning , whislt our politicians pander to your complaints
about racism. Stay in your shithole if you like. Iam sure its absolute paradise.
COLONEL
FEB 01,
2010
04:01 AM
34
Pratyush (comment 11),

First you fall for an obvious and poorly worded troll. Then you reveal your own
deep seated prejudice with comments such as

"even idiotic, unskilled, beer-swilling labourers can afford a two storey house and
a Landcruise"

Ugly, hate-filled sentiments that reek of resentment of certain classes of people.
DAVE
FEB 01,
2010
03:51 AM
33
Articles like this are only going to make the problem of racism in Australia worse.
I've grown up with Indian students in all levels of my education, and have many
Indian famalies living in the same street as me. Racism didn't make any sence to
me- these people were my friends and neighbours. If Miagrants stop coming to
Melbourne and Australia, the culture of racism will thrive. Australia isn't known for
having a multicultural past, but it is learning to overthrow thatshown by how
most of our racist right wing parties are fringe groups. To combat Indian attacks
the victorian government needs to police crime prone areas more, needs to
educate the public on the values of multiculturism. It doesn't help that much of the
Indian media is on a witch hunt, which will no doubt discourage more Indians
coming to Australia.
J JEROME
FEB 01,
2010
03:43 AM
32
Australians don't hate Indians. The vast majority of us get along with Indians
perfectly well. What we hate are hypocrits, like the writers of racist beat up
stories.

Australians don't like being called racist when they're not, especially by people
from probably the most bigoted and hateful place on earth. The politicians you
reference are on the fringe of the fringe. We don't have religious riots here, we
don't have 'untouchables', we've never had a religous/race based civil war.
Before you start throwing mud at other people take a look at yourselves first.

If there is any anger towards Indians, it is to the 90% of foriegn students that are
not here to learn and take their skills home, that are here to get a rubber stamp
for permanent residency. These students cheat their way through the system and
buy their qualifications. It is well documented that colleges are under pressure to
pass foriegn students that would otherwise fail. I have witnessed this process first
hand. I have seen people go into exams with cheat sheets which are ignored. I
have been approached by students for tutoring but only want you to write their
essays. I have seen students get credit for supposed qualifications when they're
clearly not competent. I have worked with incompetent Indian graduates that
should never have been passed; the list of cheating and corruption is endless.
How do you expect Australians not to get upset about this?
UTTERBS
FEB 01,
2010
03:42 AM
31
It is not the case that 'australians hate' you. Its more that some australians hate
anyone not like them. (these racists tend to be the ones nobody else wants to be
like either). Sudenese migrants are experiencing this violence as well, while there
was similar anti-asian acts in the 1970's and 1980's. Yet this is not the widely
supported and racist 'white australia policy, thats is in the past.It seems to me
that the situation in melbourne is a mixture of race-inpired assaults combined with
the fact that many indian students are engaged in some of the more vulnerable
occupations (cab drivers etc). The vast majority of australins are appaled by
outright stupidity of these acts.

As for speaking more like australians - Why?.This view just blames the victim for
their own assault. Should ausralian tourists talk more like indians when in india -
just to avoid being assaulted? As a teacher at a university i would be hard
pressed to say to an indian student what talking like an australian is? In most
classes i teach their are australian citizens with accents from all over the world.
Moreover its not like indians are from the moon, they speak and act pretty much
like australians anyway.

Lastly, a few people have commented on people 'using' the student visa system
as a way of migrating - so what? The idea that australia seduces some students
to stay after they have completed their studies is a good thing.

But as for cookery classes! - the people with the best food on earth are being
taught to cook by a nation where the national food is a meat pie - funny. A tip for
future students, heat for 15 minutes serve with tomato sauce -- congratulations,
graduation is tommorow.
KINGSLEY
CAIRNS, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
03:32 AM
30
@ Pratyush I am commenting solely because this article was referenced in the
Australian press this morning. This is probably the first and last time that I would
ever look at Outlook, and I will make the following comments. Firstly whilst the
article inside the magazine was reasonably balanced, the front-page headline
was typical of the gutter press and bore no relationship to the article. I'm sure it
will sell a lot of Outlook magazines solely the basis of the cover.

This whole issue has been blown out of all proportion by a few sensation
mongers seeking publicity. By and large Indians in this country are as safe as
anybody else, but if you walk through parks at night, whether you are white or
black, you place your self at risk in any city in the world. Australians are fairly
tolerant having experienced waves of migrants from various countries in the
world including Italy Greece,Somalia, Turkey Yugoslavia,Vietnam, Sri Lanka,
India,Cambodia, and of course England Ireland and Scotland. Culturally most of
this influx of different cultures has been advantageous,but we have also had to
deal with a significant increase in knife related crime from some of these ethnic
groups as well as group bashings none of which has been directed at Indians.

The antics of Mr. Rudd in his Klu Klux Klan is typical of a spoiled attention
seeking brat overshadowed by his more famous uncle, and should in no way be
seen as reflecting any significant entity in Australia. He was lucky that somebody
didn't assault him for his outrageous presentation, but Australia is a very tolerant
society in which fools are generally generally tolerated and allowed to make
stupid statements without redress. Unfortunately featuring this lunatic in the
Outlook article only adds to the presumption that this news magazine is an
element of the gutter press seeking sensational headlines to sell content, and
only presenting a more balanced view inside the document.
GREG ANGELO
FEB 01,
2010
03:17 AM
29
Anwaar, whether there is a difference between thievery or racism is beside the
point. The problem that we are seeing in the media now is that Indians are afraid
to go out on the street in Australian cities because they might get attacked. Every
travel book warns women not to travel alone, outside, in India. Which do you
suppose is the bigger problem?

If I wrote a letter to the Indian Ambassador to Australia and complained in writing
about the way Australians are treated by Indians in India, what do you suppose
he would say? Do you suppose anything would be done that brought about
change? Nope, didn't think so.

One might very well argue that the behaviour of Indians, in India, is indeed racist,
because they do not target people of their own race and pay particular attention
to those that are of a different race.
DAVID BROWN
FEB 01,
2010
03:16 AM
28
Yes, there is an element of racism in Australia. Yes, Indians are occasionally
victims of violence. So are Italians, Russians, British, New Zealanders - and,
overwhelmingly, Australians.

The truth is, the Indian media is doing exactly what the news media in every
country does: beating up an angle to sell newspapers and magazines.

What's not being reported in India is the number of violent crimes in Australia
perpetrated by Indian nationals, and the Indian government's reluctance to track
down Indian criminals who return to their home country to escape the Australian
justice system.

The question that's being ignored by the Indian media is, how can anyone
possibly know the motives of criminals before they are caught? Do your
'journalists' (and thanks to the quality of their work I use the term loosely) have
telepathic powers? If so, perhaps they could telepathically tell our police who the
offenders are and save us all a lot of trouble?

As for India's denigration of Australian police and their failure to put every crime
involving an Indian national at the very top of their priority list, I invite readers to
examine the clean-up rate of India's corrupt police force before passing
judgement on another country's.

Indians should not judge another race based on the inaccurate and sensationalist
rantings of the media.
ROB
FEB 01,
2010
03:09 AM
27
I have just been reading the other comments and I notice that the most racist
comment is by an Australian with and ITALIAN SURNAME - this supports my
point that it is sometimes previous immigrants who are most oppossed to new
immigants. I recall a racist graffiti comment in Sydney which said 'Asians Out' -
but was written in Greek.
PETER JOHN MCGREGOR
FEB 01,
2010
03:05 AM
26
Two points that trouble me == Do the people of INDIA think that the peoples from
the middle east as being WHITE = The concept that ALL the gangs running
around bashing people are WHITE AUSSIES and every ethnic group sits back
and says please don,t hit us is absurd == The truth is the vast majority of gangs
are ARABS and ASIANS both of which love to carry knifes == The second point
is WHY IN HELL would people come here to study == Decades ago INDIA
passed the capabilities of AUSTRALIA= that place where they dig the biggest
holes with the goal to become the largest area below sea level
MARTIN
FEB 01,
2010
03:05 AM
Melbourne has never really been a safe city like most around the globe. Your
article refers to Prahran being away from the bad people - this is a big distortion
of the truth.
Prahran is a full of poorer people from the Northern suburbs which are out for
trouble from Friday to Sunday - going there is dangerous at night regardless of
who or where your from!
25
Sunshine is a working class suburb which Prahran used to be however Sunshine
is full of desperate heroin addicted junkies. That Indian man who walked through
the park at night in Sunshine obviously had no idea how dangerous the area was
with desperate drug affected people.
I don't have a problem with Indians as generally they are good people but they
need to wake up to their new environment quickly. A safer suburb than Prahran
or Sunshine to consider would be Burwood which also has Deakin University.
ANTHONY
FEB 01,
2010
03:00 AM
24
I am a 4th generation Anglo-Celtic Australian. My wife is American. We live in a
part of Melbourne where there are many Indians. There are many Indians in our
Catholic Parish and at the Catholic High School where my wife teaches the third
largest ethnic group is Indian. An Indian family has moved into a house on our
street. Many of the local taxi drivers are Indian. The local newsagent is now run
by Indians, as are most of the Seven-Eleven stores and Petrol Stations. The
nearby Univeristy is full of Indian students. There are Indians on the buses, trains
and trams. We have recently become friends with a family where the wife is
Anglo-Indian. To us, Indians are simply the latest wave of immigrants, after the
Italians, Greeks, and other Europeans, Lebanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, etc. etc.

In every country there is always a part of the population who feel threatened by
people who are different and they do not wish to welcome these people. They are
a minority. They are sometimes to be found amongst previous immigrants who
feel that their job prospects being threatened by the latest arrivals.

My wife and I like Indian people. We find that they are usually very polite,
respectful and hard working people. As far as we are concerned, we welcome
Indian people to Australia. They enrich our country.
PETER JOHN MCGREGOR
FEB 01,
2010
02:55 AM
23
This article is actually more balanced than most that have been printed in India.
(Which doesn't say much) But let me make these points.

Under 'Bells Toll' how about some reference points?
- The Indian High Commission says that 130 Indians have been attacked. There
are 176,000 recorded assaults in Australia EVERY YEAR. (FACT) That means
that more than 99.9% of attacks in Australia are non-Indian and are not reported
in the Indian media.
- There are 300 or so murders in Australia every year. Indians represent 1.5% of
Australia's population. That alone suggests that it is normal to expect 5 or so
murders of Indians per year and numerous assaults every day for the Indian
demographic to be the same as the average.
- The murder rate in India is 2.4 times the murder rate per 100,000 of what it is in
Australia. This is FACT. Of 3 murders of Indians this year, 2 have been carried
out by Indians and the other was carried out in a suburb where (as this article
describes) a sprinkling of Anglo Saxons live. Chances are that none of these
murders were carried out by a white Australian.
- Those of any race that are in the 18-25 year old demographic are up to 4 times
more likely to be assaulted regardless of race. This is a common statistic globally.
If you are 18-25 and drive a taxi, what are your chances?

- Statistics are great, but the stats you show tell us nothing, except that there is
violence in Australia. This is not news. This is either sensationalist or lazy
journalism; take your pick.

- Getting the opinions of far right wing idiots is cheap journalism. Idiots like these
live in all countries. Thankfully Australian media is not asking the opinions of
idiots in India and subliminally representing this is what the average Indian thinks.

Are there racist attacks in Australia? Of course. Are westerners racially attacked
in India. Of course. (Think of Goa.) But the facts, the stats, suggest that this is
primarily a media beat up and provocative pictures like on the front of your
magazine further drive a wedge between Australians and Indians.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
02:07 AM
22
David Brown has a point, but there is a difference between racism and thievery.
ANWAAR
FEB 01,
2010
01:55 AM
21
It must be embarrassing to have the comments (generally) far better written and
thought-out than this poor excuse for an article.
MIC CULLEN
COLLINGWOOD, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
01:54 AM
All this outrage about how Indians are treated in Australia. Well what about how
Indians treat Australians? Does anyone in India ever stop to think about how
foreigners are treated by Indians? What about single women who travel alone or
just walk the streets alone in India?
20

I can tell you that as an Australian tourist in India during January, every day I had
someone:
- lie to me
- cheat me
- harrass me
- attempt to rob me

When walking on the street, I was harrassed, on average every 5 minutes.

Look in the mirror, India. You should be ashamed of how you treat tourists in your
country. You show tourists no respect. Most of your hotel operators, taxi drivers
and autorickshaw drivers are nothing more than common criminals when it
comes to tourists. I am not sure any of them know what the word "honesty"
means.

If an Australian asked me about living in India, I would say only if they wanted to
stay inside every day because if they went outside, everywhere they went they
would get harrassed because they are white.

Every day Indians make a habit, if not a job, out of harrassing and effectively
abusing tourists. And they think that is ok.

When India is a place where everyone, locals and foreigners alike, are all treated
equally then and only then will I take any call for Indians overseas to be treated
fairly.

India, you are disgrace. You and your people are outraged at something that
happens to foreigners every 5 minutes of the streets of your big cities. Wake up
to yourselves.
DAVID BROWN
FEB 01,
2010
01:09 AM
19
No, mate. Only a few idiots in Oz are racist. Don't let them spoil it for the rest of
us.
One day I'll tell you the story of how my daughter was seriously ill in Adelaide,
and the only doctor I could get to make a house call on a Sunday night was
Indian.
People from both of our countries have much in comon, let's continue to enjoy
this special relationship
PETER HINDMARSH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:46 AM
18
When I was in school, I discussed what it would be like, to go to an Australian
college. My partner in discussion instantly said, that "They are a racist society."
This was a long time ago. My heart bleeds when I compare the Australian Cricket
Team, and this statement together. The Australian cricketers, are not in the least
racist, and get along with their co-cricketers from around the world. It would be
absolutely unfair, to label the Aussies racist. Perhaps, the Aussie cricketers have
had opportunities which their other country-men have lacked, but even if their
famous fast bowler, who was not very affluent, before he took up cricket, was still
poor, I find it hard to believe that he would be racist. I refer to Mitchel Johnson. If
a racial slur was directed to me, then would I resent the fact that I was insulted,
because I am an Indian? I would resent the slur, not the racism behind it. Every
unpleasantness has an unreasonable reason behind it. I would not visit Australia,
if I were Indian, and it was unsafe for Indians. I admire the Australian Prime
Minister Mr Rudd, but many Indians in Australia are perceiving that it is a loose-
loose situation to settle down in Australia. An important facet of racism, is that the
person who practices it, feels that those who do not belong to his race, need not
be shown moral considerations, which are shown to the people of his race.
ADITYA MOOKERJEE
BELGAUM, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:23 AM
17
Pratyush - Aussies are posting here today because:
1) The Outlook India article was on the front page of some of Australia's major
newspapers today
2) Its the only way we can get an alternate view into India to try and combat some
of the selective, sensationalist reporting that is currently happening in both
countries.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:19 AM
16
Here in Australia we have a problem - with violence. Indians, generally slightly
built people - are seen as easy victims. The perpetrators are the same people
who are likely to beat up women and children and attack old women for their
purses. They are weak and cowardly, and only pick easy targets. This is a major
issue, and nobody quite seems to know what's causing it, nor how to address it.

However, For any country to point the finger at another and cry "rascist" is simply
a tactic to divert the attention from problems at home. Pick any country in the
world - Canada, Sweden, Malaysia, The UK, The USA - they all have serious
problems with racism - and they all act as if they don't. Australia is no different,
but we are a lot more integrated that many nationalities.

And Racism in India? Ask the Dalits.

Australia has a problem with racism, but its generally among small percentage of
the population who are uneducated and - for whatever reason - violent.

If you feel unsafe in Australia - then exercise your right not to come. But before
you judge an entire country by a few cowards, make sure you aren't projecting
your own country's problems on to ours.

Matt
(Australian, One-time member of Ashoka - The Sydney University Indian Society,
Co-worker and friend to many indians).
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
JAN 31,
2010
11:43 PM
15
There is a simple way to fix this problem ,,
DON'T GO TO AUSTRALIA
DAVE
SYDNET, AUSTRALIA
JAN 31,
2010
10:43 PM
14
:( This is so sad. I live in Sunshine where many Indian students are residing and
the way these attacks are being portrayed both in the Australian and Indian
media is just not right. I know because I live here, I shop at Indian grocery stores
locally almost daily and I talk to Indian people every day. That there's a growing
problem with violence in general in Melbourne is true. But you have to look at
who is perpetrating it. It's opportunistic, mainly perpetrated by young people who
have read/seen the stories in the media and those young people often don't even
identify as Australian. They are proud, ironically, to be Asian.
Quoting people like Van Rudd, who is a lovely guy, but who also wants to make a
singular point (that Australia is racist, whether the facts support it or not), or
Australia First and One Nation members who are derided and ridiculed for being
the ill-informed, out of touch, extreme dimwits they are (and for whom no one
votes) and who never get a public voice because of their ridiculousness is not
good journalism.
I wish you could all come to Sunshine and see everyday life here, the
friendliness, the community, the smiles that everyone shares and not just read
about the violence. Yep, people do bad things to others and violence does occur
and it's despicable that they do so, but it's not because Australians hate Indians.
I'm an immigrant myself and have found that Australia is a safe, wonderful,
welcoming country to all and no one need feel frightened living here.
DANIEL
FOOTSCRAY, AUSTRALIA
JAN 31,
2010
09:48 PM
13
Whose country is Ausralia, anyway?
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, INDIA
JAN 31,
2010
09:32 PM
12
Dear students,you have gone to that country for purticular
purpose(legal/illegal/study/work etc)you have to learn their systems and make
supportive of your purpose.The local knows at your first sight how you are from
where,.(Australian manners are their culture,you have to go co- existance.even
20 years of your valid passport/living there,their political system can change to
deport you from there as they are majority.First use- Sir,please, escuse me may I
have, may I know please, can I take it please etc which please them much apart
from dress code public behaving givind places to elders,reserved systems for the
reserved,only liten. speak only when you have been approached etc,.racism
exists everywhere.Organising a protest is unwanted as the case is lies with local
Agency.presence of mind and vacating the places of trouble always helps.After
the demolition of Berlin wall east German entered into West Germany(now one
country)immediately they wanted uplifts,car home etc,which local german hated
then? where you are just think.
L.S.PILLAI
NEW DELHI, INDIA
JAN 31,
2010
08:49 PM
11
Ha ha at the person from Hong Kong and the other Aussies posting here.

Why do Indian people want to go to Australia? Because they know even idiotic,
Landcruiser. It is not a question about which country is better - either country is
bad if you live at the bottom of the dung heap - but the fact that it is ridiculously
easy to achieve "success" in Australia than in India - hence the outrage by the
Aussies at getting whipped in an increasing number of sectors by more talented
Indians.

At the proud, nationalistic offerings of Mr Gambino, I'm just curious, where are
YOU from? Because the original settlers certainly didn't treat the Indigenous
Australians with any respect, acting with "an automatic entitlement to be in this
country", certainly not as "guests". Before you tell Indians to "f*** off" (these
words comprising of 43% of the typical Aussie vocabulary), return to YOUR OWN
country and call us from there.

Those referring to the "disgusting" gap in India, look at the 30+ life expectancy
gap between white and Indigenous Australians. In a "developed" country. But I
ask, developed in what way?

Mr Gordy, I suggest you mouth your words to the Indian doctor who will be
performing your next brain examination, because I swear there is something
wrong in there.

P.S.
Why are obviously non-Outlook India readers posting here? Are the Aussies now
so insecure that they will post comments for a magazine not even directed at
them? Learn to deal with your insecurities, not take it out on other people.
PRATYUSH
JAN 31,
2010
07:49 PM
10
Typical Indian Media - incredibly sensational and selective article.

Might I suggest that your report focus on the overall crime statistics in Australia.
You may be surprised to know that its not just people of Indian origin who are
victims of violent crime - you'll also find White, Black, Yellow, & even Pink (gay)
people also highly reprensented in those statistics.

Are Australians really racist against Indians??
I'm certain if you ask the hundreds of 000's of people of Indian decent who have
migrated to Australia if they would rather return to the mother land I'm sure 99.7%
would say 'not on your life' .. and the quality of life overall is far higher in
Australia.

There's no denying there are some problems that need to be addressed, but I
suggest you also focus some of your anger on fixing some of the problems in
your own back yard - like the massive (& outrageously disgusting) gap between
rich & poor in India.

Wake up to yourselves.
WONKA HUNDSHEISEN
JAN 31,
2010
07:33 PM
9
You do not have an automatic entitlement to be in this country. You are here as
our guests. Act accordingly not like you own the fucking place.

If you do not like it get the fuck outa my country and piss off home.
GORDY GAMBINO
MELB, AUSTRALIA
JAN 31,
2010
06:49 PM
8
Three Indians have been murdered in Australia in 2010 - not one. One of these
was the above mentioned Nitin Garg, a case where a perpetrator is yet to be
apprehended, let alone a case mounted for motive

In the other two cases, two Indians have been arrested for the muder of Ranjodh
Singh, who was burned alive. Manpreet Kaur, was killed in Sydney by her Indian
husband.

Yet these cases remain ignored by the Indian media, other than an initial flurry
when Ranjodh Singh's murder was also automatically labelled racist by Gautam
Gupta. I note your Bell Tools header also failed to list these murders.

Why the selective reporting and analysis?
DAVE
JAN 31,
2010
03:40 AM
7
Is it hubris, brashess, cockiness,....that cause the agressive behaviour?
Remember when in Rome do as the Romans to
COLIN G. MORRIS
VANCOUVER, CANADA
JAN 31,
2010
02:59 AM
6
the persons who are attacked are going just for fun..they are not high net
individuals..they are weaker sections ...easy target...there is no need to go to
australia..india provide education at much lower cost..and indian institutes are
best at everything..no need to go any foreign countries...let australia should be
for australian
KSHITIJ JAIN
JAMSHEDPUR, INDIA
JAN 30,
2010
11:59 PM
5
Seems white Australians are close cousins of brown Raj Thackereys. A eye-
catching influx of outsiders unleashes xenophobia. Where have those posters
gone who exulted over European outrage at Muslim immigrants?
ANWAAR
JAN 30,
2010
08:38 PM
It seems rather incredulous to me that an Indian has to travel to Australia to learn
cookery....the obvious intent is simply to migrate to a foreign land.
Before we get so worked up about what is happening in Australia, spare a
4
thought on how we as Indians treat our fellow citizens in India....
RAJAN
AUSTIN, UNITED STATES
JAN 30,
2010
08:24 PM
3
Since Aussies dont have enough courage to Hang themselves out of shame for
their Dismal Show, they are Executing the Indians instead, who are
outperforming them in every field.
RAJNEESH BATRA
NEW DELHI, INDIA
JAN 30,
2010
06:14 PM
2
Abusing student visas to gain permanent residence seems to be the new way of
migrating. Why else would anyone from India want to go to Australia to learn
cookery? What can the Australians teach us about cookery, when they don't have
a cuisine worth the name? It is all just an excuse to get into Australia to gain
residence. The primary abusers of student visas from India seem to be Punjabi
villagers, as is the case with illegal Indian immigrants in Western countries. The
unfortunate thing is that a few illiterate and ill-mannered people are damaging
India's reputation so badly that even decent Indians have to bear the brunt of the
suffering. The Australian government should stop issuing student visas for
irrelevant courses like hair styling , nail manicuring and cookery. Another good
idea is to prevent shoddy colleges offering such courses from admitting students.
G.NATRAJAN
HYDERABAD, INDIA
JAN 30,
2010
04:45 PM
1
Why a Punjabi farmer boy go all the way to Australia to learn how to be a hotel
bell-captain? How many Australians come to India to learn how to be a call center
executive?
May be instead of futile Aussie bashing, looking inward will be in order.
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, INDIA
JAN 30,
2010
04:45 PM
1
Why a Punjabi farmer boy go all the way to Australia to learn how to be a hotel
bell-captain? How many Australians come to India to learn how to be a call center
executive?
May be instead of futile Aussie bashing, looking inward will be in order.
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, INDIA
JAN 30,
2010
06:14 PM
2
Abusing student visas to gain permanent residence seems to be the new way of
migrating. Why else would anyone from India want to go to Australia to learn
cookery? What can the Australians teach us about cookery, when they don't have
a cuisine worth the name? It is all just an excuse to get into Australia to gain
residence. The primary abusers of student visas from India seem to be Punjabi
villagers, as is the case with illegal Indian immigrants in Western countries. The
unfortunate thing is that a few illiterate and ill-mannered people are damaging
India's reputation so badly that even decent Indians have to bear the brunt of the
suffering. The Australian government should stop issuing student visas for
irrelevant courses like hair styling , nail manicuring and cookery. Another good
idea is to prevent shoddy colleges offering such courses from admitting students.
G.NATRAJAN
HYDERABAD, INDIA
JAN 30,
2010
08:24 PM
3
Since Aussies dont have enough courage to Hang themselves out of shame for
their Dismal Show, they are Executing the Indians instead, who are
outperforming them in every field.
RAJNEESH BATRA
NEW DELHI, INDIA
JAN 30,
2010
08:38 PM
4
cookery....the obvious intent is simply to migrate to a foreign land.
Before we get so worked up about what is happening in Australia, spare a
thought on how we as Indians treat our fellow citizens in India....
RAJAN
AUSTIN, UNITED STATES
JAN 30,
2010
11:59 PM
5
Seems white Australians are close cousins of brown Raj Thackereys. A eye-
catching influx of outsiders unleashes xenophobia. Where have those posters
gone who exulted over European outrage at Muslim immigrants?
ANWAAR
JAN 31,
2010
02:59 AM
the persons who are attacked are going just for fun..they are not high net
individuals..they are weaker sections ...easy target...there is no need to go to
australia..india provide education at much lower cost..and indian institutes are
best at everything..no need to go any foreign countries...let australia should be
for australian
6
KSHITIJ JAIN
JAMSHEDPUR, INDIA
JAN 31,
2010
03:40 AM
7
Is it hubris, brashess, cockiness,....that cause the agressive behaviour?
Remember when in Rome do as the Romans to
COLIN G. MORRIS
VANCOUVER, CANADA
JAN 31,
2010
06:49 PM
8
Three Indians have been murdered in Australia in 2010 - not one. One of these
was the above mentioned Nitin Garg, a case where a perpetrator is yet to be
apprehended, let alone a case mounted for motive

In the other two cases, two Indians have been arrested for the muder of Ranjodh
Singh, who was burned alive. Manpreet Kaur, was killed in Sydney by her Indian
husband.

Yet these cases remain ignored by the Indian media, other than an initial flurry
when Ranjodh Singh's murder was also automatically labelled racist by Gautam
Gupta. I note your Bell Tools header also failed to list these murders.

Why the selective reporting and analysis?
DAVE
JAN 31,
2010
07:33 PM
9
You do not have an automatic entitlement to be in this country. You are here as
our guests. Act accordingly not like you own the fucking place.

If you do not like it get the fuck outa my country and piss off home.
GORDY GAMBINO
MELB, AUSTRALIA
JAN 31,
2010
07:49 PM
10
Typical Indian Media - incredibly sensational and selective article.

Might I suggest that your report focus on the overall crime statistics in Australia.
You may be surprised to know that its not just people of Indian origin who are
victims of violent crime - you'll also find White, Black, Yellow, & even Pink (gay)
people also highly reprensented in those statistics.

Are Australians really racist against Indians??
I'm certain if you ask the hundreds of 000's of people of Indian decent who have
migrated to Australia if they would rather return to the mother land I'm sure 99.7%
would say 'not on your life' .. and the quality of life overall is far higher in
Australia.

There's no denying there are some problems that need to be addressed, but I
suggest you also focus some of your anger on fixing some of the problems in
your own back yard - like the massive (& outrageously disgusting) gap between
rich & poor in India.

Wake up to yourselves.
WONKA HUNDSHEISEN
JAN 31,
2010
08:49 PM
11
Ha ha at the person from Hong Kong and the other Aussies posting here.

Why do Indian people want to go to Australia? Because they know even idiotic,
Landcruiser. It is not a question about which country is better - either country is
bad if you live at the bottom of the dung heap - but the fact that it is ridiculously
easy to achieve "success" in Australia than in India - hence the outrage by the
Aussies at getting whipped in an increasing number of sectors by more talented
Indians.

At the proud, nationalistic offerings of Mr Gambino, I'm just curious, where are
YOU from? Because the original settlers certainly didn't treat the Indigenous
Australians with any respect, acting with "an automatic entitlement to be in this
country", certainly not as "guests". Before you tell Indians to "f*** off" (these
words comprising of 43% of the typical Aussie vocabulary), return to YOUR OWN
country and call us from there.

Those referring to the "disgusting" gap in India, look at the 30+ life expectancy
gap between white and Indigenous Australians. In a "developed" country. But I
ask, developed in what way?

Mr Gordy, I suggest you mouth your words to the Indian doctor who will be
performing your next brain examination, because I swear there is something
wrong in there.

P.S.
Why are obviously non-Outlook India readers posting here? Are the Aussies now
so insecure that they will post comments for a magazine not even directed at
them? Learn to deal with your insecurities, not take it out on other people.
PRATYUSH
JAN 31,
2010
09:32 PM
12
Dear students,you have gone to that country for purticular
purpose(legal/illegal/study/work etc)you have to learn their systems and make
supportive of your purpose.The local knows at your first sight how you are from
where,.(Australian manners are their culture,you have to go co- existance.even
20 years of your valid passport/living there,their political system can change to
deport you from there as they are majority.First use- Sir,please, escuse me may I
have, may I know please, can I take it please etc which please them much apart
from dress code public behaving givind places to elders,reserved systems for the
reserved,only liten. speak only when you have been approached etc,.racism
exists everywhere.Organising a protest is unwanted as the case is lies with local
Agency.presence of mind and vacating the places of trouble always helps.After
the demolition of Berlin wall east German entered into West Germany(now one
country)immediately they wanted uplifts,car home etc,which local german hated
then? where you are just think.
L.S.PILLAI
NEW DELHI, INDIA
JAN 31,
2010
09:48 PM
13
Whose country is Ausralia, anyway?
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, INDIA
JAN 31,
2010
10:43 PM
14
:( This is so sad. I live in Sunshine where many Indian students are residing and
the way these attacks are being portrayed both in the Australian and Indian
media is just not right. I know because I live here, I shop at Indian grocery stores
locally almost daily and I talk to Indian people every day. That there's a growing
problem with violence in general in Melbourne is true. But you have to look at
who is perpetrating it. It's opportunistic, mainly perpetrated by young people who
have read/seen the stories in the media and those young people often don't even
identify as Australian. They are proud, ironically, to be Asian.
Quoting people like Van Rudd, who is a lovely guy, but who also wants to make a
singular point (that Australia is racist, whether the facts support it or not), or
the ill-informed, out of touch, extreme dimwits they are (and for whom no one
votes) and who never get a public voice because of their ridiculousness is not
good journalism.
I wish you could all come to Sunshine and see everyday life here, the
friendliness, the community, the smiles that everyone shares and not just read
about the violence. Yep, people do bad things to others and violence does occur
and it's despicable that they do so, but it's not because Australians hate Indians.
I'm an immigrant myself and have found that Australia is a safe, wonderful,
welcoming country to all and no one need feel frightened living here.
DANIEL
FOOTSCRAY, AUSTRALIA
JAN 31,
2010
11:43 PM
15
There is a simple way to fix this problem ,,
DON'T GO TO AUSTRALIA
DAVE
SYDNET, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:19 AM
16
Here in Australia we have a problem - with violence. Indians, generally slightly
built people - are seen as easy victims. The perpetrators are the same people
who are likely to beat up women and children and attack old women for their
purses. They are weak and cowardly, and only pick easy targets. This is a major
issue, and nobody quite seems to know what's causing it, nor how to address it.

However, For any country to point the finger at another and cry "rascist" is simply
a tactic to divert the attention from problems at home. Pick any country in the
world - Canada, Sweden, Malaysia, The UK, The USA - they all have serious
problems with racism - and they all act as if they don't. Australia is no different,
but we are a lot more integrated that many nationalities.

And Racism in India? Ask the Dalits.

Australia has a problem with racism, but its generally among small percentage of
the population who are uneducated and - for whatever reason - violent.

If you feel unsafe in Australia - then exercise your right not to come. But before
you judge an entire country by a few cowards, make sure you aren't projecting
your own country's problems on to ours.

Matt
(Australian, One-time member of Ashoka - The Sydney University Indian Society,
Co-worker and friend to many indians).
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
Pratyush - Aussies are posting here today because:
2010
12:23 AM
17
1) The Outlook India article was on the front page of some of Australia's major
newspapers today
2) Its the only way we can get an alternate view into India to try and combat some
of the selective, sensationalist reporting that is currently happening in both
countries.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:46 AM
18
When I was in school, I discussed what it would be like, to go to an Australian
college. My partner in discussion instantly said, that "They are a racist society."
This was a long time ago. My heart bleeds when I compare the Australian Cricket
Team, and this statement together. The Australian cricketers, are not in the least
racist, and get along with their co-cricketers from around the world. It would be
absolutely unfair, to label the Aussies racist. Perhaps, the Aussie cricketers have
had opportunities which their other country-men have lacked, but even if their
famous fast bowler, who was not very affluent, before he took up cricket, was still
poor, I find it hard to believe that he would be racist. I refer to Mitchel Johnson. If
a racial slur was directed to me, then would I resent the fact that I was insulted,
because I am an Indian? I would resent the slur, not the racism behind it. Every
unpleasantness has an unreasonable reason behind it. I would not visit Australia,
if I were Indian, and it was unsafe for Indians. I admire the Australian Prime
Minister Mr Rudd, but many Indians in Australia are perceiving that it is a loose-
loose situation to settle down in Australia. An important facet of racism, is that the
person who practices it, feels that those who do not belong to his race, need not
be shown moral considerations, which are shown to the people of his race.
ADITYA MOOKERJEE
BELGAUM, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
01:09 AM
19
No, mate. Only a few idiots in Oz are racist. Don't let them spoil it for the rest of
us.
One day I'll tell you the story of how my daughter was seriously ill in Adelaide,
and the only doctor I could get to make a house call on a Sunday night was
Indian.
People from both of our countries have much in comon, let's continue to enjoy
this special relationship
PETER HINDMARSH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
01:54 AM
All this outrage about how Indians are treated in Australia. Well what about how
Indians treat Australians? Does anyone in India ever stop to think about how
foreigners are treated by Indians? What about single women who travel alone or
20
just walk the streets alone in India?

I can tell you that as an Australian tourist in India during January, every day I had
someone:
- lie to me
- cheat me
- harrass me
- attempt to rob me

When walking on the street, I was harrassed, on average every 5 minutes.

Look in the mirror, India. You should be ashamed of how you treat tourists in your
country. You show tourists no respect. Most of your hotel operators, taxi drivers
and autorickshaw drivers are nothing more than common criminals when it
comes to tourists. I am not sure any of them know what the word "honesty"
means.

If an Australian asked me about living in India, I would say only if they wanted to
stay inside every day because if they went outside, everywhere they went they
would get harrassed because they are white.

Every day Indians make a habit, if not a job, out of harrassing and effectively
abusing tourists. And they think that is ok.

When India is a place where everyone, locals and foreigners alike, are all treated
equally then and only then will I take any call for Indians overseas to be treated
fairly.

India, you are disgrace. You and your people are outraged at something that
happens to foreigners every 5 minutes of the streets of your big cities. Wake up
to yourselves.
DAVID BROWN
FEB 01,
2010
01:55 AM
21
It must be embarrassing to have the comments (generally) far better written and
thought-out than this poor excuse for an article.
MIC CULLEN
COLLINGWOOD, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:07 AM
David Brown has a point, but there is a difference between racism and thievery.
ANWAAR
22
FEB 01,
2010
02:55 AM
23
This article is actually more balanced than most that have been printed in India.
(Which doesn't say much) But let me make these points.

Under 'Bells Toll' how about some reference points?
- The Indian High Commission says that 130 Indians have been attacked. There
are 176,000 recorded assaults in Australia EVERY YEAR. (FACT) That means
that more than 99.9% of attacks in Australia are non-Indian and are not reported
in the Indian media.
- There are 300 or so murders in Australia every year. Indians represent 1.5% of
Australia's population. That alone suggests that it is normal to expect 5 or so
murders of Indians per year and numerous assaults every day for the Indian
demographic to be the same as the average.
- The murder rate in India is 2.4 times the murder rate per 100,000 of what it is in
Australia. This is FACT. Of 3 murders of Indians this year, 2 have been carried
out by Indians and the other was carried out in a suburb where (as this article
describes) a sprinkling of Anglo Saxons live. Chances are that none of these
murders were carried out by a white Australian.
- Those of any race that are in the 18-25 year old demographic are up to 4 times
more likely to be assaulted regardless of race. This is a common statistic globally.
If you are 18-25 and drive a taxi, what are your chances?

- Statistics are great, but the stats you show tell us nothing, except that there is
violence in Australia. This is not news. This is either sensationalist or lazy
journalism; take your pick.

- Getting the opinions of far right wing idiots is cheap journalism. Idiots like these
live in all countries. Thankfully Australian media is not asking the opinions of
idiots in India and subliminally representing this is what the average Indian thinks.

Are there racist attacks in Australia? Of course. Are westerners racially attacked
in India. Of course. (Think of Goa.) But the facts, the stats, suggest that this is
primarily a media beat up and provocative pictures like on the front of your
magazine further drive a wedge between Australians and Indians.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
03:00 AM
I am a 4th generation Anglo-Celtic Australian. My wife is American. We live in a
part of Melbourne where there are many Indians. There are many Indians in our
Catholic Parish and at the Catholic High School where my wife teaches the third
largest ethnic group is Indian. An Indian family has moved into a house on our
24
street. Many of the local taxi drivers are Indian. The local newsagent is now run
by Indians, as are most of the Seven-Eleven stores and Petrol Stations. The
nearby Univeristy is full of Indian students. There are Indians on the buses, trains
and trams. We have recently become friends with a family where the wife is
Anglo-Indian. To us, Indians are simply the latest wave of immigrants, after the
Italians, Greeks, and other Europeans, Lebanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, etc. etc.

In every country there is always a part of the population who feel threatened by
people who are different and they do not wish to welcome these people. They are
a minority. They are sometimes to be found amongst previous immigrants who
feel that their job prospects being threatened by the latest arrivals.

My wife and I like Indian people. We find that they are usually very polite,
respectful and hard working people. As far as we are concerned, we welcome
Indian people to Australia. They enrich our country.
PETER JOHN MCGREGOR
FEB 01,
2010
03:05 AM
25
Melbourne has never really been a safe city like most around the globe. Your
article refers to Prahran being away from the bad people - this is a big distortion
of the truth.
Prahran is a full of poorer people from the Northern suburbs which are out for
trouble from Friday to Sunday - going there is dangerous at night regardless of
who or where your from!
Sunshine is a working class suburb which Prahran used to be however Sunshine
is full of desperate heroin addicted junkies. That Indian man who walked through
the park at night in Sunshine obviously had no idea how dangerous the area was
with desperate drug affected people.
I don't have a problem with Indians as generally they are good people but they
need to wake up to their new environment quickly. A safer suburb than Prahran
or Sunshine to consider would be Burwood which also has Deakin University.
ANTHONY
FEB 01,
2010
03:05 AM
26
Two points that trouble me == Do the people of INDIA think that the peoples from
the middle east as being WHITE = The concept that ALL the gangs running
around bashing people are WHITE AUSSIES and every ethnic group sits back
and says please don,t hit us is absurd == The truth is the vast majority of gangs
are ARABS and ASIANS both of which love to carry knifes == The second point
is WHY IN HELL would people come here to study == Decades ago INDIA
passed the capabilities of AUSTRALIA= that place where they dig the biggest
holes with the goal to become the largest area below sea level
MARTIN
FEB 01,
2010
03:09 AM
27
I have just been reading the other comments and I notice that the most racist
comment is by an Australian with and ITALIAN SURNAME - this supports my
point that it is sometimes previous immigrants who are most oppossed to new
immigants. I recall a racist graffiti comment in Sydney which said 'Asians Out' -
but was written in Greek.
PETER JOHN MCGREGOR
FEB 01,
2010
03:16 AM
28
Yes, there is an element of racism in Australia. Yes, Indians are occasionally
victims of violence. So are Italians, Russians, British, New Zealanders - and,
overwhelmingly, Australians.

The truth is, the Indian media is doing exactly what the news media in every
country does: beating up an angle to sell newspapers and magazines.

What's not being reported in India is the number of violent crimes in Australia
perpetrated by Indian nationals, and the Indian government's reluctance to track
down Indian criminals who return to their home country to escape the Australian
justice system.

The question that's being ignored by the Indian media is, how can anyone
possibly know the motives of criminals before they are caught? Do your
'journalists' (and thanks to the quality of their work I use the term loosely) have
telepathic powers? If so, perhaps they could telepathically tell our police who the
offenders are and save us all a lot of trouble?

As for India's denigration of Australian police and their failure to put every crime
involving an Indian national at the very top of their priority list, I invite readers to
examine the clean-up rate of India's corrupt police force before passing
judgement on another country's.

Indians should not judge another race based on the inaccurate and sensationalist
rantings of the media.
ROB
FEB 01,
2010
Anwaar, whether there is a difference between thievery or racism is beside the
point. The problem that we are seeing in the media now is that Indians are afraid
to go out on the street in Australian cities because they might get attacked. Every
03:17 AM
29
travel book warns women not to travel alone, outside, in India. Which do you
suppose is the bigger problem?

If I wrote a letter to the Indian Ambassador to Australia and complained in writing
about the way Australians are treated by Indians in India, what do you suppose
he would say? Do you suppose anything would be done that brought about
change? Nope, didn't think so.

One might very well argue that the behaviour of Indians, in India, is indeed racist,
because they do not target people of their own race and pay particular attention
to those that are of a different race.
DAVID BROWN
FEB 01,
2010
03:32 AM
30
@ Pratyush I am commenting solely because this article was referenced in the
Australian press this morning. This is probably the first and last time that I would
ever look at Outlook, and I will make the following comments. Firstly whilst the
article inside the magazine was reasonably balanced, the front-page headline
was typical of the gutter press and bore no relationship to the article. I'm sure it
will sell a lot of Outlook magazines solely the basis of the cover.

This whole issue has been blown out of all proportion by a few sensation
mongers seeking publicity. By and large Indians in this country are as safe as
anybody else, but if you walk through parks at night, whether you are white or
black, you place your self at risk in any city in the world. Australians are fairly
tolerant having experienced waves of migrants from various countries in the
world including Italy Greece,Somalia, Turkey Yugoslavia,Vietnam, Sri Lanka,
India,Cambodia, and of course England Ireland and Scotland. Culturally most of
this influx of different cultures has been advantageous,but we have also had to
deal with a significant increase in knife related crime from some of these ethnic
groups as well as group bashings none of which has been directed at Indians.

The antics of Mr. Rudd in his Klu Klux Klan is typical of a spoiled attention
seeking brat overshadowed by his more famous uncle, and should in no way be
seen as reflecting any significant entity in Australia. He was lucky that somebody
didn't assault him for his outrageous presentation, but Australia is a very tolerant
society in which fools are generally generally tolerated and allowed to make
stupid statements without redress. Unfortunately featuring this lunatic in the
Outlook article only adds to the presumption that this news magazine is an
element of the gutter press seeking sensational headlines to sell content, and
only presenting a more balanced view inside the document.
GREG ANGELO
FEB 01,
2010
03:42 AM
31
It is not the case that 'australians hate' you. Its more that some australians hate
anyone not like them. (these racists tend to be the ones nobody else wants to be
like either). Sudenese migrants are experiencing this violence as well, while there
was similar anti-asian acts in the 1970's and 1980's. Yet this is not the widely
supported and racist 'white australia policy, thats is in the past.It seems to me
that the situation in melbourne is a mixture of race-inpired assaults combined with
the fact that many indian students are engaged in some of the more vulnerable
occupations (cab drivers etc). The vast majority of australins are appaled by
outright stupidity of these acts.

As for speaking more like australians - Why?.This view just blames the victim for
their own assault. Should ausralian tourists talk more like indians when in india -
just to avoid being assaulted? As a teacher at a university i would be hard
pressed to say to an indian student what talking like an australian is? In most
classes i teach their are australian citizens with accents from all over the world.
Moreover its not like indians are from the moon, they speak and act pretty much
like australians anyway.

Lastly, a few people have commented on people 'using' the student visa system
as a way of migrating - so what? The idea that australia seduces some students
to stay after they have completed their studies is a good thing.

But as for cookery classes! - the people with the best food on earth are being
taught to cook by a nation where the national food is a meat pie - funny. A tip for
future students, heat for 15 minutes serve with tomato sauce -- congratulations,
graduation is tommorow.
KINGSLEY
CAIRNS, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
03:43 AM
32
Australians don't hate Indians. The vast majority of us get along with Indians
perfectly well. What we hate are hypocrits, like the writers of racist beat up
stories.

Australians don't like being called racist when they're not, especially by people
from probably the most bigoted and hateful place on earth. The politicians you
reference are on the fringe of the fringe. We don't have religious riots here, we
don't have 'untouchables', we've never had a religous/race based civil war.
Before you start throwing mud at other people take a look at yourselves first.

If there is any anger towards Indians, it is to the 90% of foriegn students that are
not here to learn and take their skills home, that are here to get a rubber stamp
for permanent residency. These students cheat their way through the system and
buy their qualifications. It is well documented that colleges are under pressure to
pass foriegn students that would otherwise fail. I have witnessed this process first
hand. I have seen people go into exams with cheat sheets which are ignored. I
have been approached by students for tutoring but only want you to write their
essays. I have seen students get credit for supposed qualifications when they're
clearly not competent. I have worked with incompetent Indian graduates that
should never have been passed; the list of cheating and corruption is endless.
How do you expect Australians not to get upset about this?
UTTERBS
FEB 01,
2010
03:51 AM
33
Articles like this are only going to make the problem of racism in Australia worse.
I've grown up with Indian students in all levels of my education, and have many
Indian famalies living in the same street as me. Racism didn't make any sence to
me- these people were my friends and neighbours. If Miagrants stop coming to
Melbourne and Australia, the culture of racism will thrive. Australia isn't known for
having a multicultural past, but it is learning to overthrow thatshown by how
most of our racist right wing parties are fringe groups. To combat Indian attacks
the victorian government needs to police crime prone areas more, needs to
educate the public on the values of multiculturism. It doesn't help that much of the
Indian media is on a witch hunt, which will no doubt discourage more Indians
coming to Australia.
J JEROME
FEB 01,
2010
04:01 AM
34
Pratyush (comment 11),

First you fall for an obvious and poorly worded troll. Then you reveal your own
deep seated prejudice with comments such as

"even idiotic, unskilled, beer-swilling labourers can afford a two storey house and
a Landcruise"

Ugly, hate-filled sentiments that reek of resentment of certain classes of people.
DAVE
FEB 01,
2010
04:13 AM
35
Lets face facts folks. When it comes to racism no one holds a candle to the
Indian caste system and what are dowry murders about that never get
investigated- estimated at close to 10,000 females last year alone.
I would like to see what would happen if 100,000 Australians landed in Mumbai
and started taking jobs of the locals . There would be riots at the blink of an eye ,
but dont worry ,there is more chance of being hit by Haley's comet than 100,000
Australians turning up on your doostep.
The reporting in this article is disgraceful and proves the point of any Australian
who has ever visited India, that its full of liars , thieves and rip off merchants.
Bottom line is that India is a shithole , run by shifty caste driven self righteous
politicians who are looking to deflect from their own narrow based internalised
racist attitudes. No wonder every Indian worth his salt is trying to get into
Australia under the guise of doing some study. Lots of us are laughing here about
your moaning and groaning , whislt our politicians pander to your complaints
about racism. Stay in your shithole if you like. Iam sure its absolute paradise.
COLONEL
FEB 01,
2010
04:30 AM
36
Until recently my perceptions of Indians and India have been shaped by positives
- its democratic values, Buddhism, Gandhi etc. My doctor is an Indian immigrant
and I have the highest respect for him. I known a few Australians of Indian
background socially, and to tell the truth I dont even think of them as Indian. Im
a bit of a military history buff, and in the Indian/Pakistan conflicts Ive always seen
the Indian side as being more balanced and less chauvinistically driven. These
positive view were somewhat dented by the racism directed to Andrew Symonds
by Indian crowds, but overall it was maintained.

The latest campaign of misinformation directed against Australia by Indian media
(including this article) and politicians however has made me realise that those
overall positive views were unrealistic. It would seem that Indias democracy and
public opinion is based on a large majority of easily swayed and largely ignorant
people, and that the politicians and media are well aware of this and use it for
their own purposes.

Thanks for the wake-up call Ive taken off my rose-coloured glasses regarding
India.
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
04:36 AM
37
"They smell bad" - Do you think that's good enough reason to kill them. If each of
them wore deo/perfumes they would not be racially targeted? Sure?
For others well there's a different in perception as "racism" is not as black and
white as dead or alive. What is humor for some is racism for others. I believe that
Australia needs to take in most "compatible" students and need to educate the
Aussies that how they gonna help build the country.
I for one can boast to have attracted employment for 5 Aussies from an American
company that would have otherwise gone to Malaysia. Believe me educated
Indians are much better than those bogans Centerlink supports.
SAMMYB
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:44 AM
38
This would have to be the most fair and balanced article I have read regarding
racism in Australia. Unfortunately it does not touch on the less obvious forms of
racism and abuse suffered by any NON WHITE nationality that enters our land.
Australia IS a racist nation one need only review our governments past AND
current treatment of our own aboriginal populations compared to that of our
'white' population to know that racism is so well ingrained into the Australian
psyche that we ourselves rarely recognize what is blatantly obvious to the rest of
the world!
REA
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:47 AM
39
Funny is the word! @Colonel(comment 35), the way you are using words shows
your class. Most other educated Australians who have commented here, have
shown that they do know how to communicate, You clearly do not. You do not
even understand the migration system of Australia either. Similarly, @Pratyush
(comment 11) has shows his class. Absolutely dirty worded post by him.

I am an Indian Australian, who studied in Melbourne in 1998-99 and now live in
Sydney. I think the whole issue has been blown out of proportion by the Indian
Media (this article still is more balanced then most others while the cover is surely
of 'cheap press' type).

Seating in India and looking at media reports there, people will not know what the
real situation on the ground here is.

Fact is - in day-to-day life, there is absolutely no element of racism that I can see.
Indian people are everywhere. In good jobs, senior positions, in businesses even
in local governments. They are doing well in some sports locally and doing
exceptionally well in schools.

There have been issues in Melbourne. Baring some incidents, most others are
related to Criminal activities rather then racism.

Yes some racisim related incidents have been there in Melbourne. There will be a
few people who may have some issue against Indians or other non 'westeners'.
But it would be absolutely irresponsible to generalise that for the whole of
Australia or all Australians or to see the country as a racist country. Generally
speaking, Most Australians are friendly and peace loving people. Yes True. I
have been helped by Aussi friends so many times when needed and there have
been many Australian friends who asked for help from me as well on occasions.

Out of proportion media coverage (where they do not really understand the
realities), will in fact make all of us Indians look bad who are in Australia or in
general. It will only detoriate the situation. We need to let the governments handle
the affairs rather then people getting involved in protests etc.

I am a proud Indian. But I can see that Indian media/publications have been
generally biased and half cooked in reporting. They are trying to sell their stuff.
Unfortunately, we are buying it without thinking twice.
TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:53 AM
40
The attacks on Indians in Melbourne are a national disgrace. That people have
died is indefensible.

The Indian government has shown incredible restraint. The Australian and
Victorian governments have downplayed the problem. They may well not want to
stir up the racist streak that still runs through this country. However behind the
scenes the Australian and Victorian governments seem to have been very
concerned. The police file prepared by Victoria Police shows swift action to
apprehend most offenders.

We need more information on what exactly is the problem. Are Indians really the
focus? Or are they targets of convenience for offenders with many other
problems on their minds?

In the meantime some tougher government statements that violence will not be
tolerated and some agile police presence in problem areas are needed.

I read Outlook whenever I am in India and rarely see anything about Australia. It
grieves me that we appear in your pages this way. There is a more positive side
to the place.

When these tragic attacks stop you may want to do another story on the Indians
who are quietly making their way in so many places in Australia and who are, just
as previous waves of immigrants have done, redefining this country for the better.
RFI SMITH
FEB 01,
2010
04:57 AM
Coming from Australia and having studied cookery myself at a local college I met
a lot of Indian overseas students. One thing I noticed was, they, like me, already
had tertiary qualifications, were middle class and conscientious.

Some Australians do exhibit racist tendencies when new influx of migrants arrive,
like my family experienced arriving in the 1950's. It was usually innocuous and
41
devoid of violence towards migrants.

It would be useful to note that quite a few of these attacks have been perpetrated
by children of migrants themselves: Lebanese, Sudanese, Greek, Italian etc. A
number of aborigines have even been arrested over the robbery/attacks.

It's erroneous to think this is simply white people attacking dark skinned
foreigners. It's a more complicated issue of identity, economics, employment
opportunities and geography.

I know that sounds vague but the fact is, there have been racist attacks, but to
typify it as a broad social trend or a majority sentiment is ludicrous and hysterical.

Interesting to be on the receiving end of spurious reporting, selective quoting and
a general hatchet job of an article.

It's usually the western media misapprehending the situation in developing
nations, not vice-versa. Something to think about for all sides of impartial
journalistic integrity.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
04:58 AM
42
I came to this web site from a link on the Melbourne Age news web site. I am a
person of Indian origin and once lived in Australia before immigrating to the US. It
is indeed sad to be following the non stop reports of violence against people of
Indian origin in Australia. When I lived in Australia, I was close friends with many
wonderful Australians of Anglo Celtic heritage. They were very nice people. I also
came across the riff-raffs on the streets, generally white Australians with low
education, blue collar jobs, who in some cases held 1970s White Australia views
and would not hesitate to yell out profanities at any non-white. Having lived in the
US for a decade now, I find some fundamental differences in the life experiences
of Indians in Australia and the US. Australia is a mono culture of the Anglo
Saxons heritage, and they traditionally see themselves as the only rightful
"Australians" and everyone else as Chinese or Greeks or Arabs etc. There is a
high tolerance of violence in Australia and the judges are very liberal, appointed
for life, and have more sympathy for the criminal than for the victims.
Punishments are very mild and there is thus no deterrence for violent crime. The
police is an all white force, are very few in numbers, and generally are ineffective.
With the result that the streets in many parts of Melbourne's suburbs are a no-go
zone in the night. Western Suburbs which have the lowest educational levels
were always a problem. Prahran is a mix of low income apartment dwellers as
well as richer people in big houses especially on the Yarra river side. There is
definitely a glass ceiling for non Anglos in Australia. The white-Australia policy
was removed by executive order and there never was a referendum or public
discussion on it and a section of the Australian white population never accepted
the removal of the policy. Politicians have also traditionally played the race card
and John Howard and Pauline Hanson are two prominent politicians in that
regard. What is the way forward? I think Indians need to stay away from
Australia. There are more opportunities for young Indians in India today due to
Infosys, Tata motors, Wipro, Reliance etc. India will be the 3rd largest economy
in the world by 2040 (China the largest by 2019). This is the Asian century and
the shoes will soon be on the other foot. Simply aping the west is not an option
for Indians. Australia too instead of linking its economy with the fastest growing
economies in the world is going the insular Japanese way that will have long term
consequences. It will be a lost opportunity due to the short sightedness of the
political leaders.
RAM
MINNEAPOLIS, UNITED STATES
FEB 01,
2010
04:59 AM
43
Kingsley, comment 11...you say you teach at a university and yet you show
disgustingly poor grammar and even worse critical thinking. Perhaps this is a part
of the problem. Australia has geared up to make education, particularly fraudulent
education as a back door entry to permanent residency, a huge industry that has
destroyed true education in the country. Classrooms filled to the brink with non-
english-speaking students who manage to pass in a course that is taught and
examined entirely in english has to be a clue that education in Australia is a fraud
perpetrated on all students, whether foreign or not.

Australians are rightly angry that the government is allowing, literally, millions of
people in under its insane immigration laws and educational back-dooring.
Indians would be just as angry if tens and hundreds of millions of foreigners were
arriving in India every year and taking jobs and undermining the culture...in fact,
as I recall, India has already SHOWN that it gets very angry about those sorts of
things, but I never see articles calling Gandhi a racist.

Indian students should stay away from Australia if they are interested in
education. India has a perfectly good education system, and I would think it now
far superior to the excuse for education they would receive in Australia. Indian
students looking for advanced education also have to understand they have no
"right" to an education in Australia. If they don't like the conditions in Australia,
then they have a right to seek education anywhere they like. Australia is under no
obligation to them, nor they to it. The only reason any student in India is going to
be upset is because they see the cooking school road to Australian residency
becoming more difficult. Be aware, that is changing anyway. Australia no longer
will guarantee you permanent residency once your cooking school graduates
you, and with more pressure, it is most likely that in the near future foreign
students will be required to leave the country upon completing their studies,
which is as it should be.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:03 AM
44
A fact left out of your article that really shows how bad your media is. Three of the
people arrested over these attacks. INIAN NATIONALS. So now we see it racist
attacks in Australia by Indian Nationals are Australians being racist.
http://www.smh.com.au/world/anatomy-of-hate-as-magazine-unleashes-
antiaustralian-rage-20100131-n6n4.html
SCOTT GRUNDY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:07 AM
45
COLONEL of BRIGHTON BEACH: Your below post has merely evidenced the
fact that Australia is a racist nation. Firstly I will point out that this article
addresses RACISM dowry murders are not racially motivated and therefore
irrelevant. Secondly I will note that per head of population Australia has a much
higher murder rate than India so again your comments are a waste of space (as i
suspect you are). The fact that you immediately resort to claiming 'they steal our
jobs' proves everything said within the article.
REA
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:09 AM
46
Alright all white Australians. It's time to behave or leave Australia. Go back to
your homeland. There's no excuse. If you want to live in Australia, you will have
to adhere to demoratic values. We will not tolerate your racist attitudes anymore.
The union Jack will shed soon. We;ve seen how you have treated the
Aborogninals and managed to wipe out cultures from Australia. This will not
happen anymore.We will defend this country to our last breath. We will drive back
forces of demons back to where they came from. Look at them still shamelessly
plundering away australian wealth through minning and converting the entire land
of tasmani into paper pulp. Devils, they are devils tryingto plunder Australia, rape
this beautiful land to the last branch. No Brumby, No Rudd. We had enough of
these skin heads. We will not tolerate racism in this land. If you want to be a skjin
head, your home is in the UK. We are full, so FO! BACK TO WHERE YOU CAME
FROM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
05:11 AM
Ok, some of your statistics are bit misleading.

For instance:

47
"130 Indians attacked countrywide, the Indian high commission says. Of these,
30 were students."

You haven't really proved any baseline for comparison here. But actually,
according to nationmaster, there are about 141, 000 asaults in Australia per year.
That's about 370 assaults per day.

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_ass_percap-crime-assaults-per-capita

Indians represennting about 1.5% of the population in Australia, they should be
subject to about 1.5% of daily assaults, or a bout 5-6 per day.

Ergo, 100 in a year is not a very high number of assaults at all. That should be
how many Indians are assaulted in the three weeks, all things being equal.

"1,447 incidents of crime against Indians in 2007-08 have been reported in
volunteers, to police a population of four million."

I think that's actually a misquote. That stat was reported, origininally, by the
Victorian police. They used the term "violent crime", and it was against "people of
Indian descent". It's a bit puzzling as to how they obtained this stat, as Victorian
police don't log the ethnicity of crime victims. At any rate, the Vic police recently
clarified that anyway, saying that Indians aren't over represented in assault, but
they are over represented in robberies.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/01/20/2797173.htm

However, I do commend the author for at least conceding the possibility that an
attack against an Indian might not be racially motivated. This is a real quantum
leap in the reporting of this issue by the Indian media.
FLAVIAN HARDCASTLE
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:14 AM
48
So many views on this subject, some so well presented, and some not so
balanced. All in all, a fair write up except the headline.
My experience is as an ethnic Indian having migrated, over 10 years ago and
settled in Melbourne. I keep hearing about Australia being racist - the notion
being that the whole country is racist? Can anybody point me to one single piece
of legislation or policy that is even remotely racist in modern Australia. Sure there
are a few misguided souls around here, but nothing even close to say - the
legislation in Maharashstra concering son of soil policy.
I have encountered reacist behaviour in my 20 odd years of working life. But I
have to say that about 90% of that was in India, where discrimination against my
ethnicity, language, caste etc was prolific.
We make it a point to visit India every 18-24 months. But the feeling of stepping
back into Melbourne is one truly of coming back home. Home where my aged
chinese neighbour keeps her best garden grown tomatoes and zucchinis for
us,where my Mauritian neighbours will often look after our kids they way their
grandparents would have,where my colleagues regardless of colour will put in a
day of back breaking work, im my lost cause garden, for no more reward than
chilled beer and companionship.
Do not tell me that Australia is racist - I know much better and am willing to show
you too, if you will listen.
SKYFISH
FEB 01,
2010
05:20 AM
49
In response to Flavian Hardcastle, comment 47 (love you name, by the way!), the
article here alludes to, but doesn't dare confront the whole truth of why Indian
students are over-represented in robbery statistics. Their habit of carrying their
money around with them and not using banks is because so many of them are
breaking the law and working far beyond the hours that international students are
allowed to work. Unfortunately, knowing India very well myself, Indians commonly
have no interest in following the laws, whether they are at home or abroad, and
Indian students have made themselves targets of robbery in Australia because of
this. Fortunately, the appalling situation of Indian students illegally driving taxis in
Australia's large cities may be eventually dealt with as the public outcry is getting
to be very loud about the shocking and dangerous driving, poor car and driver
cleanliness, and drivers not knowing their way to the easiest and most well
known destinations. Unfortunately Australian laws were originally written with an
assumption that most people would follow the rules, never anticipating the
government would flood the country with people who aren't interested in laws or
rules at all.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:30 AM
50
David Brown,

>> whether there is a difference between thievery or racism is beside the point

True, for the victim it makes no difference. There is always a problem in
condemning a whole people for the malfeasance of a few. Many things are being
said in the heat of the moment which will be forgotten by the time of the next test
match.
ANWAAR
FEB 01,
2010
05:36 AM
51
D.B Sydney well I don't know anything about Indians breaking the rules, or
working illegally. But being a taxi driver in Melbourne is a very dangerous job. A
survey done by WorkCover in 1996 showed that 40% of taxi had been victim of
assault at least once while doing their jobs. If they are over represented in jobs
like taxi driver, as well as security guards and nightshift store keepers, then it
would be no surprise at all if they are also over represented in assault stats.
FLAVIAN HARDCASTLE
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:38 AM
52
I just had a thought as I'm sitting at my desk. I went to school and Uni with
Australians whose families migrated from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka etc and
never noticed any racism directed towards them.

Many doctors, lawyers, business people, academics and so forth are of
subcontinental descent or background.

As Victoria Police doesnt', I believe, keep records of the ethnicity of victims of
crime, what proportion of Indians who migrated to Australia as a family or skilled
migrant get assaulted or robbed?

I ask this as Indian Australians of a higher socio-economic level and familiarity
with Australia don't seem to be the target of racist attacks. Considering racists
are mostly ill-educated and ill-informed wouldn't they attack people who look
"Indian"?

There was a case where the head of the Australian Medical Association (A Dr. of
Indian extraction) was viciously attacked and robbed. No race related connection
as concluded by the victim, courts and police.

Apart from this instance, wouldn't it lead some to speculate that the attacks occur
routinely against vulnerable people. Students walking alone, to work, taxi drivers
etc.

If there was a racist intent I would expect to see Indians from all socioeconomic
backgrounds being represented. This is not the case. The vast majority as those
who live in much less affluent areas and are subject to the same dangers all
people face living in a deprived area.

Im sure there's quite a few suburbs of Mumbai, Dehli or other large cities in India
that are 'no go zones" for those who look more affluent and prone to opportunistic
robbery and violence.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:44 AM
53
Also for a last piece of perspective. Considering the hysteria in the Indian media
towards Australia, is there the same level of anger towards the overt
discrimination that people of Indian ancestry receive/received in such places as
Fiji, South Africa, Uganda, Malaysia etc where one ethnicity was jealous of Indian
ingenuity and hard work and LEGISLATED and openly victimized those who had
lived in such countries for over a century.

Makes you wonder whether this is a massive media splurge of populism,
chauvinism and ignorance? Is some of this anger also derived from, and driven
by,Indian nationalism rising and India wishing to assert its power?
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:48 AM
54
Lots of interesting & valid comments here.

One other thing I'd like to add - if India is so concerned about its citizens beeing
officially seem to think its OK to charge visting guests considerably higher prices.

Of course an Indian will pay, what 10-100 rupees to vistit the Taj Mahal - but I
must pay well over 7 times that amount - approx US$35.

I think issues of inequality ... and lack of respect ... are far greater in India. And
ultimately Racism is cancerously inherent amongst your own people. I'd love to
see India open up as a Multi-cultural society & operate free of problems -
absolutely not!!!!

And what about the Caste system ... although officially outlawed it still has an
enormous presence in everyday life. Isn't religion a clever & powerful way of
keeping the downtrodden eternally downtrodden.

As I wrote earlier I think if you polled ALL Indians living in Australia where they
would rather be I'm sure you'll find most would rather stay down under.

I've spent a reasonable time in India on 3 occasions over the last 15 years and
lived in Mainland China for 7 years. I hate to say it .. but China's rapid
development over the last 25 years (economically & socially) only highlights
India's enormous failures.

Honestly India there are far greater problems of Violence, inequality, and
predjudice in your own backyard that you need to sort out!!
WONKA HUNDSHEISEN
FEB 01,
2010
05:53 AM
55
"The Australian government should stop issuing student visas for irrelevant
courses like hair styling , nail manicuring and cookery. Another good idea is to
prevent shoddy colleges offering such courses from admitting students."...The
current government is in the process of doing that now. But you know what will
happen when that occurs?.. Indians will cry "racism" because they are no longer
allowed to "study" cookery or hairdressing in Australia. We should also point out
that it's not just Indians doing these bogus student courses. We have people from
all over south east asia and even Brazil doing them nowadays. The difference
between them and the Indians is they come here with far more money and don't
live in the worst areas doing the worst jobs. And as for Prahran..the only
dangerous places there are near the nightclubs where you have thousands of
people drinking and taking drugs.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:20 AM
56
Wonka in HK:

"One other thing I'd like to add - if India is so concerned about its citizens beeing
officially seem to think its OK to charge visting guests considerably higher
prices."

That might be because foreign tourists have more disposable income and to
allow all citizens of India, who are the owners and inheritors of the cultures that
prededed, we pay a relatively small amount to see an amazing work of
architectural brilliance.

See how much you have to pay to see Avatar 3D in contrast to an ancient
monument that needs foreign money to help keep their treasures open to all and
maintain them well for your photo op in front of the gleaming mausoleum.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:26 AM
57
for Australians everyone around them is a fake and everything around them is a
myth that is anything that is not Australian according to them the author of the
article has no clue about Gandhi liberated a nation of one billion against violence
what does the author suggests that all Indians in Australia subject them selves to
the violence against them by Australians to compare a self defeating Australian
attitude like tall poppy syndrome with Gandhi transigence against his violent
colonial rulers is taking the empty and vacuous Australian culture or the lack
thereof too far it is just plain silly to do that comparison it does not look like the
Australians get it assaulting others that look unaustralian will only get you so far
read the newspaper from uk to the middle east to Asia to asses the damage to
Australian reputation internationally looks like lanmandragon does not get it
above all Gandhi was uk educated barrister who went to south Africa to practice
law was far more literate than his English peers and that is the key Indians are in
Australia do as they have done elsewhere focus their energies now literacy and
education and further their professions like they have done in silicon valley in usa
or in uk where majority of doctors and infact the richest person in uk is Indian or
in Canada where British columbia recently boasted its first Indian origin premier
or in Australia where the Australian ambassador to India is Indian and along the
way if a few obstacles come in the form of assaults and being victimized that is
only to be expected and really so what Australians are good only at being
envious of other people success Australians lack the tenacity to undertake
hardship to struggle and put themselves outside of their comfort zones to educate
themselves either professionally or more importantly outside of their narrow
minded antiquated views on culture and race when Australians travel one usually
finds them working in a pub in uk or as nannies and closeted in their own
Australian habits and tantrum unwilling to expose themselves to new
environments even if it means that is a western English environment like the uk
or usa Australians have a habit of irritating their hosts even in those countries
which they claim to have the same culture as theirs indeed the Australian accent
is laughed at and derided at uk and usa pubs or perhaps compliments by patron
occasionally for some drunken jolly good times Australians though are completely
oblivious of what image they portray and how they are perceived because a true
Australian trait is a complete lack of introspection and self improvement
Australians believe what they want to believe Australians read what they want to
read Australians hear what they want to hear unfortunately for Australians the
world has a different view
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 AM
58
"Alright all white Australians. It's time to behave or leave Australia. Go back to
your homeland. There's no excuse."...Actually,for most white
Australians,Australia is their homeland. Most white Australians have had their
family living here for the last 150 years,and have never been to their ancestors
lands of Britain and Ireland. By your logic every person of Indian descent who
lives in USA,Canada,Britain,Malaysia,Singapore,Fiji,the West
Indies,Kenya,Tanzania and South Africa should be heading home to the
"Motherland".
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 AM
Overall the article does bring out several points about why Indian students seem
to be more under attack than other indians or even other students. The headline
is very mis-leading though and only serves to add fuel to the anger and hate that
59
the average Indian has developed for Australia. Very disappointing Outlook, very
disappointing.

I am not a "rich" indian and dont live in a posh suburb in Melbourne (yes,
Outlook, there can be suburbs that dont house the dregs of society or the uber
rich). I am offended by the fact that you group indians in australia as either poor
students or rich migrants. There is a strong group of hardworking, professional
indians who are quite happy living in this country and appreciate all that it has to
offer. I haven't been subjected to any racist attack but that does not mean I dont
think there are racist elements in australia.
Your article talks about the more liberal australians and mentions that the One
nation party etc are not popular, but I dont think you stress that enough. And in
not doing so, you continue to feed the myth that 'white' australians dont like
indians.
Your article also only focuses on young white kids as the perpetrators of these
assaults. Which again is only half the truth, as a lot of the violence that
Melbourne sees is caused by asian, african gangs (sydney I believe has the
lebanese who cause problems).

All this media coverage and the hateful comments over the last couple of months
from both sides just makes me think that some people will continue to believe
what they want to, irrespective of the facts
SUMERA
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 AM
60
one should read about the constant assault on indians in australia they recently
also drew criticsim for a black face comedy skit on hey hey its saturday telivision
show australia was a white only country until the 1970 i lived in australia a long
time i would say australia is one of the most racist countries in the whole world
ofcourse australia was settled by uprooting its aboriginal population then the
australians took away aboriginal children to make them more like them the
australian goct recent apoligised to the aboriginal people only last year for
atrocities committed for hundreds of years until the 1990 it would be impossible to
find an african american person in australia only recently australia allowed some
somali refugees but there have been complains of treating them very badly
australia had asian chinese laborers coming to work in the australian gold mines
and farms they also owned farms just before the world war reports suggest soem
chinese also fought for the australian army after the war the chinese were sent
back to china and their lands taken away from them it was only after the white
only policy was lifted that they were allowed to come back seom 40 years later if
with the white only policy australia preferred southern european whites like
italians and greeks prior to that even italians and greeks were not allowed settling
in australia italians and greeks had a hard time settling in australia that was
followed by australian reluctance to allowed asian immigrants chinese filipinos
indonesians etc indian immigration followed and now the chinese and indian
communities are fairly big ther are some 100,000 indians students that study in
australia annually and the indian community locally is also big but recently indian
students have been attacked repeated with 1or more averaging a month many of
them beign fatal while the australian police has termed soem of these attacks as
oppoortunistic but have refrained from terming them racist even though in some
of them explicit racist overtones existed in the attacks like indian australians
repeatedly stabbed and being told to go home the indian community now lives
very cautiously in australia the australian police is faily lax generally speaking and
they have not being able to either stop these attacks or investigate and prosecute
the culprits indian bashing in australia and takign away their iphones and
blackberry and laptops has become a game for many criminals in australia
recently a chinese researcher was fatally attacked while walkign home from
university campus attackers mistook him to be an indian in the dark and told the
court later that that night they wanted to attack an indian to get his ipod the ex
president of a state medical association in australia an indian from uk from
atatcked so severly while strolling in the park that he suffered a massive brain
damage and apparently had to learn such basic things as speech one read
timesofindia.com and the age.com.au to understand the current australian
situation
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:28 AM
61
Racism in Australia
Australia has a long history of racism dating back to the founding of the first
colony in Sydney Cove. The establishment of the British colony in 1788 was
justified by a racist ideology later expressed by the 'Terra Nullius' concept, in
which the colonists believed they had first rights to the land over other groups.
Racism is closely tied to nationalism, and the use of immigrants as scapegoats
during lean economic times.
Lambing Flat massacre

Australia's experience with the Chinese on the goldfields probably established
the pattern of discriminatory practice towards Chinese in particular and Asians in
general. Early Asian immigrants in Australia generally took jobs unwanted by
Europeans such as railway workers, shepherds on new land, fruit pickers and
clearing bushland. By the early 19th century, with 24,000 Chinese immigrants in
Australia there was a perception about Australia being 'overrun'. More
particularly, Chinese miners were a perceived threat to the Australian economy.
The discovery of gold in Australia and a subsequent Gold Rush saw a boom of
Asian immigrants against extreme difficulties posed by white settlers such as the
Poll Taxes of ten pounds in Victorian ports and widespread anti-Chinese
violence.

In 1857, just before the outbreak of a major anti-Chinese riot on Victoria's
Buckland River goldfield, Henry Parkes, best known as the 'Father of Federation'
and owner of the Empire newspaper, railed against the 'unnatural vices and
practices' that supposedly prevailed in China. In June 1861, just before another
anti-Chinese riot at the Lambing Flat goldfield (near Young, in New South Wales),
the Empire warned that:
... there is a good deal of the animal about the Chinaman ... the white population
is becoming demoralised by the presence of hordes of idolatrist barbarians,
destitute of religion and morality, as well as every social virtue which makes us
proud of our Anglo-Saxon race and institutions.[1]


purveyor of cheap, coloured labour is an Australian.[2]


purveyor of cheap, coloured labour is an Australian.
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:28 AM
62
I have lived in the west for the past 30 years. There is some truth in these
reports. However, there are two facets to this problem-
1. The attitude of Australians towards Indians
2. The naivety of the Indian students

Generally speaking, on the surface, people are polite. However, the institutional
and inherent racism exists deeply. for example- I consider myself reasonably well
integrated in the society. When we arrived at the Sydney Airport, the customs
person snatched the bag from my hand and stared at me with anger. On other
occasions, salespeople ignore when asked for assistance. There are many such
incidents that also go unrecorded. My brother was declined service in Armed
forces because he was Indian. When he requested for details, they offerred
employment but did not reveal the reason for earlier decline. There are many
such experiences and some of them trivial to print.
The second aspect of this issue is that many Indians who are arriving into
Australia are simply naive. They live in poorer neighbourhoods, work at cheap
joints (at odd hours)and don't have the finesse to get out of difficult situations.
They are easy prey to bad social elements in Australian society. It may be better
if the Indian government ask all Indians travelling abroad to take a mandatory
course to familiarise themselves of the new environment.
VIREN AGGARWAL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
06:29 AM
5 hours a story from Brisbane

Delmae Barton aged 62, a prominent Indigenous Elder and an opera singer, lay
for more than five hours on a bus stop seat near Griffith University's Nathan
Campus in July 2006, unable to reach out for help after vomiting from a
suspected stroke or diabetes attack.
63

For five and a half hours, commuters, students and bus drivers ignored her plight
until two young Japanese men asked if she needed water and help.

Her friend and the director of the Gumurri Centre at the university Boni
Robertson, says it is a disgrace that Auntie Delmae's plight was ignored by
hundreds of commuters as buses came and went.

She said 'nobody would stop to help me. Is this all I'm worth?' She believes
people thought she was a drunk or a drug addict, and that the colour of skin
encouraged them to walk on by.

The then Premier Peter Beattie told parliament he was 'really disappointed' by the
incident and apologised on behalf of Queenslanders.
A story from Townsville

Aborigines can no longer receive a fair trial in Townsville according to survey
results to be released in July that show a majority of residents would be unable to
expel racist attitudes in court. The survey was conducted to demonstrate the
need for the Lex Wotton Palm Island Riots case to be moved from a scheduled
hearing in Townsville to Brisbane to ensure a fair and just trial.

In the survey, commissioned by Sydney-based law firm, Levitt Robinson, over
half of Townsville residents claimed they could not disregard negative beliefs held
about Aborigines, even if instructed by a judge in a courtroom setting.

These results bring to light a segregated city rife with racist views with only one in
ten Townsville residents having a positive attitude towards Aboriginal people in
the community.

Ignorance seemed to be a major factor with only one in four people correctly
attributing the cause of the Palm Island Riots to a death in custody.
A story from Sydney

In April 2008, a world-renowned Aboriginal composer, buzzing after a standing
ovation at the Sydney Opera House, was turned away from half-empty Kings
Cross haunt Hugo's. He and his friend were told, "You can't expect us to just let
anyone in."

William Barton, a son of Delmae Barton, who has been to some of the world's top
bars over his acclaimed career, was told the venue was "at capacity" as he tried
to get it at 9.30pm on a Sunday to celebrate a friend's birthday. His friend
immediately fronted Hugo's door staff - and was rudely told: "You can't expect us
to just let anyone in."
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:30 AM
64
THE United Nations special deleate on indigenous rights says the intervention
into remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory is clearly
discriminatory, and that there is "entrenched" racism in Australia.

THE intervention into remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory is
clearly discriminatory, and that there is "entrenched" racism in Australia, the
United Nations special delegate on indigenous rights says.

James Anaya didn't pull any punches after his two-week visit of the country.

He said the Rudd Government should reinstate the Racial Discrimination Act in
the NT "right away" because the intervention was discriminatory.

"It undermines the right of indigenous peoples to control their own destinies, their
right to self-determination," he said.

He also said the Stolen Generations should be paid compensation.
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:33 AM
65
While not condoned I believe the expectation from Indians in Australia and in
India is that they receive a level of support and assistance above other persons in
Australian society, including its own citizens. So to answer the question on your
cover, because of your breathtaking hypocrisy. Thousands killed in mob violence
linked to both race and religion. Where my Indian Dr friends don't go out in the
sun because their skin might become a little darker and they might be confused
for lower caste. Effigies burnt and lives threatened at the drop of a hat. You would
be still practising suttee if the English didn't keep hanging you for it. If Indians are
concerned about violence here and not satisfied with the response from
police/government the solution is simple - stay in your paradise.
ANGUS
PARRAMATTA, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:03 AM
66
To Elan, unfortunately your inability to write coherent english or use punctuation
means I'm forced to ignore your comments. I hope you're not saying anything
valuable or pertinent because I would have to miss out on it, although I doubt you
do have anything of real value to say, because if you did, you'd have learned how
to make yourself clearly understood by now.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:12 AM
67
D.B.

while you aussies are getting your racist asses kicked by everyone from
americans to the english to the chinese logonto their media to listen to what they
are saying am i really worried that you out of your pitiful population of 18 million
may not read my opinion we are making the impacts where it matters also given
that 90% of sydney is now owned by the chinese and indians suggest you find
another country to got to
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:18 AM
68
I love the way many Australian people claim to "know" India - at times, even
better than Indians themselves!

To those who refer to the repressed dalits and lower caste people, yes the caste
system is atrocious, but it had nothing to do with race! And it is not part of any
religion - it is a social construction. As socio-economic barriers are being broken
down, so is the caste system.

People are also justifying the stick they give to Indians based on India's treatment
of foreigners. But people disregard the turbulent history that India has had at the
hands of the British, Portuguese, and others. Given this, I'd say foreigners are
treated very well in India, much better than some other countries such as South
Korea.

At Dave, I do not understand what hate filled sentiments I have expressed, nor
what is particularly poor worded about my earlier comment. I am a civil engineer,
and I have seen how much money unskilled labourers earn in Australia. Many of
them earn more than me - plasterers sometimes charge up to $20,000 for the
plastering of a two storey house. I have seen the cementers throw beer bottles
and then cover it up with cement. And that's when they turn up in the first place.
When unskilled labourers can earn more than a qualified, experienced, (and if I
say so myself) decent engineer, you can understand why many people would
wish to migrate here.

Please note, that I am not claiming Australia as an overall racist country, but
many of the comments here are disgusting. There is a huge shortage of jobs in
Australia, hence encouraging Indians, Chinese, and other migrants to come here.
To claim jobs will be "lost" by maintaining such immigration levels is absurd,
especially when students are only allowed to work 20 hours a week legally! If I
worked 20 hours a week at award wages, I would barely pay for my rent! The
and yet, by the work restriction laws, forcing them in live in crappy conditions.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
07:18 AM
69
@ Elan

Personal attacks and ad hominem arguments of all sorts are a weak way of
getting your point across. The more external criticism of a liberal, pluralistic
society by citizens of nations with appalling records on human rights, the rule of
law, media freedom, economic inequality almost beyond understanding and a
broken social welfare system makes criticism from those quarters irrelevant as
you believe our arguments are.

Argue on the merits of the issues, not soap box musings without any real basis. A
pot should not be calling the kettle black. Mirrors are reflective remember.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
07:18 AM
70
D.B.

I obviously made enough impact for a dumbo aussie like you to refer to my post
you talk typically like the descendant of convict and prostitutes thats your
pedigree pedigree is for dogs but you are worse than that you are school leaving
illiterate dole bludging ugly beach bum and you dont know who your slut mother
fucked to have to here fortunately for her as with most aussie mothers she
abandoned you and so you grew up to to a heavily tattoed drug addict with the
sole purpose in life to beat up everyone that doesnt look like you your world is
shrinking so ask yourself who cares whether you read others opinions
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:20 AM
71
I wouldn't worry about Elan. He spends all of his time on these sorts of boards
giving radical although incoherent opinions.

Interestingly he lives in the US (or so he says), which has a better documented
history of racism that most countries. If he uses examples of colonial times as
proof that attacks on Indians today are racist, one only imagines that he refers to
the US slave trade when someone issues him a parking ticket in the US.

Trawling the internet to provide examples of another countries misdeeds is hardly
a mature way of dealing with this issue. If Elan disagrees then maybe we should
ask him if he thinks the rape of a 9 year old Russian girl in Goa recently should
should be taken as evidence that all Indians are racist rapists.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
07:21 AM
72
TO PRATYUSH

do not worry about Dave that is typical racist aussie response they will tell you
first you do not know english then that you misspell etc and finally that you are
black Dave himself is asshole school leaver ask Dave why he is on an Indian site
I know aussies like him I carry an autralian passport and kick Dave aussie asses
at will Australia is now totally occupied by the Indians and Chinese so what does
Dave do Dacve gets on a Indian site and tell Indians that they cannot spell
english or that they are incoherent

i ma doctor most doctors in Australia are chinese or Indians Dave is a garbage
collector
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:26 AM
73
aussie get a mighty shock when after leaving their island they find that there are
so so so many Indian in USA and UK and in Europe so when you hear thses
weird aussie accents that Americans laugh at at Los Angeles airport or at UK
airports when they arrive to work as nannies or bartenders and they find that hey
most of American technology is also taken up by the chinese and Indians and
almost everything in UK belongs to Indians Aussies get mighty frightened so they
hit on Indian websites to try to salvage what every little shit they have got left for
themselves
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:26 AM
74
Hey nathan jarman, people who do not respect the laws of the land should
headback and that surely includes white australisn who raped Australia without
showing any respect to the existing laws and cultures. U ripped it apart and set
up ur own rulesa nd u want others to go back. That will nto work anymore. The
genocide against aboroginals have to be taught in world history across the world.
indians will campaign for it. no doubt. it was a genocide, much worse than what
Jews went through. With due respect to jews, i have to say that. At least the jws
managed to document the atrocities against them. The aboroginals have nothing
left behind. My logic is only this nathan. if u cannot respect the law of the land,
please go back. No matter how many generations u've been here, we won't miss
you here. We are actually full of racists and we want to deweed australia of this
venom. and btw, if u give me the logic of generations, i can give u the logic of
moving plates. If you look at aboroginal way of life, they have more in common
with tribes in south india. So historically we belong here. Indians coming to
Australia will be rewritten to a Home Comign Policy and Brits ae the real
immigrants. they are the ethnics. Not Indians. This is home for us. We belong
here. We are full and don't want racists here anymore.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
07:28 AM
75
realities.

statement to make!


Let us stay out of this and let governments hande this.

TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:29 AM
76
realities.

statement to make!


Let us stay out of this and let governments handle this.

TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:30 AM
77
This is an extremely poorly-written article. Pranay Sharma, the journalist, is, at
best, inaccurate and at worst, inflammatory. For instance, Sharma cites three
specific incidents to illustrate vividly the danger Indians in Melbourne face daily.
This is an article focused on the allegedly racist attacks experienced by Indians
here, yet race (as the term is commonly understood), can only be included as a
factor in the attack on Kanan Bhargawa at Sunshine station, as he was subjected
to racial expletives in what appears to be an opportunistic attack The two other
incidents do not actually involve race. Xenophobia is clearly present, but race?
No.
Additionally, Sharma also claims that Victoria is crime-prone (on what basis? I
mean, compared to other states/provinces around the world, surely Victoria
would rate quite well?) and uses spokesmen from the Australia First and One
Nation parties - tiny, right-wing fringe parties, neither of which has a seat in
Australias 226-member bicameral parliament - to provide comments from the
white Australia perspective (along with a filmmaker). I could go on
But dont get me wrong. Foreigners (whether Indian, Pakistani, British or from any
country) being attacked/abused in Australia is unacceptable and race remains
an issue here. The question is whether these attacks are racially motivated.
Despite my misgivings about this article, Im aware that there are far greater
examples of sensationalist, inaccurate reporting (both in India and Australia)
about this issue. I wonder if any of these journalists (and their respective editors)
consider the irony of this type of reporting. Just see some of the bigoted,
prejudiced, ill-informed comments from both Australians and Indians. I suspect
that at least some of the attacks on Indians here have stemmed, at least in part,
from the sensationalist media coverage.
STEPHEN ALEXANDER
FEB 01,
2010
07:31 AM
you aussies do not even own your own country the mayor of melbourne is
chinese australian for ages hey the australian ambassador to india is an indian
origin australian man you aussies have lost your country to others America
elected its first black president while Australian unofficial policy is to kill blacks
78
remeber the somali refugees you mistreated hey Australians threw babies of
refugees at sea that teh norwegians had teh heart to rescue and the australians
reverse accused the refugees of throwign their own babies to sea to show how
ugly refugges were until the truth came out
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:31 AM
79
To Pratyush, comment 68, international students are supposed to be allowed to
work up to 20 hours per week, but they work illegally, for much longer, and for
pay that is below what Australians can live on. The US has struggled with illegal
immigrants doing this to their people as well, as so has England with the Poles
and Ukrainians. Australians have right to be angry about that, and really, foreign
students should not be allowed to work at all. They should be entirely self-funding
or they should not come to Australia.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:33 AM
80
If Sasha is an Indian living in Australia I would ask you to please leave. We don't
need your kind here and you have a country of your own to go to.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:36 AM
81
tejas oza

i lived in australia for 30 years thanks very much faced racism at each and every
and every step all the time every time I qualified with several degrees faced
racism at each and every job got good jobs but racism and politicking was too
much i still have property and family in australia but for professionals reasons
whether they respect people for skills and talent i moved to USA I know every
nook and corner of Australia and Australian racism that i could do a thesis on on
it I knew Indian and chinese community leaders long before the general public
knew them I know exactly what I am saying
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:38 AM
DB, I think you must leave. I know you are threatened with the truth. Do you
really think you have a choice anymore? I mean seriously. U really thought you
could set up a white nation in Asia? How much more ridiculous can that be? U
82
really think Australia as a white nation will sustain for another 50 or 100 years? u
have to be kidding. I mean seriously..what happening in Zimbabwe and South
Africa? Let's look at it logically. I'm only saying it's not sustainable. Stop Looting
Tasmania, Stop looting the mines of Australia. Go back!
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
07:38 AM
83
D.B.

i am an indian that carries an australian passport and it my right to enter and live
in australia like any australian so if you were to tell me to levae i will tell you to
fuck off you filthy convict bloody basturd i would advise sasha to tell you the
same
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:42 AM
84
Brothers and Sisters, Let us build an Australia devoid of racism. let us build an
Australia that is honest about reconciliation with its native people. Let's restore
the lost glory of Australia. Let Australia be the beacon of freedom to the millions
of underprivileged in this world. Let us invite refugees, let us adopt more kids
from the under developed. We have a moreal responsibility. Let us build true
brotherhood between Aboroginals, Indians, chinese, lebanese, vietnamese and
the anglo saxons who are willing to believe that a true and just Australia is
possible. let us shun this farce of a democracy, let us shun the Union jack.
Australia forever. We will live and die for a just Australia.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
07:43 AM
85
Looks like this board is descending to the lowest common denominator as usually
happens. If I may make a suggestion - don't respond to a post that's clearly
inflammatory. It only fuels the media circus that's causing many of the problems
to start with.
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:43 AM
D.B

FUCK OFF YOU CONVICT BTURD
86
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:48 AM
87
given the number of white australian married to chinese and indians my own
sister in law is white australian very soon all white australians will have a indian
or chinese grandmother or grandfather wow so much for white australia ha ha ha
and then add to that all your ddays marrying a thai at the age of 60 and having a
few more kids where does exactly white australia stand in another generation or
two nowhere i suppose
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:48 AM
88
Sasha, comment 82, you need to realise that your attitude,as an Indian living in
Australia, is obscene, and the statements you make about Australians could be
used to incite violence against Indians by mindless mobs in the same way as this
article could be used to incite violence against Australians by likewise mindless
mobs. You need to think more clearly and show a little gratitude to the nation that
allowed you to move there. If I thought you were in any way a true example of
Indians in Australia I would be out demonstrating to have you all removed. The
fact is that most Indians are very nice and decent people in my own experience,
and it's unfortunate that some like you have been allowed into my country.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:49 AM
89
I am Australian born and bred. I'm caucasian (on the surface), have a private
education, live in a good part of town and have been in a professional job for a
few years. I'm connected to India by my grandmother who is Indian and have
been raised to have a strong connection to both countries.

Melbourne is a wonderful, friendly, clean, city. You walk down the street, go to
the office, go to university, catch a train and sit next to Indians, South Americans,
Africans, Muslims, Christians, Hindu's, Jews.

I believe that Indians have been targeted. But by who? And Why? Like in any
country in the world, with any easily identifiable minority group like Indians here,
there are bad elements of society namely, racists, extremists, crazy extreme right
wing politicians, people who are angry they are out of work and looking for
something to blame, or murderers who would go so far as to abuse or beat an
innocent man for no reason other than their own demons. It's sick. But not me...
And not millions and millions of other Australians. it's decidedly un-australian. We
are in a strong majority as sympathetic and as disgusted as any Indian.

Australia thinks it's sick and would do anything to stop it. And if we aren't doing
enough, we should to more.

Indians in Australia should band together as one and stand strong and proudly as
part of Australia while they are here. Not fear. But don't point fingers and blame it
on the entire country of Australia. It only creates unproductive animosity between
the countries. India has had it's own struggles with racism throughout it's history,
and I wouldn't label Indians racist... All I ask is that you hold close that Australia
and India will beat this together and make our guests a future residents proud
and comfortable to be here.
ANDREW (MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA)
FEB 01,
2010
07:59 AM
90
Elan and Sasha,

What nasty pieces of work you are! I pity people with hate in their hearts like you.
Elan, if you hate Australia so much, why do you keep the Australian passport?
Why did you stay for 30 years? Actually, I think you're fibbing, whiling away the
hours in a call entre in Mumbai, surfing Wikipedia - you've never been in Australia
have you?

Please also note that, as of yesterday, the UK Government has suspended all
student visa applications from India for three month due to a massive increase in
fraud in the last three months of 2009. Obviously now that Australia has tightened
up its system and put the fradulent schools out of business, the criminal agents in
India are targetting the UK.

Where next Elan? Maybe San Diego in the USA? You could run a hair-dressing
school there.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:01 AM
91
DB, I don't know why you think it's inflammatory. have u ever criticised some of
the real racist remarks have emerged on blogs? ok..aren't you with me to build a
just Australia? Don't you believe in reconciliation? do't u think tassy needs a
break from the looters? if u do not suipport my views, you are un australian! So
who should go back>? u decide.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
08:05 AM
92
DEFINITELY, INDIAN MEDIA IS PLAYING VERY BAD ROLE ON THIS ISSUE.
THEY DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE ISSUE AND JUST MAKE
EVERYTHING IN THEIR HEADLINES AS RACIST. SHAME ON THIS FREE
MEDIA. THEY ARE AFTER MONEY.. JUST WANT FIVE STAR RATING.

NOW SOME TIMES I DOUBT WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT PAKISTANS ROLE IN
INDIA TO PROMOTE TERRORISM. I THINK THIS CAN BE JUST A MEDIA
STUNT AS WELL..
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:07 AM
93
there are documented stories of conflict with greek/italians and white north
european australian migrants mostly irish slaves and english convict descendants
so these irish slaves and english and scottish convict descendants basically
fought everyone beginning everyother migrant group that came

if australians on this board do not think racism in australia is a problem they need
to worry about why are they on this board trying to everyone that would listen
which is not many that there is no racism in australia sounds like typical convict
aussie logic to me D.B is inflaming racism on site with his extreme right wing
views what can you expect from an ill bred and ill born son of a whore in my 30
years plus in australia most white australians i met were ill born and ill bred and
school leavers ofcourse you could get even bank jobs being a school leaver and
a white
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
08:12 AM
94
hey jassi it your gurdawaras getting burned in mebourne and sydney
ELAN
FEB 01,
2010
08:19 AM
95
Elan says he was professionally a victim of racism in Australia. With his grammar
and moronic outburts, maybe there were better candidates for the jobs he was
applying for.

Sometimes there is racism, but Indians use the 'racism' word because they know
that whites are over-sensitive to it. It's a bit like being critical of Israel's policies
and then being accused of being anti-semetic.

It is a no win situation for whites because if you try to defend you are accused of
being in denial. The judge and jury do their job and an entire nation is charged
with racism in the meantime.

Sad.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
08:26 AM
96
Hey Ian

The reason that the UK has suspended visa applications from the North (only the
North) region of India is over-application, brought about by people leaving
Australia and applying for the UK.

And Ian, saying that Elan will form a "hair dressing school" is just ignorant.
Indians are the MOST successful ethnic group in the US - having the highest
earnings, and the highest education level among any other ethnic group (even
the whites). One particularly illustrative statistic is that almost 1/3 NASA
employees are of Indian origin.

Simply because they work crapper jobs here does not mean it is echoed
everywhere.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
08:27 AM
97
Burnt Gurudwara really is a big thing. I am really sad for this and this is really a
big concern. But you cant blame this to everyone in Australia. I dont want to
argue with anyone that who is wrong or right because there is no ending to this
all I can say is there are always bad elements everywhere in Australia or India or
anywhere.

I would assume 100 incidents were recorded in Australia out of these 100, 3 were
with Indian people and Indian media made these highlights saying RACISM.

They just want five star rating by highlighting this as RACISM because everyone
will read this because its hot topic these days.

They should complete all investigation.

Police is definitely slow but lets hope for truth to come out for everything.
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:27 AM
98
Elan,

Any school leaver can get a bank job here, no matter what race or culture you
come from. Graduates too.

You've never been here have you? Liar, liar, pants on fire!
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:34 AM
99


Get over it.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:35 AM
100


Get over it.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:37 AM
101
Please do not villify Elan. Elan my brother. I have a number of a good psychiatrist
in San Jose. He is an Anglo-Indian. He fled communnal and racist violence in
India. I am sure you are. Please forgive us and our racist hearts and return soon
to Australia. We will greet you with open arms and help you overcome your hate
for the nation that allowed you to have freedom until you migrated to the US. One
question. Why did you never return to India? The Indians in America are native
Americans. Were you a little confused believing that you were going to India, but
ended up in the US. Don't feel ashamed. A famous explorer once made the same
mistake. Also if you do return you can join the disprapportianate number of Indian
'students' that have presented with mental health issues in Australia which the
Australian taxpayer then needs to support, as the Indian Government, and the
students families disown them due to having a mental illness, found to have
constistantly been brought on by the stress of being removed from their famiies
but most importantly the pressure put on them to provide for their spunging
relatives in India.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:42 AM
102
Elan.

You have fallen for the media hype in toto. You see there is racism in every
country on the planet. It is how that country deals with it that counts.
So Elan how do you explain that at least three of these attacks were made by
Indian Nationals. What is racist about their attacks?
SCOTT GRUNDY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:47 AM
103
They have started to arrest the people attacking Indians and they are other
Indians. The only racist people involved are Indian.
RAJNEESH
ISLAMIBAD, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:50 AM
104
Rajneesh Batra is correct Indians are outperforming us everywhere. It has been
three years since a non Indian cleaned my car, drove me in a taxi, or served me
in a pertol station or 7/11, and now only one cleaner at work is a non Indian. At
the University of New England in 2007, of the 204 thesis presented by Indian
students for their Masters in IT, 200 were found to be fraudulent (google it if need
be), and once again you outperformed us in that, as no non-India was found to
have committed fraud. Of all the actual murders of Indians in the past twelve
months in Australia all but one has been found to have been committed by an
Indian national, and that one is still being investigated. Man you beat us again. Of
all the rapes and sexual assaults committed by taxi drivers in Adelaide in 2009,
all were found to have been committed by Indians. Damn you guys are good.
Like anyone I can be selective and prove how violent, racist, arrogant,
misogynistic and uneducated all Indians are, just as if I choose I can prove the
opposite. And this is the major flaw with the whole Indian media, Indian student
union and Indian politicians side of the argument.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
If India can regulate it's citizens going to the middle east why cant we regulate
2010
08:53 AM
105
them coming to Australia. Look how Britain has stopped processing north Indian
Visa applications where as Australia looked at it as convenient way of getting
Indian money,which their nationals do not want.China similarly has banned it's
citizens coming to sham colleges but only to mainstream universities.For Indians
mainstream uni's are also not suitable because Australia does not have that
many institutions.
Recall the recent BBC focus magazine survey which sasy-Australia is a nation
number one in sin.Envy is high on their minds and Lust behind none.These guys
are they capable of teaching Indians Morality and ethics. Indians accept that we
have problems but we dont project it on others as some comments but we dont
go around the world and cheat people saying this is a peaceful society and the
best place in the world.Only stupids like north Indian punjabis will listen to this
and come here thinking of getting good education but eventually get bashed up
or go home back in coffins.
The Punjab Government should seek advice from successful Punjabi's living
abroad and set up institutions that can train it's youngsters and make use of them
in nation building. What Aussies know about punjabis,the most prosperous and
enterprising people in India and the world and loathing Aussies can no where
come near them.
STPEHEN JOSE
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:57 AM
106
Pratyush,

Agreed that Indians are some of the brightest people around - I work with them
(IBM, TCS, HCL etc). But you'd have to agree that Elan can't count himself
amongst that group? None of my Indian colleagues spout the hate speech and
vitriol that Elan does.

Please note that most of the dodgy training schools pandering to the Indian
market were owned by former Indian nationals the same way that most of the
dodgy training schools pandering to the Korean market were owned by former
Korean nationals. And it was quire clear that the UK had an increase in fraudulent
student visa applications from North India (majority) plus other South Asian
nations, some African nations and Brazil. The Australian goverment has also
cracked down on student visa appliactions from these countries, but not as
strongly as the UK government.

The change to the training legislation by the Howard Government in 2006 is what
got this dodgy training school business started in the first place. It's quite
ridiculous that an Indian trained engineer or accountant has to go through this
silly pretense to gain permanent residency here. That's what I find racist.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:00 AM
107
If the Indian media and government presented the facts you will see that very
little out of the ordinary is occuring relatibve to the Indian population. The
assaults have predominantly not been committed by white Australians as often
presented. You government has been given a portfoliio on the attacks and from
this they are selectively realeasing information. Why don't you demand that the
Indian government release all the details they have been supplied, and that your
media report accurately on the report. Indians are being arrested for murder,
rape, fraud, and theft in Australia on an ever increasing scale. Do I or most
Australians believe this then represents all Indians in Australia, probabley not as
every Australian I socialise with mix with educated professional Indians, not the
fraudulent Indian student who cannot speak English, and is involved in visa fraud,
and who attends vovational colleges set up by Indain companies in Australia
which are the ones constantly being caught for visa fraud.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:06 AM
108
To Ian=UK Government stopped Visa processing FORM north India not due to
fraud but for the overwhelming application compared to the same period last
year.learn to read English properly.Fraud was commuted by Australian sham
colleges agents in India and the Govt here conveniently pimped for it.The Uk also
mentioned that it does not want immigrants and want genuine students=that
means we do not wan tot cheat Indian students by promising them PR which
Australia did.Learn form your cousins how to be honest and truthful.
STPEHEN JOSE
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:11 AM
109
Ian, the Indian Accountants and Engineers don't need to go through the dodgy
shcools. They need to sit the appropriate exam within Australia to gain their
accreditation. It is not a racist exam, as anyone from any country where the level
of accreditation is not the same level as Australia must sit it. Same goes for Drs,
plumbers, fitters and turners etc. What is being observed is that Inidans along
with nationals from a couple of other countries show excessively high numbers of
their nationals presenting fraudulant documents. I work for a company where of
the 420 staff hired in December 2009 in India it was found the number of staff
that presented degrees and masters from Indian unversities 280 were found to be
forged. So I think this shows you need to be vigilant when people claim to be
Engineers or Accountants.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:17 AM
110
Stephen,

By your own words Stepehen, the UK government wants genuine students, not
just people trying to immigrate. I believe that the agents in India are Indian? It's
no different here. The system was abused, it's now being corrected and the
agents are looking for a new system in a different country to abuse.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:23 AM
111
"Elan"
I have been to India a number of times- each of which I have been shocked by
the cruelty of it's people to one another. You have a cast system placed upon
your society!
You should really focus on your own back garden before criticising others.

As its been stated the Indian media is particularly encouraging this negativity
between our countries, of which in the long run will do more damage for India
than for any Australians or our reputation.
As long as you keep pulling out the race card, this unnecessary hatred will
continue.
YOU HAVE A CHOICE!
NIN
FEB 01,
2010
09:23 AM
112
"If I worked 20 hours a week at award wages, I would barely pay for my rent! The
and yet, by the work restriction laws, forcing them in live in crappy
conditions."...Actually most award wages pay at least 14 dollars an hour..which at
20 hours a week would be 280 dollars. Now if you can't pay rent on 280 dollars a
week I suggest you look for someone cheaper to rent. You seem to miss the key
point of studying in Australia..it's to study.
Australia as well as any other foreign country owes you ZERO obligation to work
while you are here. The Chinese students here understand this,but the Indians
clearly don't. If you don't like it,come here with more money like the Chinese or
study at home in India.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
09:26 AM
113
Craig - I think there is something wierd with anybody openingly admitting to be an
accountant - especially on a first date.

There was a case in NSW a few years ago when a number of Doctors (from
Pakistan I believe, not India) failed the exam that all foreign doctors have to sit
before they are able to practice medicine in this state. Rather than go off and
study, they chained themselves to the fence outside parliament house, and cried
that they were being discriminated against.

Another case - A friend of mine works for State Rail. He was verbally abused by
an Indian co-worker, who then went off and played the race card, accusing my
friend of initiating the attack. Fortunately, the whole interchange was caught on
security camera. The instigator was eventually dismissed for cheating on his train
driver exam.

As somebody who has lived and worked in another culture where I didn't speak
the language, I am well aware of the need to adopt local customs to fit in. I never
stopped being Australian, but I had to learn to fit in with the local way of acting
and doing things to be accepted in that society.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:28 AM
114
Now Elan, will you please please stop your comments, if you think you are
helping Indians you are wrong. You are not only embarrassing all Indian
Australians like me but also creating a bad image of Indians. Same for you
Sasha, your comments are extreme and lacks logic.
I am an Australian citizen of Indian origin who lived in Footscray for 3 years when
I was studying for my Masters in Deakin. Now, I have NEVER experienced any
racist comments from anyone in 5 years of my stay in Australia. This country has
given me everything and I am so proud to show my Australian passport to any
Airports in the world (I also keep an overseas Indian origin passport and am
equally proud of my Indian roots). I have many friends who had been attacked
while at work or travelling. Undoubtedly many of the attacks had been racial in
nature since most attacks were followed by racial abuse. Interestingly roughly
only 50% of racist attackers are committed by "White Anglo " gangs, rest are
either Asian, Sudanese/Somalian or Islander(Fiji,Samoa, etc) gangs. These
gangs are made of jobless uneducated alcoholic thugs who are living on
centrelink payments (doll). THEY DO NOT REPRESENT Australian society and
Indian media and those Indians who have never been to Australia MUST
UNDERSTAND this fact. Victorian police/govt is equally responsible since I have
been hearing about this attack on Indians since 2005, but Victoria government
ignored this till it became an international issue last year.
Majority 99% Australians are friendly and VERY WARM AND HOSPITABLE. But
Indian students should also learn some manners and should be trained in how to
behave at public places. Indians are the most successful ethnic group in USA
(with highest national income). The reason being, Americas immigration policy is
tilted towards bright high quality students (as opposed to cookery, hair styling
student focus of Australia's). Undoubtedly only the worthy can get in to USA and
become a citizen. Those American Indians are highly successful and contributing
immensely to the American society. Australia should follow the same American
model and give PR to only worthy individuals, not semi literate cookery students.
Finally Indian media should show some restrain and allow Australian police to
carry out normal investigation and please stop branding the country as racist.
And to those "patriotic" Aussies commenting here thinking you are defending
your country by asking Indian immigrants to go back, you are only re
emphasising the (false) imaging of Australia as a racist nation.
PRASANTH
MELB, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:39 AM
115
@Prasanth (Comment 114)

Well said :)
TEJAS OZA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:42 AM
116
@nathan jarman
@nathan jarman
I must say that you have absolutely no idea about a student's life in Melbourne. I
was a student few years back and I KNOW. You think a student can get $280
/week by working 20 hours?? ($14/hour). WRONG! If you ever come to Footscray
market or sunshine markets ask the Indian student working in the market how
much he get paid?!! They are getting paid $6/hour!!!! An Indian at a service
station is getting paid $8-$10/hour (BP pays $16/hr though). It is the failure of
government since they failed to punish the predatory employers who are
exploiting the hapless students. Hence students forced to work more than 20
hours often at late night shifts. And you are right, only those who can afford
should come to Australia for studies,I agree.
PRASANTH
MELB, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:45 AM
If Indias really believe we are such a vile nation, why do they not refuse entry to
all Australians and their atheletes for the Commonwealth games. I think this
would send a very strong message to all people that the Indian Government
truelly believe what is being said and are supportive of the Sihks and Indians that
are being slaughtered by the 1000s in Australia. I note the difference of Sihks and
Indians as does the Indian media. One advantage of banning us from the games
117
is England would then dominate the games, so good for their egos. Also whilst
they ban our visitors and atheletes send home our planners, Engineers, Project
Managers, and stadium specialists that have gone to India to assist with the
building of games infrastructure in New Delhi. I guess in the end they need
Australia to attend and assist so they are not shamed in front of the world.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:49 AM
118
The headline screams out "Why Aussies hate Us" Well the word hate implies a
high level of passionate awareness of India and Indians by all Australians to
develop hatred towards them. I can assure you that 99.9% of Australians do not
occupy their minds with such things to cause hatred. they are too busy going
about their daily lives to indulge in such a negative past-time. Also recession was
given as a reason why there is a backlash against Indians where in fact Australia
has avoided the world wide recession caused by the Global Financial Crisis.
(almost alone amongst developed economies) Neither is it mentioned that
regards the murder of an Indian student in rural New South Wales last year three
suspects have been apprehended and happen to be, wait for it, Indian Nationals
living in Australia. I can assure you that I deplore any attacks on students
studying here and the more hysterical the reaction from India and the more
publicity that generates gives rise to copycat crimes being committed. Have you
accused the English of racism with their threat to boycott the Commonwealth
games in India this year? As far as I know Australia will be there. The recent tour
by the Pakistan cricket team was conducted without any incidents and there was
mutual respect shown by both the teams. In fact many Australian cricketers
commented on the friendly attitude of some of their players. So in closing yes
there are elements of racism in Australia as there are in India and every country
in the world but to present as fact a very biased report on why Aussies hate us
does no service to the standards of journalism in India and is merely provoking
further tension between the two countries
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
09:49 AM
119
I am not an accountant. I'd rather be a chai-wallah than an accountant.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
The vilification of Australians needs to stop. It's just aussie bashing, pure and
simple. It's juvenile, and it's irresponsible.
09:52 AM
120
It's not the first time a developing country has decided to attack us for their own
domestic purposes.
It would be very easy for the Australian government to point out the crimes,
including rape and murder, committed by Indian citizens in our country - there are
many. It would also be very easy for the Australian government to point out the
crimes committed against Australians in India - there are also many. It would also
be easy for them to highlight the extreme level of hypocrisy at play. The reason
they don't is that it is irresponsible to vilify an entire country of people - that is
actual racism; it breeds intolerance and hatred - which is precisely what the
Indian media and some members of their government are doing.
It is obvious that Australia is not a racist country; we have a diverse population of
people from 190 countries, practising every major religion, and living,
overwhelmingly, in peace, prosperity and harmony. That is one reason why so
many people want to live here and take advantage of our open immigration
system.
There are cases where people migrate to Australia, and continue reliving old
feuds with people from other countries; if you knew Australia, you would know
that such behaviour is hated and condemned, and the general feeling is that
people come to this country to get away from racism, and to leave their
predjudice at the door.
Obviously with such a diverse population you indeed can get racism; but it is not
prevalent - I understand a relatively closed country like India would have trouble
understanding the reality in a multiracial country like Australia.
I am concerned that crime is higher than I would like in Melbourne; low by
international standards, but higher than we would like by our standards.
I think the best thing our Government could do is ensure the Indian students who
come here have adequate financial resources so that they don't talk risky night
jobs and live in rough suburbs far away from campus and can afford a car instead
of catching public transport late at night.
TONY
FEB 01,
2010
09:53 AM
121
Fantastic post Prasanth

I have lived In Australia for 8 years and I am a proud AUSTRALIAN. I carry my
AUSSIE PASSPORT with pride because this country has given me so much.

1. A fantastic education
2. A fantastic job and business
3. Some of the friendliest people on earth
4. The best lifestyle a person can have

Editor-in-chief of Outlook Vinod Mehta , Mate, get a life and F**k off.....Why dont
you look at you own servants you have in your house and look at how you treat
them first......

Get your own crap country right first ... You dont need to tell us here what is right
or wrong.

You are making our lives difficult for us here.

I am sick of this crap saying Aussies are racists
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:00 AM
122
@ prasanth.

Minimum wage is $14.31 an hour.

http://www.fwa.gov.au/

If you are being paid illegally low wages, report your employer. He will owe you
back pay.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:00 AM
123
First of all, you pathetic souls who lambast Australia for its convict past need to
quietly shut the hell up. A nation of "convicts" which consistently ranks in the top
5 of the Human Development index and has an annual GDP not far off India's
despite having over 1 billion people less. Yeh, what a racist primitive hellhole we
live in! The labours of Europeans made this country so liveable and millions of
immigrants have partaken and reaped the benefits, yet you retards can only
come up with brilliant arguments like "white people go home."

As for the main issue, pretty much all Indians I have met have been polite and
respectful, although somewhat timid and an easy target for thugs. I applaud the
writer for pointing out that its likely that other foreign immigrants are carrying out
these attacks. Growing up in Melbourne I witnessed too many times the penchant
for violence that young Lebanese thugs, who in no way should be labelled
Austrlian, have.

Nonetheless, failing to understand basic social etiquette, like eye raping white
girls and singing Indian folk music on trains has caused some resentment in the
wider Australian community against Indians. A fair few female friends of mine
have complained of the rudeness of Indian men.

However there is a greater issue at stake here, the fiction of multiculturalism.
Modern day political correctness dictates that what you should think is more
important than what you actually DO think. Believe it or not people actually like
living around people of the same ethnicity as themselves. The mantra "diversity is
strength" is a mere poignant buzz phrase, as the only real strength diversity gives
is a better selection of restaurants. A Harvard study recently concluded that
racially diverse areas are actually less civically active and prone to people
distrusting each other.

Sure the vast majority of Australian would never violently attack immigrants,
however pretty much everyone I know has said something derogatory about
other ethnicities which they would not dare say in the public sphere, all the while
the Government keeps trying to portray a picture of racial unity. As Indian
numbers increase, just like it did with Asians, these comments become more
common. Labelling Australia a racist country is pretty stupid, as pretty much
every country which has experienced an influx of foreigners who find it difficult to
adapt finds itself laden with tension. When Indians were low in number and were
a novelty to see in Australia there was little problem, but when they start
becoming so numerous people are quick to comment. Of course that sounds
quite racist and intolerant but its basic human nature.

My only hope is that a lowered amount of immigration and students will allow the
Government to better educate Indians on how to act in Australia and to avoid
danger, ie walking through a park in the western suburbs at night.
ROB
FEB 01,
2010
10:04 AM
124
prasanth, if Indian students are being underpaid then all they need do is go to the
appropriate government body within each state with evidence, which they should
have unless they work illegally, and they will be back paid, with interst. Unlike the
majority of the world we have a minimum wage and if they are adults in is
approximatelty $16 per hour. Now if they are working illegally, then suffer, as they
are then dealing in the black economy which is against the law. If they need
support on this matter they should approach FISA as according to their
spokesman he is their to help. Mind you he is primarily their to help himself, and
has caused and is causing a lot of the problems that are now presenting
themselves between our two people. As with many issues realting to this matter,
Indian students claim they are never assisted, but then they often have not gone
to the authorities for fear of being deported and instead run off to the media (15
minute syndrome I suggest).
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
@ Craig
2010
10:06 AM
125

There we have it. There are plenty of jobs here that Indians can do that
Australians would never be caught doing.

Like being accountants.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:07 AM
126
What sensationalist rubbish you have printed!
Why don't you expose the real reason behing Australian's resentment of Indians -
namely the fact that tens of thousands are gaming Australia's immigration system
by enrolling in dodgy courses like hospitality purely to access PR.
We do not want such an influx and so it would seem that society is unable to
accept such a massive rorting of our hospitality.
If these so-called "students" really wanted an education, they would not be
studying cookery courses.
Stop spreading lies and deal with your indigenous issues instead.
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:07 AM
127
Yeah Right Mate

Why Aussies hate Indians ... true that is .01 % of the population!!!!

How About "WHY AUSSIES LOVE INDIANS AND ANYONE COMING TO THIS
FANTASTIC COUNTRY.... AND THE AUSSIES WELCOME THEM WITH OPEN
ARMS"

..... TRUE AS WELL that is the other 99.99% of the population

You feel stupid now don't you MR Editor-in-chief Vinod Mehta ?
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:15 AM
128
I wish that the Indian Consulates in Australia would look at the example of the
government of the People's Republic of China. After a couple of attacks on
mainland Chinese students in inner-city Sydney (Redfern and Alexandria from
memory - they're favoured by overseas students for being close to both Sydney
and New South Wales Universities and are relatively cheap), the Chinese
Consulate and the New South Wales Police quietly joined forces to educate the
Chinese students about personal safety in these poor suburbs. The crimes were
solved (not carried out by Anglo-Celtics by the way) and the number of attacks
dropped immediately. Has the Indian Consulate in Melbourne tried to join forces
with the Vicotrian Police in the same way? If yes, then that's great - it's just that
we haven't heard about it yet.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:17 AM
129
Can I make a basic suggestion. With all the call centres in India and with the cost
of labour being minimal and the cost to collect data over the phone nominal,
could not Outlook poll all 250, 000 Indians in Australia and collate and analyse
these stats to determine the truth. Also then do the same with all Australians and
non Australians residing in Oz and you could then formulate an informed opinion.
But remember it needs to be objective, so maybe include some questions like,
Have you ever been ripped off by an Indian taxi driver/ If you have been to India
has your female partner ever been molested by Indian males? Did you feel
Indians are racist when you were being stoned in India becuase they were caling
you white shit?
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:21 AM
130
Actual fact:

Australian police are some of the most professional, smart and highly skilled
people in the world.

They are kind and treat everyone fairly and with respect irrespective of race or
gender.

They are doing a fantastic job under immense pressure and a tough and
dangerous working environment.

Victoria police had to drag Indian students a year back because students
IGNORED their fair warning to clear a public area

(Anything wrong with that dumb ass Indian media?)

They where disrupting traffic and the great Melbourne lifestyle.

As reported in the Indian newspaper Times Wow and wirtten by editor-in-chief
Arebaba Gotnoclue

Busted .......OZ police atrocities against Indian students. Shocking images
attached!!

Melbourne: Tell me ......When Indians are going to stop suffering deep down
under? How can this happen? questions editor-in-chief Arebaba Gotnoclue

(He sits in India and has never been to or tasted the great Aussie lifestyle and
unbelievably friendly people.)

Arebaba Gotnoclue interviews an Aussie Indian student*** who has been in
Australia for 1 day and 32 minutes!!!!???? (Huh???)

Got a minute you 1-day-32-minute-student? asks Arebaba Gotnoclue

Yes yes i come to Australia and all Australians racist we get hit everywhere
says our proud student in broken English (I mean how the hell did he pass the
English test?)

So there you go Indian people .... Look at whats happening Deep Down Under
here CONCLUDES Arebaba Gotnoclue. ( I really mean CONCLUDED)

***It was later found out that the student graduated and got Masters in
Engineering in India, Applied to study nursing through some dodgy agent in India,
representing dodgy Colleges operated in Australia by Indians .... He got a fake
statements of funds available from a dodgy bank manager in India ..................

Phew the story hasnt finished yet .....

Upon arriving he realized he was enrolled in hairdressing (WTF).... and had to
work as a taxi driver.....
What the hell?????? All Aussies are Racists our 1-day-32-minute-student
CONCLUDED

Join TIMES WOW editor-in-chief Arebaba Gotnoclue for a special debate on this
issue with Motawala Chief of police ( Stands first in the most corrupted cop list )
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
Why the Aussies hate us...there are too many of us, we break their rules, we are
dirty and inconsidrate, we are loud mouthed and show off. Enough reasons for
10:22 AM
131
anyone to hate us!
DINESH KUMAR
CHANDIGARH, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:23 AM
132
Sorry I went quiet for a while because I enrolled and completed a 'criminology'
degree at one of the crappy bogus colleges that some Indian guy runs in the city.
Took me a few hours to complete my entire degree, but I still have enough time
to do 5 part time jobs (20 hrs each).

Now Elan, the guy who was entertaining us with his words of wisdom earlier. I
have done a profile on him; I'm now a criminolgist afterall.

- Spent 30 unhappy years in Australia (I am guessing he left around early 1990.
- Thinks everyone is at fault, except him. The authorities are crucifying us, he'd
say.
- Tattoos
- Illiterate
- No teeth
- Tends to spend September gardening.
- Highly emotional and bitter.

Are you guys seeing what I'm seeing?

Yep, you guessed it. He's a Collingwood supporter.

No wonder he is bitter. Forgive him Lord for he knows not what he does.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
10:24 AM
133
Exactly right Matt. My accountant is too expensive, so we need to drive down his
wages, as he puts it up above inflation every year. Mind you he finds an extra
thousand each year, so maybe he is worh it. Acountant rage, should replace the
mythical Indian rage, then everything would be solved, unless of course we bring
in more Indian accountants, then we would have Indian Accountant rage. Such a
vicous cricle.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:27 AM
@ Pete

134
Carn The Pies!
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:30 AM
135
Karthik,

LOL - when does your morning radio show start? :)

Peter MC,

I think we've already worked out that Elan has never been to Australia - if he had,
he'd never be a Collingwood supporter!
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:30 AM
136
See.. look at all the Xenophobic Australians. We hate accountants. We think all
people who are good at maths are pooftahs.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:31 AM
137
Dinesh Kumar. We don't hate you all, we only dislike some of your crickters like
Harbajahn Singh and idiots like Elan and the tool from FISA, Gautam Gupta.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:35 AM
138
Hi Craig

1. Have you ever been ripped off by an Indian taxi driver... A RESOUNDING
YES. How do i know? I have been ripped off........

2. If you have been to India has your female partner ever been molested by
Indian males.......

A RESOUNDING YES..How do i know.. I have lived in India for 20 years
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:37 AM
139
If you look at the history of Indian migration across the globe you will find that
Indians have made substantial contribution to the economy and the culture of
those nation. Be it USA or UK or Canada these countries have becaome not just
immensely rich but also recieved tremendous impetus in their science and
technology, and socio cultural development. Be it the email which Sabeer Bhatia
(Indian) developed who migrated to USA after getting educated in India., or many
million other examples.

USA and UK have been extremely appreciative about the contribution of Indians
till date., unfortunately because of the inheritance of Aussies they still do not
come to the grim reality that if they are lousy and idiots (mathematics is their
biggest weakness) they cannot blamce Indians.

I think they are better off without Indians and rather live with their young spoilt
generations who drinks beyond their capacity and extremely bad pareting (no
culture) at all, so if someone says Indians are abusive then I guess they are
better off with their drunkards who are spoiling this country.

Lastly, the tolerance of Indians is always considered weakness but this tolerance
only brings out the harmony in diverse cultures, the best example is India itself., if
Aussies can learn one thing they should learn tolerance from Indians.

Cheers
JABI123@GMAIL.COM
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:37 AM
140
Dear Indian,

We have enough taxi drivers and supermarket clerks to last a lifetime now.
Please try Canada?

Love,
Australia
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
Geez Karthik, where've you been mate? You're exactly what these sorts of
boards need.
10:41 AM
141
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:42 AM
142
Well enough anti Indian rants from me for today, so I apologise if I offended all
the Indian accountants out there. I'm now off to a meeting with a Chinaman, a
Norwegian, an American, and a couple of Poms, and shock horror some evil
white Australians. To assist with the Hate all Indians campiagn I have not asked
my Indian worker to attend, initially it was because I have him working on a
different project but now it can only be because I hate him.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:44 AM
143
@ Grant.

I have nothing against Indian supermarket clerks, except they keep insisting on
putting things into plastic bags, then putting the plastic bags into the offered
reusable "green" shopping bag.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:44 AM
144
@Rob-Multiculturalism is NOT a failure; you look at USA or Canada for that
matter. Indian American entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley have created thousands
of jobs. Obama administration alone has around 20 Indian Americans in high
profile posts. I am a proud Australian proud of my Australian passport (equally
proud of my Indian roots). This country gave me an excellent education, an
excellent job and a fantastic life style. Just like you Rob, I am also concerned and
alarmedCONCLUSION about Indian media's irrational sensational branding of
Australia as racist. Australia is a beautiful country, beautiful people, who are
friendly, warm, tolerant and helpful. There are also this very small group of
uneducated jobless gangs who is involved in attacks and bringing bad name to
this beautiful country. Of course Australian government has to choose whether
they want to make a quick buck by giving PRs to cookery students and "hair
stylists" ($14 billion/year). Or Australian government can emulate the American
model by giving visas only to those students who have the brains, finances (and
admissions to high quality Aus Universities like RMIT, Monash etc).I really wish
Indian media stops these irrational sensational reports which are truly damaging
the image of Indians in Aus also damaging the otherwise strong
diplomatic/economical/defence relationships between these two liberal
democracies. And on my previous comment about students getting paid $8 , this
practice is too widespread (almost all service stations in Melbourne and almost all
markets/Asian groceries in West Melbourne) to be tackled by a single complaint
in government authority. It is the SYSTEM that has to change; individual
complaints wont fix the system,. And people PLEASE PLEASE dont make it an
India Vs Australia issue, its all a misunderstanding, fuelled by irresponsible Indian
media + slow Vic police+ low life junkies on the street. Dont let the brainless
junkies dictate the relationship between these 2 countries!! And immigration is not
the culprit BUT uncontrolled mindless immigrations is (eg: giving PR to lure
students of substandard courses etc).
PRASANTH
MELB, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:46 AM
145
"If you are being paid illegally low wages, report your employer. He will owe you
back pay."...If your job is 30 hours a week and your student visa is 20 then they
will most certainly not. Why do you think employees are hiring so many Indians?
Because they know full well they want and need to work more than 20 hours a
week. This is why they offer them lower wages..beggars cannot be choosers.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:46 AM
146
Actually, if India is so civilised, please explain why Australia ends up with
boatloads of Tamil economic migrants (aka "refugees") every week yet their
compatriots in Tamil Nadu are just a few kms away?

No different to your "students" it would seem - taking economic advantage of our
misguided Governmental policies.
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:46 AM
147
Guys,

99.9 % Australians are good. Only few bad people do all the crime against all and
stupid Indian media says its against Indians only and its racist. Rating stunt of
Indian Media
all crap.

Guys enjoy your day! Don't fight with each other.

Cheers
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:49 AM
148
@ Craig

Night Craig. As soon my Indian Boss signs off my timesheet for the time spent
with the South African Project manager, I'm going home to pick up my Chilean
fiancee, then going out to meet a Transexual Pom and her Japanese housemate.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:51 AM
149
That was the best description of the situation I've read yet Prasanth. You ought to
apply for a special comments postion at some of these Indian papers.
ALAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:53 AM
150
Hi Ian
Soon mate !!!!! :)

Hi Alan

My blood boils when I read such articles by the media. They have one and only
one agenda in mind.

That is to make money of innocent people who will listen to any crap they say...

They think they know the power of the media.... ???? Well .... SO do I so here I
come mate!
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
10:53 AM
151
I am concerned at the number of posts on this forum from Australia. If this
continues I will have to become concerned that this attention to the sub continent
could result in passionate even anti-Indian views being held by a large
percentage of the population which up until now has not even been on the
average Australian's radar
Cut it out guys we are dealing with sensitive cultural issues here which require
vilified in the Indian press!
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:54 AM
152
Only .05 % people are like Grant and .05% are worst than Grant eg. Criminals.

Grant, please dont mind but you are performing negatively and making bad
impressing.
JASSI
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:54 AM
153
I couldn;t pass it up. jabi123@gmail.com, you seem very bitter, and it appears
you live in my home town. Have you looked at the international tables on
education. When you are as rich as us, when you live as long as us, when you
are as educated as us, when you feed your people rather than building nuclear
weapons, when you treat people as humanley as us, when you stop enslaving
your women and children, when you stop being one of the greatest traffickers of
humans in the world, when you are noted as being as religiously tolerant as us,
then you can, and only then feel free to criticise us. If you are so bitter go home to
India, and make your life there as you appear to despise us. Guess you can't as
you have to pay money to your family so they can laud it over their neighbours
back home in India. You obvously don't read, as you would see Australia has
recognized the brilliance of some Indians in Australia, I just get the feeling you
think you are one of them. But obviously you are not.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
10:56 AM
154
I do not believe that Indians are hated, it's only because in the state of Victoria
there are too many criminals. How do I know that? My only daughter was
murdered on 17 May 2007. By whom? By the Victorian police force and up to this
date the Victorian government with the police are trying everything they can to
stop me from exposing these CRIMINALS! they have also gone to the point
where they attempted to harm me in the cemetery. They dragged me to the
Magistrates court for 18 months to obtain an intervention order against me. This
case now has gone to the County Court and due back 10 March 2010 which also
happens to be my daughters birth date. The Premier found the opportunity to
resign, the Coroner was forced to resign, the police commissioner refuses to
reply to my letter and 7 days later she takes off, the police media director and the
assistant commissioner are exposed from corruption in other matters 2007 and
both of them involved in the murder, The new Coroner is refusing to hold n
inquest in to the death of Maritsa (Marie) Chiotelis. So you see it's not hate it is
psychopathic criminals that exist here. I know, I have lived here for over 38 years
and I say to them p??ta?a? ??e ?a? p?? ?a ?? pate?
VAGELIS
FEB 01,
2010
10:57 AM
155
"Be it USA or UK or Canada these countries have becaome not just immensely
rich but also recieved tremendous impetus in their science and technology, and
socio cultural development."...The problem with people like you is you are always
wearing rose coloured glasses. Having been to Britain I know full well that most
people of Indian descent there are not professional university educated people.
You always seem to highlight the 15% that work in fields of science and not the
50% that work in manual labour. And as for socio cultural development,surely
Indian take away restaurants don't count..or do they?..
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
10:58 AM
156
@Nathan Jarman

Mate, I have been living in this country since I was 10, and before that I was in
India. I am as "aussie" as can be. I am merely relating the troubled times many
other Indian students are having.

In the late 90's to early 2000's, I barely experienced any racism, but post 2005,
the racism suddenly ramped up - on public transport, while walking down the
street, etc. I played cricket for club, and while walking to training, I was frequently
told to "f*** off back home". I mean, Australia was much more of a home to me
than India, I've lived here most of my life.

But let me tell you one thing - racism, or even perceived racism, is a scar that

allowed these ridiculous courses to open.

I pity those making excuses, almost as if they are justifying these attacks, by
referring to the problems in India. India is expected to grow phenomenally in the
coming decades, much more than what was expected after being exploited by
the late British Empire.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
11:03 AM
157
Oh Jassi, how did you ever get PR which such crap English skills? Or are you still
in limbo, trying to transfer your dodgy course into PR?

I can assure you that my views are manistream, though we are equally angry at
the Australian Govt. for allowing these PR scams to occur.

I note no response from an Indian to my comment on Sri Lankan Tamil "asylum
seekers" travelling all the way to Australia rather than crossing the 40 mile Palk
strait
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:05 AM
158
@ Ray

As you are well aware, a key part of the Australian culture is laughing at
ourselves and others. This is known colloqually as "Taking the Piss", and is our
egalitarian way of demonstrating when we think something is ludicrous to the
point of ridicule.

This is not a sensitive cultural issue. This is the result of a number of tabloid
newspapers across two continents inciting uneducated people into a nationalistic
frenzy in order to (1) convince their readership that they are in someway superior
to members of another culture and (2) sell more copies.

Remember that India was once joined to Australia.
http://polardiscovery.whoi.edu/antarctica/images/gondwana2.gif
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:06 AM
159
Pratyush comment 156, I agree completely that the fault lies with the Australian
government. When there were small numbers of immigrants it wasn't an issue.
Now Australians are seeing their lifestyles going downhill at the same time as the
government flooded the country with immigrants and international students, many
of them Indian. Any nation would see people start to react to this. Unfortunately
the Australian government is far too stupid to understand that they are creating
an international incident and to now limit the numbers of immigrants coming in,
and let students finish their courses and leave rather than letting stay on
permanently. If they took major action now they would defuse the situation.
D.B.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:11 AM
160
"Cut it out guys we are dealing with sensitive cultural issues here which require
vilified in the Indian press!"...Ray,you just don't get it. The Indian media already
hate us. We have become the pantomime villain to which India can blame so
many of it's problems. And why are they doing this?.. Because pseudo
nationalism sells..because there is very little real trade between us to
jepordise..and here is the clincher..because China has much stronger ties to
Australia! I'm willing to bet many aussies here aren't fully aware of the internet
flame war between India and China. Just go to Youtube and see how many
videos there are that proclaim that the world hates India/China..or how
India/China will rule the 21st century.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
11:19 AM
161
Well, some of these posts, Pratyush from Melb, I'm reading Outlook as a follow
up on the article in today's Age. Australia, is mainly a non racist country. Worst
racism I've encountered was in Singapore and that was from the Chinese ethnics
to the Indians. My Dr is an Indian and she is lovely.This whole racist thingi has
gotten so outa control, blame the media. Years ago a person's ethnicity wasn't
even mentioned either the assailant or the victum- whay happenned. My only
clue to some racism towards Indians is since the telco companies moved the call
centres offshore to India. We are bombarded with these calls and obvious Indian
accents. Stop the call centres and you may halt some of the ill feelings.
Generally, though Australia is not racist not on the scale of your own caste
system and comments from Indians in regard to students coming from certain
Indian states. Check out your own backyard and don't support the shonky
colleges (owned by Indians)looking for PR. Earn it . Cheers Linda
LINDA DOM
KIATA, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:20 AM
162
Alright Mark, BRad, SMith, Shane, dave and Steve....let's look at it from another
angle. Tomorrow if China knocks on our doors with Nuke missiles, you will only
have the Indians to protect you. America is almost under the mexicans anyway.
So think rationally now, so that you can avoid an embarassment later. Why
commit atrocities now and say sorry later. Don't forget that Indian soldiers were
fighting the nazis for the anglos...they don't even get a decent burial..they don't
even count...

What if white aussies were political prisoners...they may have been sent to
Australia for fighting the late empire to free India. You never know why some of
these convicts were sent here...So Indians can assume that ancestors of white
aussies stood for Indian independence and their government punished them and
that's how they became convicts..so there's scope for friendship...
Pratyush, to you I have just one thing to say...Don't try too hard to fit in. You will
fall flat on your back...

and hey you Prathyush, don't try too hard to fit in...we can see through your
game. Just coz you have two anglo friends, it doesn't mean there are no racists
here.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
11:22 AM
163
Sorry maybe I didn't make my comments clear enough. I was taking the piss out
of this whole manufactured debate perpetrated by the Indian Press. India is
desperate to be acknowledged as one of the success stories of the 21st century
brought abount mainly by western investment due to low wage costs (Very little
else) It all smacks of a country saying hey guys we are succesful now so respect
us! Perhaps a result of colonialisation for so many years which resulted in the
atypical obseqious Indian character which they are so desperate to distance
themselves from due to some modest economic prosperity in comparison to what
has gone before.
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:30 AM
164
Sasha!

Everyone here talks sense except you.

Where the hell did nuke and army and all that come from?

From your post I realise you just want to win the argument and hate what others
have to say

YOU WON... happy???? Now can you talk sense please?
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
11:31 AM
Nathan

You again are missing the point and are just further screwing the relations of
Australia and India.
165

India has had some tough times with regards to China, especially with regards to
the Sino-Indian War, and the rather outrageous claims that China are making
over some North and North-Eastern Indian states. There is also the growing
Maoist movement in India, many claiming that they are being funded by China.

The point is, there is SOME sort of basis to the strained relations, least of all the
title of being the biggest and best in Asia.

The fact that some of you people are spending so much time trying to fling s***
on the Indians is quite comical. Are you feeling really threatened by an Indian
magazine, who OBVIOUSLY will put an Indian spin on the issue?

Do you guys remember what happened to Schapelle Corby, and the virtually
hysterical reaction of most Australians to her? I remember a poll where 80%
Australians (or something ridiculous) saying she was innocent. I remember the
entire judiciary system of Indonesia being lampooned. It's not cool when it
happens to you, does it?

The thing that is pissing Indians off is that there does not seem to be any
to deal with it. Something.
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
11:35 AM
166
More irresponsible and just plain wrong reporting from India. The standards of
journalism over there appalling.

This constant anti-Aussie reporting in the Indian media is just inflaming the
situation and is driving the wedge between Australians and Indians in even
further.

Pratyush, I have also been in Australia a very long time and I consider myself
100% Australian.

I have not experienced a single racist incident in my time here.

Australians now see Indians as being ungrateful, hypocritical whingers, so I can
understand where the "f*** off back home" comments are coming from.

The fact that these attacks are occuring is bad, make no bones about it. No doubt
some of them are racially motivated. However I think that the behaviour of the
new Indian community in Australia and the Indian media in general have greatly
contributed to make it worse than it should be.
BRIAN
FEB 01,
2010
11:36 AM
167
"But let me tell you one thing - racism, or even perceived racism, is a scar that
allowed these ridiculous courses to open."...

You seem to think racism only goes one way Praytush. The amount of times I
have had vietnamese,lebanese,african and islander people act in an aggressive
and racist way to me I could count in the hundreds. And don't get me started on
the italians,greeks,yugoslavs,and turks who have been here for 40-50 years but
still whine that Australia has "no culture".
Of course what they really mean is Anglo-Celtic culture has no value. Yet it's the
same Anglo-Celtic culture that provided universities for their children and
grandchildren to go to. But has this left a scar on me?.. No! And you want to
know why?..because idiots come from all backgrounds.
As for the government,these dodgy PR student visa courses were in fact started
by Howard. Would you have preferred Rudd to have suddenly closed these
schools down when he got elected?.. Imagine the public relations fallout that
would have caused. You would have seen headlines from Mumbai to Mysore
proclaiming loudly how Australia has robbed the "noble Indian student" of their
"hard earned" money. The current government was handed a speeding train by
Howard and it will take some time before the train can safely pull into the station.
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
11:37 AM
168
I am an Indian & have been living in Australia for a few years now, though NOT
as a student. Came as a skilled worker to Australia (yes took one of the OZ jobs
and I now feel ashamed) mainly because my son used to fall sick in India, after
we decided to move back from the US.

Have made lots of OZ friends in the course of time, love the barbie, enjoy a game
of local footy with my local friends & a stubbie or two, enjoy the boys weekend at
the Murray., Yes, basically have just started to settle into the brilliant OZ culture..
My son goes to a OZ public school & the only anthem he can sing is the Australia
one.. I do own a car (call me rich if you want to) unlike the students who use the
trains mostly, and never have I experienced any so called, 'on the surface racism'
whatsoever. I don't know if there was any 'in the surface' racism though. We
enjoy the company of many of our OZ friends that come home to enjoy my wife's
home made Indian food ... and we too are invited for barbies/morning
teas/afternooon teas to their places...& we too enjoy the bacon & the sausages
as much as they enjoy the Indian food.... :)

However, the recent events in Melbourne, and especially the way they are being
portrayed in the media like the one here are really worrying. The frequency of
phone calls from back home has increased in the last few months !!! All my mates
here have been reassuring me not to worry and that everythign will be alright.
This definitely does NOT seem to be the work of white Aussies (as portrayed)
and there is suspicion that it is being done by immigrants from other countries.

I however just wonder sometimes though, if I would be next !!!
CHITTU
FEB 01,
2010
11:38 AM
169
Pratyush,


Club, on the beach.





Australians never want it happen again.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:39 AM
170
Pratyush,


Club, on the beach.





Australians never want it to happen again.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:46 AM
Pratyush
Melbourne, Australia,

What "concrete" action can any Australian government take? We can't stop
Indians walking through parks at night, in areas well known or gang violence and
171
(in particular) knife attacks, Yarraville. If Indians choose to do risky jobs like
security guards, night shift shop keepers, or taxi drivers, because that would be
discriminatory. So what is it, specifically, that Indians expect Australian
governments to do?
FLAVIAN HARDCASTLE
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:46 AM
172
Oh the irony of the racist and in tolerant Shiv Sena making the banner news
when we open up this topic page! "sena demonstrates outside srk's residence"
GRANT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:47 AM
173
"The thing that is pissing Indians off is that there does not seem to be any
to deal with it. Something."...There is concrete measures being taken Praytush.
And you should be at least aware of that. Our prisons are overflowing..and the
police here have advised Indian students many times about how to travel more
safely at night. Not that they listen. And it's hard to have constructive dialogue
when Indian ministers and Indian media make hysterical cries of racism and
comparing us to apartheid South Africa every 5 minutes.
When the Indian media tells constant lies about the reality of modern Australia
you can't be surprised that Australians will try and defend their countries
reputation. If Australian ministers and media were telling constant lies about India
,wouldn't you expect Indian people to reply to such comments?..
NATHAN JARMAN
FEB 01,
2010
11:50 AM
174
Have always been intrigued by the fact that most Indian movie stars are of the
lighter skin variety. Can someone explain why this is? This is a serious question
as I am completely at a loss to explain why Indians seem to prefer them over
those with darker skin colour.There are plenty of African American actors along
with the queen of the talk shows, Oprah Winfrey
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
Pratyush,

11:51 AM
175
Please pardon my spelling in the previous post - I'm typing too quickly :)
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
11:57 AM
176
Yes, the Aussie government made the biggest mistake by letting these so called
PR factory colleges open

The students I have seen coming to these colleges are a disgrace to us Indians
here.

They

1. Do not have any manners
2. Talk too loud everywhere
3. Refuse to learn the aussie culture
4. Refuse to mingle with the locals
5. Do not have any interest to study
6. Want to get PR ASAP
7. Came here with fraudulent documents
8. Trying the same thing here as most of these colleges are owned my Indians

And I cant understand how Australia is going to benefit from these clowns other
than to make a quick buck.

Do you call these people Skilled Migrants. Is the Aussie government insane?
They would not even get a job in India let alone Australia......

I call them garbage migrants. Kevin Rudd wake up .......Get actual skilled people
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
12:00 PM
177
Sometimes, you refer to Indians as 'us' and sometimes 'they' ...what are you ?
half breed? :)
CHITTU
FEB 01,
2010
12:04 PM
I recently read on NDTV that the NZ (yes, NZ) government were looking at further
safety measures that can be installed in taxis.

178
Look at boosting the police presence in troubled areas and increasing the size of
the police force. Develop student housing (where they pay of course) closer to
less crime prone suburbs. Fix the job debacle many of them face - increasing
their hours/pay slightly will not severely affect the economics, but may prevent
them becoming late night fodder.

Crimes with the hint of racism should be dealt with more severely than if it was
just a petty theft - in all cases not just involving Indians.

Nathan Jarman, the advice of the police was not to flaunt wealth/mobiles/ipods,
and further, not to speak in their NATIVE LANGUAGE while on public transport.
What kind of advice is that?

But I am not a politician voted to lead a nation, whom I hope has better brains to
tackle such problems.

As to the actions of Shiv Sena, it is merely a response to one who claims
"Pakistan is a good neighbour to have".
PRATYUSH
FEB 01,
2010
12:11 PM
179
Manish Banerjee and G Natrajan has hit the nails right on its head. Let's call a
spade a spade.
RICHARD TANNER
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:12 PM
180
Oh yeah Chittu I forgot one point

They have horrible english

US refers to us Indians who are "well settled" here

"They" refers to those Indians who are tying to Unsettle "US""

Got it ???
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
Violent crime against Indians in Melbourne is no greater is no greater than
anyother ethnic group. If there is racism involved it's not because of hatred it's
12:17 PM
181
because Indians are seen as easy targets.
Mainstream media likes to portray the racism as white extremism, but the truth is
the perpetrators of these crimes are other ethnic minoritories. Most street
violence in Melbourne is commited by Asians, mostly Thai and Vietnamese
organised crime gangs and to a lesser degree middle eastern street gangs.
NEIL
FEB 01,
2010
12:19 PM
182
Oh well, have to go home now.

After working with my American, Korean, Mainland Chinese, Hong Kong
Chinese, Malay Chinese, Australian, English, Scottish, Canadian, Czech, Polish,
Argentinian, Indian, Sri Lankan, Austrian, French and Korean colleagues
peacefully and productively, I'm going home to cook a curry for my Hong Kong-
born wife.

Today we have learnt:

1. Australia is a generally fair and tolerant country, albeit with a few ratbags who
we all hope will be caught by the police.

2. The Australian immigration and education system is being rorted by
unscrupulous criminals, but they are slowly being put out of business.

3. A lot of Indians enjoy living in Australia and very nearly all Australians are
upset when new arrivals don't feel welcome, even ratbags like Elan and Sasha.

4. The media sucks (yet again)and enjoys a beat up.

5. Politicians who use racism and hatred suck.

6. Karthick is a very funny guy.

7. If there is room in this world for pity and forgivenes, the Collingwood Football
Club deserves it more than most.

Good night all - thanks for the conversation.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
Karthik, you are the worst of the lot. You speak absolute BS! Seriously. I wonder
how you got here. And I really don't think you r from India either.U reek of upper
12:22 PM
183
caste chauvanism. Seriously champ, geta life.
If you do not know that Chinese have Nukes and they can annex Australia in a
second, then you are an idiot. Do you kow that the Fiji Islands have been taken
over by the chinese? They are the best strategists. They are the new americans.
And they are right at Australia's door step. They have already contained Australia
and having a PM like Rudd does not help. He's blatantly Anti-Indian and that's
why we are in this soup. He's getting orders from his chinese bosses. I have just
one request people...I want the Union Jack off our flag...and I want white racists
to shut up or go back. It's a genuine, patriotic demand! I believe Australia should
be arepublic with strong hate laws. I want Tasmania to be freed of tyrants! India
is a natural ally to a democratic Australia. Forces against it are red necks and
chinese agents. Simple! This is a fight for a true and liberal Australia. Shun
racism, shun Kevin Rudd, send Brumby back.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
12:22 PM
184
yup got it Karthik ... :) Your english is really amazing ... You must be from one of
the reputed grammar schools here, I bet ... ;)
CHITTU
FEB 01,
2010
12:25 PM
185
Thanks Ian.You have a good one! DOn't you have any islander colleagues?
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
12:29 PM
186
Ian,

Your last post was very credible (in fact I was tearing up) until you suggested pity
for Collingwood supporters.

I am OK with any race. Send more Indians if they want to contribute. Even
refugees; Tamils, Afgans, Iraqis give the poor buggers an opportunity to further
enrich our society.

But if another boatload of Collingwood supporters lands on Christmas Island, I
say we start shooting.

As John Howard once said; "We decide who comes into this country and the
team that they support."

And any Adelaide supporters who think that's funny, wipe that smile off your face
'cause you're next.

Is it racist to hate Collingwood? Just wondering.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
12:30 PM
187
Sasha !!! LOL . wasting space here!!!

Chittu

Thanks mate!!!
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
12:35 PM
188
Alright everyone..some of us really bummed around today. that's the moral of the
story.
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
12:46 PM
189
I've been in Australia for about 8 years now, didn't come here as a student -
came as a skilled migrant. Enjoyed my first first few years here - I made some
great friends from all over the world and loved the lifestyle. However, since about
2005 I have noticed an increase in the amount of racism and xenophobia in
Sydney. It used to be subtle, but last year I had a beer bottle thrown at me as I
was riding my bike and told to 'go f**ing home', I couldn't talk about it with any of
my aussie friends for weeks. Have been shouted at while driving, been called a
'black c**t' as I was crossing the street - all this in the last year. Then there's all
the subtle racism. - the condescension and the poor service, the 'bag check'.. A
guy I was talking to at a prty who's white and South African was complaining
about xenophobia in Australia as well..

I'm leaving Australia this week to go to the US (yes, with it's bad economy and all
it's problems). The reactions from Australians on this page have confirmed for me
that this Australia is not the one that I came to 8 years ago.. I don't know what
happened (Howard's children came of age?), but I feel sad leaving.. I own a
beautiful house here that I'm going to miss, and I can't imagine what my
weekends are going to be like without my friends, but I just don't feel safe living
here any more.

To all the Australians here comparing India to Australia and telling Indians to stay
home - have you lost your mind or is your logic just that weak? Indians know
where you were born, but if you're lucky you can choose where you live.
RAHUL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
12:57 PM
190
Well said Rahul. I hope you do well in the US and I hope you can return to this
beautiful country once we finish fighting these red necks. I'm sure we will see an
Australia that respects its indigineous communities; I'm sure we will see an
Australia that does not look up to the queen for inspiration; I'm sure we will have
an Australia that allows people its people to live in dignity; I'm sure we will live to
see an Australia that ensures its citizens freedom to express their thoughts
without having to lose their visas. Let Australia be the hope for the under
privileged. those who do not believe in this Australia can leave. Freedom to
Australians!!!! We want to be young and free of racist thugs
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
01:18 PM
191
CRAIG,

You Aussie L**R, everyone is right Aussies are loosers, and mentally sick,
Australian bureau of statistics reveals that 1 out of 5 aussies are mentally sick,
they need migrants from India, China to run not just taxis, janitors, supermarkets,
but hospitals, aged care etc.,

you Aussie L**R can't take care of ure parents throw them in aged care and need
Indian and chinese doctors and carer, You are mentally sick, and you would need
a doctor most likely Indian or chinese cause you're running out of doctors.

I run a BPO with operations in India and they are the most hard working people I
've come across who works cheaper than my people (who are lousy and arrogant
like aussie S***R).

I had few aussies whom I have kicked out as they were not just arrogant but
morons.

I'm not sure if the indian worker you were talking is your boss cause he definitely
looks smart enough to make you hate him (poor aussie C**T).

First your pals were kicked out by britishians, B*******D and kicked out and then
gave you technology and tools to make your country (mostly they were
americans and britishians) who built your country).,

And those indian memebers who were found to be faking degrees, you're b****y
liar, it would have become the hot story in my country, you L**R you really can't
handle truth.

Better accept truth before your next generations suffer b'cos of your arrogance
(learn from our mistakes), looser
JCOLLIN
FEB 01,
2010
02:19 PM
192
@ Rahul

"To all the Australians here comparing India to Australia and telling Indians to
stay home - have you lost your mind or is your logic just that weak? Indians know
where you were born, but if you're lucky you can choose where you live."

Agreed. As a children of migrants I can sympathise with wanting a better life for
yourself and your family. The rest of your post is moronic vitriol.

Making comparisons between India and Australia is like trying to compare a
water buffalo to a kangaroo. Bound to make you hopping mad.

Indian overseas students make up roughly %15 of the student intake. The vast
majority of people who study here are often affluent asian students who live in
secure student accommodation from the centre of the city to wherever is close to
their university.

As I have observed, quite a number of Indians coming to Australia already have a
higher tertiary education than most Australians, so it begs the question why they
really want to come here to learn how to cook when Indian cuisine is far superior
to the crap they teach in a commercial cookery class.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
02:23 PM
Karthik- you are the type of Indian who calls all the males in the neighborhood
has your Dad.You Ma F****r,you were conceived when your mother slept with
someone when your real dad was out working you maggot.You are crticizing your
motherland in favor of these pie faced sausage suckers.Aussies suck man and
193
they like you cant pont their fingers to a single dad. Their generationd cant do it
and they have no dignity you Bas***d.
Rahul all the best in the US. At least you are getting off from these sick C***s.
STPEHEN JOSE
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:24 PM
194
There is a problem in this country with The Poor White Trash Class. They are
resulted in the death of an innocent student.
The associated problem with these assaults is the spineless politicians who will
speak up and say the truth as it applies to the attacks. The Labor politicians dare
not speak up and identify the perpetrators because the perpetrators are
constituents, by and large, of Labor electorates. The politicians don't want to
upset their own constituents by labelling them as violent racist thugs. They dare
not upset the present rotten social order in this country by prosecuting and
punishing the Trash Class.
MUSTAFA AHMET
FEB 01,
2010
02:28 PM
195
jcollin

I think you are having convulsions and seeing too many stars

Ch***rs M**te
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
02:33 PM
196
A Mustafa:

"There is a problem in this country with The Poor White Trash Class. They are
resulted in the death of an innocent student."

What you haven't said is that most of the areas where attacks take place are
migrant areas. Do you think when a Sudanese or Lebanese or Italian person
attacks an Indian in Melbourne this is white trash racism?

My brother is a lawyer and defended some aborigines who beat up an Indian and
robbed him. They called him a 'curry' etc. Are indigenous Australians racist as
well?

Or the other possibility, that these are disadvantaged, uneducated people that will
harm another weaker individual for economic and personal gain.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
02:34 PM
197
Stpehen Jose

waste of time !!!!

Cheers
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
02:34 PM
198
Do we really need Australia and Ausi education ?

'Until recently, Australias exports to India primarily comprised mining and
agricultural products. Now its service exports alone (mainly Indian students there)
exceed Indias total exports to that country. The trade balance will tilt further
towards Australia when the $20-billion Gorgon gas supply contract becomes
operational."

Indo Aussi Trade ::2008-09

Exports to India from Australia ::A$ 13525 Millions
Exports to Australia from India :: A$ 1831 Millions

'Uranium supply
While Dr Manmohan Singh explored the possibility of uranium supply, there was
no positive movement on the issue. Mr Rudds response was both misleading
and contradictory when he asserted that there was bipartisan consensus in
Australia to not sell uranium to India. After India had negotiated the civil nuclear
cooperation agreement with the US, Mr Rudds predecessor, Mr Howard, had
decided to sell uranium to India. It remains the policy of coalition parties in
Opposition as well. "

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/11/27/stories/2009112750230800.htm

As a developing Economy India has many leverages available.

Racism towards Indians and no Uranium sale to India.Kangrooes are of no
.We have better alternatives available.
RAM PRASN HARYANVI
AMBALA CANTT, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:35 PM
199
@ JCollin

Sounds like you need some sleep. Do you normally post on websites like this at
3am NY time? I know lots of Indians are up at 3am in Australia, but they are
normally driving taxis and don't have easy access to the internet.

Has your BPO planning meeting just finished?
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
02:41 PM
200
"Racism towards Indians and no Uranium sale to India.Kangrooes are of no
.We have better alternatives available."

Why would that work to help Indian students? It would only work if it was
government policy to abuse Indians, which is the opposite of what every level of
government and the vast majority of society wants.

Another arrogant view with misguided nationalist chauvanism. Living in a free and
democratic society, only the police and justice system and the goodwill of the
people will improve the situation.

If Indian students genuinely don't want to come here that's fine. It might make
those Indian migrants who assimilated into Australia while keeping their culture
feel safer. So yes, by all means find alternative arrangements if you like.

Punishing a whole society and damaging bilateral relations because of media
hysteria and misunderstanding and the actions of a few idiots is not only foolish, it
also shows how little you understand geopolitics and the role of globalization.
DAVID
FEB 01,
I wonder if the recent arrests made in relation to the murder of 2 "Indian
2010
02:53 PM
201
nationals" in Australia have been reported as widely as the racism story?? In both
cases, those arrested were also Indian nationals - an Indian man who murdered
his Indian wife, and an Indian couple who bashed, set on fire, and left on the side
of the road an Indian man. Not a racist, white trash Australian in sight. One of my
aunts is Indian-British, another Greek. My brother in law is Polish-German,
another Italian. Mine is a fairly typical Australian family nowadays. I have visited
India in 2005, and whilst it was an amazing adventure there is no doubt that the
crimes you commit against your own people in terms of the caste system are
dreadful. I am sorry for what has happened to the innocent, whatever their
nationality - but please report honestly.
SHARON MCDERMOTT
NEWCASTLE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
02:54 PM
202
'it also shows how little you understand geopolitics and the role of globalization."

David

Globalisation later first Uranium we need .Kangrooes are denying us under one
or the other pretext.So why we need Australia kindly advise ? Otherwise too trade
balance is shifting in your favour .
RAM PRASN HARYANVI
AMBALA CANTT, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
03:00 PM
203
@ ram prasn haryanvi

Australia is a party to free trade agreements the same as India. If you sell things
we need, we'll buy them. Same as with China. I doubt those Australians who are
racist towards Indians feel the same way about the Chinese.

We are a primary producer nation with a strong service sector. India is starting to
become a manufacturing centre. China still produces way more products to a
better standard than India so more of their goods are imported into Australia.

My point is, you seem to want to punish Australia and harm relations between
two commonwealth countries because of a perceived rise in assaults on a section
of the Indian student community. Is that sensible or just anger not helped by
hysterical reporting in your media which unfortunately has become as
nationalistic and populist as Fox news in America.

This news magazine is one of the few that stand out as trying to be objective.
Which is what journalism is meant to be about. You should try it too.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
03:05 PM
204
Having read through the comments, I can't help but to put forth a couple of
points:

1. Elan should consider the very real possibility that the the thirty-odd years of
perceived discrimination he suffered has nothing to do with his ethnicity, and
everything to do with him being a dickhead.

2. Sasha would do well to meet Australians other than failed sociology students.
It might help her overcome her persecution complex.

3. Gordy Gambino should concern himself less with adult conversations than with
remembering to put the fries in the happy meals he's passing through the
window.

4. Karthik is right on the money in a number of ways. Many (not all) of the Indian
students I have come into contact with are loud, inconsiderate and ill mannered.
They are unrepresentative of the Australian Indian community at large and the
Indians I work with professionally. While this certainly doesn't excuse any
violence against them, it is a plausible factor in understanding why the violence
occurs. I don't accept that violence against Indian students is wildly
disproportional to any other group, but rather than quibble over the issue, I feel it
would be much more productive to look at how it can be avoided. If these
students devoted a small amount of time to integrating themselves into the
culture of their host country they would not only be safer, but undoubtedly enjoy
their experience far more. On the whole, I think they are targeted far less for their
ethnicity than the fact that they are easy prey for cowardly thieves. Learning to
avoid danger would help.

As a multi-generational Anglo Australian, I can't pretend that racism doesn't exist
in Australia. It's most prevalent in regional areas and among the economically
and socially disadvantaged. Ignorance breeds fear, as they say. It also breeds
with its cousin and doesn't think that 'country music' is an oxymoron - but that's a
discussion for another day.

The reality, however, is that racism in Australia manifests itself largely as humour
and naive curiosity, rather than serious animosity. Most of the real angst seems
to be imported - amongst new arrivals vying for an improved place in the pecking
order. The idea (as put forward in this strange piece) that I might be in some way
intimidated by the influx of smart, qualified Indians is too silly to even be funny.
We can use as many smart people as we can get. What we don't need is more
bad cooks and hairdressers. We breed enough of them here.

Pratyush asked why Australians are posting on this article. Fair question, even if
the inference that we're not worthy is a little racist. I can only answer for myself.
When I read that Australia is a racist country I take it personally. They're saying
that I am racist, as are all my friends. The only way I can hope to dispel this
misconception is to add my voice to the discussion. Is this a bad thing?
HEATH CALLAWAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
03:33 PM
205
I think the story should be; Why do Aussies hate Taxi drivers.

Thugs in Australia don't discriminate; they'll beat the crap out of taxi drivers of
any race. Unfortunately 70% of them are Indian.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
03:46 PM
206
David

You seems to be one voice of reason among lots of angry shouts.

Whether Aussies like or not hordes of Indians are rearibg to go rather to migrate
choices are Chinese or Talibs .

Have your pick !
A K GHAI
MUMBAI, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
03:50 PM
207
Heath Callaway:: I'm in touch with level headed Australians who want a free
society. I denounce racist thuggery however hard you try to justify through your
false modesty.I denounce rednecks, you don't. That's the difference. It's not
about me being in touch with failed sociologists. Racist bigots in Australia should
be shipped back to the UK, just like how thiefs and thugs were sent here from the
UK.
Union Jack Off my Flag,

Sasha
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
03:56 PM
208
"Whether Aussies like or not hordes of Indians are rearibg to go rather to migrate
choices are Chinese or Talibs ."

Thanks. I don't care how many overseas students want to come here or get
permanent residency. Everyone wants a better life. I'd rather Indians who come
from a democratic country, with a high level of education and good work ethic
than some of the people we allow in under asylum laws.

A: Indian students don't want to blow us up;
B: They are family oriented and work hard;
C: They usually have excellent qualifications.

It's a shame the only way they can come here is being tricked by migration
agents to pay $20,000 a year to study a course that is well below their education
standards.

Everywhere Indian migration has happened, the host nation benefits alot. We
need to get rid of cash for degrees and let people come here to work and live like
anyone else.

If Indians had as much money as the Indonesian, Chinese, Malay etc students
they wouldn't be treated as badly because they wouldnt have to work at
Macdonalds, as taxi drivers and service stations.

I would be humiliated if I went from my country with my qualifications and had to
work in unskilled jobs that the Indian students would NEVER do back home in
India.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
04:05 PM
209
Sasha: I'm with ya about the flag. It is an insult to the large portion of Australians
Anglos in showing their displeasure at multiculturalism.

A new flag is needed but don't hold your breath.
PETE MC
FEB 01,
2010
"Sasha: I'm with ya about the flag. It is an insult to the large portion of Australians
04:13 PM
210
Anglos in showing their displeasure at multiculturalism."

I think the aborigines prefer it largely as it is proof that the nation is built on two
seperate cultural backgrounds, namely, that we were colonised by Britain and
have strong cultural links to it. Same as Fiji keeps the union jack in its flag
although it's been a republic for over 20 years.

Secondly it is a nod to our historical background. No idea why I'm debating the
flag issue which is a non-issue with 0 relevance or importance to this debate or
important issues facing Australia.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
04:19 PM
211
I am 38 years old and have lived in Melbourne my entire life. My wife is
Japanese, we have two children. My friends are Jewish, Japanese, Indonesian,
Indian, British, American, Greek, Italian... My colleagues are from all over the
world including several from India.

Sadly, some Australians are racists and some crimes committed in my city
against Indians have racist motivations. But racism is everywhere in this world
and I don't believe for a minute that Melbourne is predominantly a racist city. Far
from it, Melbourne is a pluralist and open society.

Irish immigrants. Then during the Gold Rush it was the Chinese. Then post world
war two it was the Greeks and Italians. After the Vietnam war it was the
Vietnamese. More recently, it has been Lebanese and now we are seeing
problems with racism towards Indians.

As migrants from new ethnic groups came to Australia, it brought a racist
backlash from the tiny minority of Australians who are racists. Such a minority
exists in every country in the world. Each one of these backlashes was ultimately
defeated by the tolerance and good will of the majority of Australians. It will be so
again this time.

Racism cannot easily be solved just by throwing more police at the problem - it
has yet to be solved anywhere in the world. Australians have shown great
vigilance towards racism; we will continue to do so.
RUPERT
FEB 01,
2010
04:20 PM
212
I am a person of Australian of South Asian origin and have lived in Sydney for
more than nearly forty years. I have seen a lot of change over that time. This blog
however is an eye-opener to me because it seems to show how little people in
both countries know about the other - even people who have traveled, or maybe
especially people who have traveled who believe that a short time in a country as
a traveler makes you knowledgeable about the country.

I am not sure that blogs like this really help because in the emotion and heat they
generate, it is really very hard to properly consider the arguments. I will however
make the following observations.

Hugh McKay a leading Australian social commentator makes the observation that
the biggest change that Australia has undergone within the last generation is not
immigration, economic globalisation or changes in cultural and social tastes and
habits - but it is the attitude of the "haves" towards the "have nots". Thirty years
ago, Australia was still a place where the ethos of "mateship" really did mean a
sense of obligation on the part of the well off to help provide a leg up for the less
well to do. A generous welfare system was the means to this end. That welfare
system though still in place is creaking - with a real change in attitude that blames
poverty not on circumstances but on the personal fault of the have nots. There is
no longer a sense that the collective good requires a re-allocation of resources
from those who have more to those who less. This I think holds the key.

You bring people from India who can afford an education and allow them to settle
in areas where a large underclass lives - abandoned as it were by the society to
which they belong, and any person can tell you that this spells trouble. Add to this
a situation where the Federal government has been running a migration
programme in the guise of a student programme, where the student in the eyes
of the local people gets an education they cannot afford themselves and also get
to stay and take a job. That the students pay for the education they receive from
their own funds and helps subsidise Australian students will be a detail that does
not matter to the locals.

The Federal government however was very happy with all this. It had effectively
has acquired skills the country needs without spending a cent. This all seemed to
work quite well until the lid blew off. This was thanks to the India press which first
blew that lid. The Federal and Victorian governments were apparently aware of
the problem for two years and worried - but did not do enough. What they failed
to do was the first thing that is required to be done when situations like this
develop - and that is to openly air the issues and try to deal with the problem in
full light of day rather than brushing it under the carpet and trying to fix things up
quietly.

The Indian press I do not think can be blamed for blowing the lid - even though
some comment is over the top and the cover on Outlook is sensationalist and
inflammatory. As to what one Australian commentator says of the Indian press,
see http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=18963 This is a news
website run by a Roman Catholic Order in Australia.

The blame I think must lie with the Australian and Victorian governments, both for
an ill-conceived and slightly "smart-arsed " scheme under which they thought
they could fill skill gaps at no cost to it through a hidden migration an skills
training programme effectively financed by India (and other countries such as
Pakistan, Bangladesh and China) without thinking through the consequences. I
think that the Indian government even though it has been very restrained (its
travel advisory is fair and balanced) could have done better in warning its citizens
earlier of what the problems are. Detailed travel advisories are common in many
countries. The Australian government for example does provide detailed
warnings including identification of no go zones (usually in Europe) for
Australians with dark skin. I always take care not to go to these areas when in
Europe without precautions.

So where do we go from here?

The short term solution is already working its way through - as we see in a sharp
drop in new students/migrants and increasing numbers of people cutting short
their study and returning to India. The solution proposed by some of the people
on this blog "go back where you came from" is already taking place. Sadly for us,
it means that there will be people in India who will take back with them an image
of Australia that will be very hard to erase. All I can say to you is " sorry for what
has happened" - although I wish that it is our politicians saying it.

Without meaning to excuse the Federal government, I think that its inept handling
of the situation is partly due to shock. I think they are honestly at a loss to know
what to do. They fully well see the problem and see the damage to a bi-lateral
relationship which the mandarins in Canberra see as becoming one of Australia's
most important along with the relationships with China and the US. The long term
solution ultimately touches on some basic questions about Australian society
which no political party has the guts to tackle head on.

As for the long term solution? The Federal government needs to accept that it
dropped the ball three decades ago and focus on repairing the damage to
Australian society wrought by three decades on neo-liberalism and in particular
providing opportunities for the underclass that is rapidly developing in both urban
and rural Australia. When that is done, the country will be better able to absorb
immigration (in the 50s proportionately much larger immigration intakes were
assimilated in Australian society without problems on the scale we now see).

And what about racism? Having lived in Australia for nearly forty years, I observe
a long trend of a decline in racism. Racism exists in pockets but is not all
pervasive. Yes - it is part of the mix in the violence we now see, even if many of
the perpetrators of the violence are people of non-Anglo-Celtic background. Put
upon minorities often assimilate the prejudices they perceive as appertaining to
the majority - often in an exaggerated manner - as a means of entry into society.
When I was at school in the 70s, the worst racists were often people of a non-
Anglo-Celtic background. We see the same thing in India where some of the
worst violence against dalits comes not from the upper castes but from those just
above them in the pecking order. However, in the end, in Australia it is the long
term failure of the Federal government to look after large parts of the population
that is the fuel on that stokes the fire of racism.

For the folks in India, I have tried to set out the picture as accurately as I can. If
you want to blame someone, that blame does not lie with the ordinary Australian
who is basically a good and decent person just like the ordinary Indian - blame a
badly conceived policy of the Australian Federal government. I do not believe that
the Federal government forsaw any of this when the embarked on their ill
concieved scheme - but that is no excuse. We elect governments becuase we
expect this of them. If any good comes out of all this, hopefully, it is to jolt the
Federal government into some deep thinking that takes us well beyond the
immediate problem to address some very basic questions about the character of
Australian society and going to the need repair some broken bonds that once
held us all together under a social democratic compact.

Please understand the people perpetrating the violence are a small minority even
within the disadvantaged communities to which they belong. They (as well as
some of the intemperate comments on this blog) do not reflect the country as a
whole. I say this with the experience of forty years of living in Sydney.
EA MACINTYRE
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
04:28 PM
213
My question is what is the need for skilled Indians to go to Australia?. I studied
Microelectronics in RMIT University during 2003-05 and returned to India and is
currently working in India. At that time there was not much violence in Melbourne
and most Indian students used to attend universities to get degrees. I used to live
in Footscray which is heaven for thugs and notorious for drug junkies, yet never
experienced the kind of violence that is prevalent now. It's only during March
2005(The month i returned) that i noticed lot of young people from Punjab have
arrived to do hospitality courses in TAFE's and colleges the reason being not
studies but to get permanant residence. In contrast many of my classmates,
through they are permanant residents of Australia returned to India and is
working in Semiconductor industry and there is no dearth of opportunities here.
What is the use if you drive a fancy car and lead a high life in an alien country
and there is nobody proud of you?.
SUDHIR SALIGRAMA
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 01,
David, using that logic India should have 4 union jacks on their flag and the US
2010
04:45 PM
214
can have a few too. How can Indians who grew up with tales of their parents and
grand parents fightin the brutal empire accept institutions of a country that
worships the queen. It's funny how some anglo australins ask immigrants to
leave their culture behind when they themselves haven't gotten over their past.

Queen off my dolla,

Sasha
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
04:50 PM
215
@ EA MacIntyre

That is the most cogent, balanced and intelligent post I've seen. Please dont
think Australians are on this website for nationalistic reasons. We are genuinely
upset that people perceive us as racists whereas many abhor and despise the
type of moronic violence seen recently.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:01 PM
216
Sasha - I admire your ideological conviction, but I think that you may have
misread my initial post. I'm a republican, and very much in favor of
multiculturalism. What I am not is delusional. Racism exists, but social convention
rules - in all countries. Do more to appreciate the latter and you'll suffer less of
the former.

David:

A: Probably not, but some Pakistanis and Afghanis may have different ideas.
How does a customs official exercise due diligence without racially profiling?

B: 'Family orientated' is another way of saying racist. It means 'I don't want my
child marrying that freak's child'.

c: If Elan's claimed academic achievement is genuine we all have reason to be
afraid.
HEATH CALLAWAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
"It's funny how some anglo australins ask immigrants to leave their culture behind
when they themselves haven't gotten over their past."
05:04 PM
217

My family are jewish migrants from Poland. We have no interest or affiliation with
the British Crown or mother England. I just believe that we should keep some of
our unique quirks while striving to build a multicultural pluralist society. They are
not contradictory.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:08 PM
218
"B: 'Family orientated' is another way of saying racist. It means 'I don't want my
child marrying that freak's child'."

No, it means they work and live to improve the lives of their families. Just like
many people do.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:18 PM
219
Hi,

Before I post my comment let me be upfront about myself - I am a person of
Indian origin, living in Australia for last 10 years and IT professional and I come
from upper cast Hindu family.

I have no hesitation in claiming that I never encountered even a single incidence
of racism, I am very well assimilated in Aussie society. All my neighbours come
from different ethnicity and a lot of them are white aussies. I must admit the kind
of respect and love I have received in this country, I wouldn't have received it in
India. I am really appalled by the kind of insane jingoism that is going on in India
about these opportunistic attacks on some students. Its just outrageous that how
even without waiting for the results of investigation, whole India is jumping up and
down. I think the whole situation has been summed up rather well by Ray of
Sidney in response no 163. Somehow, lot of Indians have fooled themselves in
believing that India has become some kind of super power. On the contrary the
fact is India is a third world country and will continue to be for next 100 years with
its myriads of issues like corruption, over population, illiteracy, totally fractured
society etc. To sum up my comments I will like to quote one of the most
respectable Indian scribe Mr Khushwant Singh at
(For my aussie friends, the word 'bhai' that appears in the title is a Hindi word and
it means brother)
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:21 PM
220
Here is the link again, it got cut in my last post :

AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:25 PM
221
Question to our Indian friends commenting:

Does anyone know the social status and education level of the majority of Indian
students studying in Australia? I've read here some classist attacks on Punjabi
people and Northern Indians. Is Punjab the place where the majority of
applications come from?
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:29 PM
222
Sorry, reposting it as the previous one got cut again.

http://tiny.cc/SZtql
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:41 PM
223
David :

Yes most of these people are from Punjab and I must say if they are called
'students' then we will have to redefine the meaning of the word itself, I mean by
no stretch of imagination I would classify them as 'student'. For your info, recently
England had to suspend the visa application processing from this part of India as
they could easily sense the fraud going on (http://tiny.cc/2Z926). In fact, most of
the Indians settled in Australia had already recognised this fraudulent entry of
these so called students in Australia long time ago and were concerned about
how such a crap was being allowed to enter Australia?
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
05:48 PM
@ Aussie Indian

Interesting. I'm just curious as to how many of these people already have
university qualifications or higher education? I met a number during my own time
doing cookery (which I found to be a mistake for me)who obviously had an
224
education level far superior to the crap they were studying.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
05:52 PM
225
David:

Firstly, good work because most of posts make true sense and i agree with them.
:)

Yeah most of them are from Punjab, who are doing these vocational courses like
cooking, hairstyling etc. Even the majority of taxi drivers are Punjabis. I think their
main objective is to obtain a PR ASAP rather than selecting a genuine course for
their study. Like Aussie Indian said, the UK has recently banned all the visa
applications from North India.

Cheers
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
05:52 PM
226
David - I think we are on the same side - arguing semantics.

I don't believe you'd be thick enough to try to live in India without bothering to
learn something of the culture and language. It's common courtesy. Why would
you move to India to join an Australian enclave?
HEATH CALLAWAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
05:57 PM
227
David:

Most of them (I mean those in courses like cookery and hairdressing etc) have
fake qualifications. Some of them may have better qualifications (but that
qualification probably wouldn't fetch them a PR, and hence join
cookery/hairdressing). But the bottom line is most of them are here on fake
documents.

Generally I don't waste my time posting in such discussions as I have found they
are useless. But somehow, I have been really perturbed by the totally insane
behaviour of Indian masses, press, media etc and that is what compelled me to
jump in. I think Aussies have nothing to defend. These are law and order
incidences which could happen anywhere in world and should be treated as such
by aussie authorities
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:00 PM
228
Just a brief comment from an Australian perspective. The vast majority of
Australians have never heard of the Australia First party, they certainly don't have
any members of parliament, local council or anything else. As far as I can tell
from this article, it may be no more than the one guy quoted here. It seems like
slightly dubious journalistic standards to quote this guy extensively without even a
mention from one of the major Australian political parties. That said, Australia's
politicians should be tackling the issue more strongly.
A little balance wouldn't go astray though.
HUW
FEB 01,
2010
06:02 PM
229
@ Heath Callaway

Westerners are notorious for putting their children in International schools so as
not to involve their kids in the society of the developing country they live in.
Indians don't have that luxury.

Regardless. You don't have to act like an "Aussie" to live here. You can do what
you like, mostly. Not being part of the mainstream is no excuse for victimizing
someone. Trying to understand people who are guests in our country, regardless
of whether they ultimately wish to stay is a better answer than putting the onus on
them to not be SO DIFFERENT.

Indians by and large do not interfere, reject or actively try and change Australian
society. They are new to a foreign land and need reciprocal support from the
community instead of animosity.

Unfortunately, shoddy taxi drivers and those horrible call centre calls have
created a bad impression in people's minds. Funny though, as Australian and
multinational companies pay Indians to be in the call centres and the corrupt taxi
industry doesn't help either.

Cool, calm and kind heads need to prevail.
DAVID
FEB 01,
aussie Indian, Vijay , David
2010
06:02 PM
230

Well said.....

read my comments 176
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
06:05 PM
231
@ Aussie Indian

Cant agree more than that. Most of them come here on fake documents. I think
the govt is partly to be blamed for letting these people come and pursue
cookery,hairstyling courses. But i think they concentrate more on revenue than
checking what courses the student has opted!
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
06:07 PM
232
So david, do you mind having the aboroginal flag as our national flag? Do you
mind having an aboroginal elder as our figurehead instead of a relic who has no
connection whatsoever to this country. Such a move will better than saying sorry.
If you agree to it then I will compromise on a museum to showcase such quirks.
When it's a national flag, i feel there should be a genuine sense of togetherness.
How will it feel to other fellow Australians if some people want an Indian king as
Australia's figurehead.
Queen as the figurehead is blasphamous to many from former colonies.

Union Jack off my flag, queen off my dolla,
March towards a true reconciliation,
Stop bleeding Tassy,
Australia for all

Sasha
SASHA
FEB 01,
2010
06:10 PM
233
@ Karthik

Yeah, i totally agree with your comments. Although i donot much, its just been
6months since i've been studying at RMIT. I do find the people really friendly and
warm. I've seen so many Punjabis, no offense meant, but its a fact, talking out
very loud without basic manners,commenting on various people in Punjabi,
although i donot understand much of it, i can make some sense of it. Its really a
disgrace that because of such people, most of the people have this feeling that all
indians behave the same way.
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
06:15 PM
234
To be honest minor constitutional changes are irrelevant to me. It's also not the
point of this forum regarding the article. I'd support a parralel indigenous body
with legislative power over their community similar to the council of chiefs system
in Fiji or the consitutionally recognized kingdoms in Africa today within a
democratic republican framework.

It's stupid to think a person representing less than 2% of the population as head
of state, which may be as anachronistic as having a foreign Queen as our titular
head of state.

Regardless, often the Republic issue is hijacked to endorse a type of Australian
nationalism I'm glad has been absent from our national agenda. We're a
commonwealth, not a republic, and from looking at the republics around the
world, I can't see that as a negative.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:15 PM
235
@Karthik:

I totally agree with 176. Another thing that I would like to reveal is that when
these 2 reporters from outlook were in Melbourne last week, they had interviewed
a very well respected and old Indian lady(she is very active among indian
community, senior citizens and social work in general, her picture appears almost
every week in local Indian newspapers) and she had presented the true picture to
these guys. And these reporters simply have ignored her inputs because those
inputs were quite contrary to what Indian masses have been fed by notorious
media and press over there. To be very frank, something has seriously gone
wrong with Indian psyche in last 10-15 years and I feel very ashamed of this fact.
I mean how could one justify labeling a whole country as 'racist' even without any
factual information in hand.
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:18 PM
From some one who has lived on the northern out skirts of Melbourne all my life I
can perhaps shed some light on why Indian students are being targeted.

236
Due to our ageing population our federal government has embarked on a
deliberate plan to increase our population massively through its skilled
immigration program. Clearly it has its eyes on both the money (in the form of
education fees) and the youth that Indian students bring to the economy.

The problem is that this is causing severe pressures on the existing population in
the form of increased traffic congestion, over crowding on public transport,
unaffordable housing due to the increased demand that the influx of Indian
students inadvertently cause, increased cost of living due to increased demand
on limited supply and particularly water.

Australia may be a large country but, unlike India, most of it is uninhabitable
desert and marginal arid land. Water is and will always be a critical limiting factor
on what population our country can sustain at an acceptable standard of living.
Desalination plants are all fine but the resulting water is very expensive and will
increasingly add to cost of living pressures.

The Australian population is starting to get angry with our government for being
excessively focused on economic factors and not focused enough on ecological
sustainability and social harmony. There is a growing debate centered around
what population level can be sustained by our continent and what population
level Australians will accept and at what cost to our living standards.

I suspect that Indian students, being a prominant part of the unpopular skilled
immigration program, are on the receiving end of some misplaced anger from the
less law abiding within Melbourne's population.

Any government ignores ecological sustainability and social harmony at its own
peril. Australia is not exception, despite the misleading size of our country and
nor is India. Over the years I have seen many examples of the result of your own
government ignoring ecological sustainability and social harmony as it refuses to
directly address your own over population problems. It seems that you Moslem
minority are a popular target when social pressures reach boiling point.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
2010
06:23 PM
237
"To be very frank, something has seriously gone wrong with Indian psyche in last
10-15 years and I feel very ashamed of this fact."

Welcome to the wonderful world of populist crap selling newspapers to make
money. Capitalism at its finest.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:23 PM
238
Vijay

You are on the right track mate. Keep up the good work. We need more people
like you. I wish you all the best at RMIT

Yes, these fraudulent clowns have let us Indians down.

Aussies are not racist, I AM

Indians students who disregard the rules and law here and absolutely have no
intention to make Australia home and are here to create disharmony amongst us
I have one thing to say

GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE..
KARTHIK
FEB 01,
2010
06:27 PM
239
Karthik

Well as a citizen u can say that, but i cant :P! Hahah..Thanks

Goodluck to u pal!
VIJAY
FEB 01,
2010
06:37 PM
240
I would further recommend that you do not get sucked in by the federal
governments guarentees of safety for Indian students. The more of you that
come to Australia then the more the situation will deteriorate, particularly for
Indian students.

While our federal and state governments are happy for Indian students to come
with their education fees in their droves, for them to become permanent residents
and tax slaves to sustain the needs of our aging population and for cities to
expand and become more dense, they are nor willing to spend what is required
on infrastructure and services, e.g. more police, to sustain the living standards
and safety of increased population at levels enjoyed by Australians in past
decades.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
I have worked with indians in Melbourne. I found the Indians that i worked with to
2010
06:43 PM
241
be racist against Australia and Australians in general. The indians i worked with
gave the impression that they were better and indians as a race more superior.
One indian a salespersons comment was, i will find a way to rip your aussies.
Hes only thought was making money. Racism goes both ways. Indians need to
look at the way they present themselves as well as complaining to all around the
world.
VINCENT
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
06:50 PM
242
"infrastructure and services, e.g. more police, to sustain the living standards and
safety of increased population at levels enjoyed by Australians in past decades."

Honestly, the old bs of more policing is a red herring. Creating secure
accommodation for overseas students, as the richer overseas students get may
help. Considering how much overseas students have to pay for poor
qualifications is a massive outrage. If we want people to study here and pay
massive fees, perhaps working towards the real infrastructure they need: Safe
transport, housing, proximity to their place of study. A visible police presence and
harsh sentences wont solve this issue at all.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
06:57 PM
243
David mate it just aint going to happen. State governments want the increased
tax revenue generated by Indian students but they want cop increased
expenditure on policing unless they are dragged kicking and screaming, and
probably still only a token gesture to appease the dissenters.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:01 PM
244
Racism and xenophobia is innate human behaviour, under conditions of social
and resource stress, regardless of ethnicity.

Indians are as racist as Australians are as racist as Asians.
AQUAMAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:01 PM
@Vincent:

Again I totally agree with you, a lot of Indians have somehow got a superiority
245
complex, and this has to do with the way we Indians are taught right from
childhood that how superior our thousands of years of culture is, when rest of the
world was living as uncivilised beasts we had already advanced so much blah,
blah. Lot of Indians believe that wherever human civilisation stands today,
maximum contribution has come from India. I am pretty sure this posting of mine
is going to bite many Indians very hard. I am also an Indian but before that I
consider myself a human first and I firmly believe that all civilisations/cultures
have contributed and are contributing to wherever we stand as humans. I am not
denying that various cultures/civilisations have subjected others to utmost agony
and pain but then one can't fix whatever happened in past by punishing the
current, I mean how can I have hatred for a white person since his ancestors
might have subjected my ancestors to slavery etc, this is totally illogical. I wish
there was some sensible section of Indian media, who instead of indulging in
these filthy tactics, could talk some sense.
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 01,
2010
07:10 PM
246
@ Aquaman

Probably true. We'll just have to do what we always do. Wait for the stupidity and
hysteria on all sides to pass.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
07:33 PM
247
I am living in Australia for the past two years. I was totally unaware of australian
culture when I came here. But I made some good friends very soon. Hospitality
was good. Yes, on my way to work I have also experienced that 'Give me a
dollar', 'Do you have cigar' all those kinda stuffs. people were arrogant at times.
but thats normal. it happens everywhere. I go to lunch and dinners to my aussie
friends. I invite them to my place. People respect each other a lot. Not too sure
about the eastern states. Perth seems to be good.
LOGAN
PERTH, AUSTRALIA
FEB 01,
2010
07:50 PM
248
@ Logan

"People respect each other a lot. Not too sure about the eastern states. Perth
seems to be good."

Interesting perspective as Western Australia is known as one of the most racist
states in Australia. Makes you wonder whether the local as well as international
media are focusing on issues that are not relevant to the majority of people.

Still, bad things need to be examined thoroughly. It's how you keep an open and
free society.
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
08:37 PM
249
It is the Blood of Banished murderers from Britain to Australia, that makes
and way of life - Americas and AUS-NZ are prime examples. This is gory-evil
past of the "Free/Civilized world" aka First World.
JAYKAY CHRABORTY
KOLKATTA, INDIA
FEB 01,
2010
08:58 PM
250
"It is the Blood of Banished murderers from Britain to Australia, that makes
and way of life"

I see you forget the partition slaughter, internecine communal violence and
endemic rebellions in India as you criticise, very poorly, the nations you pretend
to dislike. Work on learning balanced argumentation. The Indian education
system is robust enough to teach you that unless Shiv sena has already eaten
your brains?
DAVID
FEB 01,
2010
09:30 PM
251
David from Melbourne, this is not a who has more problems contest between
India and Australia. The attacks on Indians in Australia are condemnable by
themselves. India has a good excuse for its social problems- it's poor,
overpopulated, underdeveloped, semi-feudal at the lower levels of society, and
carrying the legacy of colonial exploitation. Australia really doesn't have a reason
or excuse. What's going on there is absolutely atrocious.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 01,
2010
ram prasn haryanvi: "Kangrooes are of no interest or use to us."

11:11 PM
252
Kangaroo meat is lean, makes a great Korma, and has none of the religious
issues associated with eating beef.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:49 AM
253
Wfile a lot of immoderate and hateful things have been said in this thread, I think
it has been on the whole a useful exercise. We may all be flawed, but we are not
devils. And at least we can talk with each other.
ANWAAR
FEB 02,
2010
02:05 AM
254
There have been a couple of 'blame the victim for the crime' postings, particularly
by Kartik. That's inexcusable. Are you sure that all the victims of the recent
attacks had it coming to them, because according to you, their documents are
fraudulent, their conversation is too loud, their manners are unacceptable etc?
You might want to look at the real motive: Indians are easy targets for the violent
elements in Australian society, because Indians, by and large, are passive, non-
confrontational and non-aggressive, and they work late hours, which makes them
even more vulnerable.
There have been some thoughtful postings by non-Indian Australians. One of the
worst messages was from the Chinese lady in Hong Kong, sounding very crude
and propagandist for China, and dismissive of the recent violence in Australia.
And ridiculously trying to equate tourists being charged more in India, with the
spate of attacks against Indians in Australia. Grow up, lady.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
02:26 AM
255
As an Australian and a lifelong resident of Melbourne I am extremely distressed
about the attacks on Indians in my city. That said, I feel that the press coverage
in India has been very one sided. In your recent articles you have quoted people
from Australia First, One Nation and the Radical Socialist Party. These are
marginalised groups, which in the the eyes of most Australians are complete
jokes.

I have been in India twice on business during the past six months. I love your
country and your people. I am always interested and friendly when I speak with
Indian residents in Australia and I employ one wonderful young Indian woman in
my business here in Australia.

India too has problems with racism - that doesn't mean that all Indians are racist.
Please don't lump all Australians in the racist basket. Most of us are tolerant,
interested, open minded and respectful of different cultures like I am.
MARK BALLA
FEB 02,
2010
03:35 AM
256
As someone who comes from the subcontinent, came to Australia as an
international student and studied for 5 years, took 2 years to get my PR and can
now proudly say I am an Australian citizen- I can say that I have faced racism in
Australia.
HOWEVER, there has not been one moment when I have thought of Australia as
a racist country. That's because no matter where you go (including India)- there
are people with extremist views. For Example- the person called Elan in these
posts- or Van Thanh Rudd, the so-called leader of the Revolutionist Party. Why
hasn't Mr Sharma reported that his father is Australian, his mother vietnamese
and he has been well-educated in Australia without prejudice. He simply sees
himself as a crusader. Or a simple example- just because there's fighting in
Northern India does that lead everyone to believe that all Muslims and all Hindus
hate each other?

This argument can go on forever. But if Indians want to read this article and
believe that Australia is racist, Maybe take a moment to consider the
sensationalism behind it. Mr Sharma, although you are a good writer- you are a
bad reporter. Facts and impartialism should be the core of your article rather than
incensing one nation against the other.

Finally, here's an article from an Australian newspaper. He's someone who has
written an 'opinion' piece but by far his article is less prejudiced than Mr
Sharma's.
Happy reading.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/australias-racist-tag-is-myth-
heavily-hyped-20100201-n8s1.html
PRIYA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
04:02 AM
257
Racism is a sleeping monster in Australia, as in many countries. Most of the time,
it dozes quietly away. In my part of Melbourne, we have had waves of migrants
from the Mediterranean, Middle East and now Africa. While many of them left
situations of civil war, such as Lebanon in the 1980s, it is remarkable that after
they arrive in Melbourne there is no sign of any tension between warring parties,
Christian and Muslim. You can see them mixing in many of the Lebanese
bakeries around here.

There's also a growing number of Indian restaurants and never a hint of tension.
But this is a gentrified area with high employment.

The problems seem to be coming from parts of Melbourne with chronic
unemployment. The outsourcing of manufacturing has meant that many unskilled
jobs have left the country, leaving those without education to fall back on alcohol
and drugs. I think the violence is partly resentment and envy at what seem to be
Indian students who have a purpose and future.

But a more obvious factor is triumphalism in sport. While Indians certainly rival us
in fanaticism for cricket, I think there is an underlying sense here that our success
in the field is to do with Anglo values - that we keep a steady head and play
rationally, rather than the more emotional players as might seem in the Indian
side. My hope is that Australia loses a cricket series, particularly against India, so
that we can question our Anglocentric worldview.
KEVIN MURRAY
BRUNSWICK, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
04:17 AM
258
No, Varun, there is no excuse for the way Indians treat foreigners. None at all -
especially in how they treat women.

As a rule of thumb, if you are going to criticise someone else for something, you
need to be pretty damn perfect yourself. Or as a wise man once said, "let he who
is without sin cast the first stone." (In this case, think of words as stone.)

It doesn't matter if a caucasian is a tourist or not in India, if you're on the street,
you will get singled out by many Indians for special treatment. So the point is,
whilst it is relatively easy for Indians to live and work in Australia, it is quite the
opposite for Australians to live and work in India. When that situation is rectified
and it is as comfortable for a caucasian couple from Australia to live and work in
India as it is for Indians in Australia, then and only then will I listen to arguments
about how bad Australia's racism is. But I cannot see that happening any time
soon - can anyone else?
DAVID BROWN
FEB 02,
2010
04:18 AM
259
As has been stated earlier, the reason that so many Australians are posting here
is that we offended at the branding of our entire nation as being racist. As few
assaults does not make a nation racist.

The assault rate in Australia across the general population is 800 per 100,000 per
annum. (FACT) This article says that there are 400,000 Indians in Australia. That
means that it is perfectly normal for 3,200 Indians to be assaulted each year. And
yet the Indian government is stressing over 130 assaults. (The number given in
this article) Can someone explain to me what the fuss is about?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
04:33 AM
260
OK, I've been watching this blog for a while now.

It seems there's:
- The majority of Indians in Australian who don't have a problem with the place
- The majority of non-Indian Australians trying to have a rational debate
- A minority of non-Indian Australians making unhelpful but generally not overly
racist comments
- Indians who aren't from Australia expressing extremist views, ranging up to Elan
who has spat some of the most racist bile I've ever heard, that would not have
been out of place in nazi Germany (and given my father escaped from Austria
prior to the war as a jew, I think I have a right to draw that comparison).

Perhaps people from overseas should think about that balance of comments
before making ill-informed statements about how racist Australians are in
general.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
04:36 AM
261
I'll make another point. It is about integration. Humans are tribal. We like to
associate with our own.

English and Australian people are very similar people; (whether we like it or not).
The humour is the same, the values the same; and many of us even look the
same. And yet the thousands of Australians that backpack and base thenselves
in London all seem to hang around in Australian enclaves. They live there
together for 2 years and spend every waking hour crapping on about how bad it
is in England and how great it is in Australia. Then they go home and hang
around with more Australians.

Now imagine that you are from a rural area from India. You arrive in Australia and
everything is different. Would you assimulate or would you likely hang around
with other Indians?

Integration is a generational thing. Indians born in Australia will be more likely to
behave as Australians but we should respect that they will want to hold onto
some of their Indian-ness. In fact, immigration has improved Ausyralia so much.
Do we want everyone to behave like British subjects?

So can we stop all this talk about Indians not trying to integrate?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
04:41 AM
262
Kevin, I disagree. THis is again looking down on suburbs where ethnics live. It's a
big myth that Melbourne's West is unsafe. This is propogated by vested interests
who have invested in the South East. I feel more threatened walking in the CBD,
St Kilda and Fitzroy areas. You get more abuses in areas where there are more
anglos hanging out. The most unsfae spot for Indians in the west is Yarraville.
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
04:53 AM
263
Varun

According to you my postings are blame the victim for the crime

According to me my postings are :

99.99% AUSSIES ARE NOT RACISTS. INDIAN MEDIA GET YOUR FU****ING
FACTS RIGHT

Refer to my post No 121

Who in their right mind would support these crimes? I absolutely condemn it.
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
05:00 AM
264
Hi Alan

You said,

It seems there's:
- The majority of Indians in Australian who don't have a problem with the place.

(Yes, that is true and we are made welcome here by your friendliness and a fair
go attitude. We love it here)

You said,


(To these people get the hell out of here Right now)
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
05:07 AM
265
Interesting you should say that Sasha (264). I feel most unsafe in the CBD and
certain parts of Fitzroy/Collingwood too (I used to live in North Fitzroy). If I were
to bring ethnicity into the equation, it would be East Asians on the one hand and
Aborigines on the other. Funnily enough though, I don't see that as a racial issue,
even though racial slurs have been involved.

Ever thought that those who are the first to scream racism are those who think
most in racist terms?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
05:11 AM
266
Jcollin.

You seem very hostile. Why? Was it because mummy rejected you?

You should do what I did for my parents and buy them a house near you. They
may love you even more. I bought mine an inner suburb, 3 bedroom/2 bathroom
on quarter acre block.

We do need Indian and Chinese Drs, due to the significantly higher levels of
medical care we give our people in comparison to the US and India. My family
are involved in training Drs in Australia. One thing that they are being offered by
Asian students are gifts to ensure favourable treatment. They have even had
cases where Indian students have been failed and the Indians family make an
approach with large donations for the University to have the fail changed to a
pass. The difference between here and India is this is recorded and refused.

We need Indian and Chinese workers to wipe our arses when we are old as well.
We'll make them use paper though rather then the left hand.

You claim to manage a BPO in India, this now explains the subsandard service
we are receiving from our offices in India. You would know, if you are semi-
itelligent, that multi nationals in India will cover up fraudulent crimes as it is not
good for business. Are you aware of the instance where Indian students based in
Australia were using the contacts in the ANZ BPO office in Indian to progress
loan statuses to a point where they could clear the funds illegally. They were then
buying cars, selling them on the cheap and returning to India. This was not
reported as it was not good for business.

Multi nationals will not complain and the focus is to offshore to drive down costs.

If you know as much as you claim, then you would also know that the most BPOs
in India will employ at a ratio of 3:1 to try and retain similar productivity levels of
the offshored job.

Please don't be angered by the truth.

It is not only in India we are identifying major fraud committed by Indians and
Indian students, it has been a problem in the US, UK, Germany, NZ, UAE,
basically anywhere Indians are, but most of all in India is where we see fraud
(some insight, yes we have found all nationalities to have committed some fraud
but our Indian staff are noted as the biggest risk).

It is not becuase Indians are inherently evil that we find a dispraportinate number
of Indians committing fraud based crime. As you may well be aware, it is not seen
as a major crime throughout most of Asia, South America or Africa, it is seen as
doing business. If you have been to Asia or Africa you would understand
'baksheesh' and all its variants.

So JCollin there is reasoning behind these claims. So try not to be so angry. It is
not racist to state these it is factual.

You see, I work for one of the biggest employers of Indian staff in the world. The
majority of staff my US based company bring to Australia are sent home within
three months due to substandard performance, they believe their own hype that
they are the worlds most intelligent and hardworking and that westerners are
lazy, but he fact is we do more with less, and they then stuggle.

We have also found a number of staff have committed serious crimes by signing
stat decs claiming they broke a law and they do this when they are moving back
to India, then do not pay the fines. They think this is funny. What they don't know
is if they are sent back to Oz for work they will be arrested and imprisoned, and
so will their Indian friend that was involved in the rort and who is the person that
broke the law. We try to explain this to them but they think we are only joking.

We do not allow our Indian staff to print reports, or have access to any recording
devices, including pens and paper, and staff are searched before entering the
office for the day (mind you none of this applies to our Indian staff in Australia).
The reason we do this is due to the large number of cases of our Indian staff
being caught stealing customers bank details, and this is widespread throughout
the industry. There were a number of cases reported in the Indian and US media
when managers in this company were caught stealing money from US citizens
accounts associated to Citi Bank.

Wasn't it the heads of an Indian company that were caught trying to sell
40,000,000 customers credit card details to the Russain mafia? It turned out to be
the BBC.

By the way JCollin. How is mummy and daddy?
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
05:14 AM
267
Kevin Murray

What a load of tosh. and Brunwick...gentrified !! Ha!!

Do not try to intellectualise and rationalise what is simply mindless thuggery.

Do you honestly believe that the morons who bash Indians students on the
streets of Sunshine or Footscray are intelligent enough to resent Indians because
of their perceived "purpose and future" ? Utter nonsense.

They do it simply because they get a thrill out of it...its just something to do on a
Saturday night.

And your comment about cricket is equally ridiculous. We all know India is
passionate about its cricket. This passion translates in to anger in their media
towards all things Australian because Australians have shown little or no respect
for their cricket team (and continue to do so).

It has nothing to do with "Anglo values".

In case you didn't get the last test series in Brunswick, India beat us !!
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
05:30 AM
268
Allan, That's because when you walk into the police station with a complaint you
are taken more seriously; that's because when you call for an ambulance, you
are attended to more urgently; the whole media bandwagon screams out for
attention too. Funnily, it's tough for some to understand this. Just like how
brumby is living in denial. You just don't see how Indians are being targetted in
Australia. If any white community was involved at the recieving end, there would
have been a riot in this city. Let's say if ten backpackers get beaten up, we will
know the difference. Cmon Allan, who are you trying to kid? Wake up from your
privileged lifestyle and try and understand what's really going on. Try and spy on
an Indian student while he's walking alone somwhwere. Try and go with an Indian
to a pub in st kilda. Seriously. You and Brumby and rudd are still living in denial.

Queen off my dolla,
Stop trashing Tasmania,
SHip racist bigots back to the UK,
Life sentence to Pauline Hanson
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
06:02 AM
269
Sasha -
How do you know that you're getting lower service levels unless you've been a
non-Indian and able to make a comparison? To suggest ambulances give Indians
a lower priority is totally ridiculous (how on earth would you KNOW anyway?).
You've just put yourself into the 'too silly to discuss with' camp along with Elan.

And by the way, I suspect Indians are being targetted to some extent (although
not in all cases), so I'm not in denial in that respect. What I do deny is that the
greater Australian community (of all ethnicities) condones the violence in any
way.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
06:16 AM
270
Sasha, your comments are typical of the India victim mentality I see regularly with
Indian new comers.

I have no car so regualrly catch taxi's (daily) and also work within IT in a large
company with numerous Indian contractors. As I have an Indian background,
many Indians feel comfortably opening up to me.

Many Indians, it seems to me, have a tendency to blame anything and everything
on racism.

Q.Why can't I get a job? - A.Racism,
Q.Why won't Australian girls go out with me? - A.Racism. Q.Why don't police
listen to me? - A.Racism?
Q.Why is my rent so high? - A.Racism
etc, etc,

I hear it all the time and it frustrates the hell out of me.

Indians somehow think they are being single out, when in fact the situation is the
same for everybody here.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
06:28 AM
271
33 Indians died in violent attacks between 2004 and 2009, says Federation of

I find it interesting that any supposedly reputable magazine would print the
statements of anyone like Gautam Gupta without actually clarifying the facts.
Australia does not hide the cause of death for anyone, not even Indians. What
this magazine fails to do is confirm the facts, then print them.

Of all the claims of violent death made by Gautam how many did the journalist
confirm? None. Did this journalist determine who killed these Indian nationals.
No. All killings in 2009 committed in Adelaide of Indian nationals were by Indian
nationals. And that was three to be precise. And the fourth one that died violently
killed himself after killing his wife. Australian police and welfare agencies then
had to look after the orphaned children, and help them with their grief.

An Indian was found to have had his throat cut and set on fire. Again by Indian
nationals. Another was found in a river in Brisbane, both the Queensland and
Indian police believe this was carried out by the womans husband and are still
trying to prove this. He was an Indian national.

If I can easily account for all violent deaths in 2009, and these were all committed
by Indian nationals, shouldn't this journalist be able to find these details and
determine the death of the 33 Indians.

So please publish facts when trying to claim that this article is trying to expalin
what is happening.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
06:32 AM
272
Brian and Allan, I say this because I work with Indian victims of crime. Police
abuse Indians when they come to the scene of crime. One of those allegations
was looked into and a senior police office was suspended. This report has not
come out into the media. There are video evidences of th Police treat Indians in
Melbourne. I'm sure in due course this will be leaked to the media. I'm not sure
why it hasn't come out yet although I have seen the footage myself. Most victims
have a common opinion about the lack of attention they get in general. Brian, just
because you work with Indian IT guys it doesn't mean you understand this issue
quite well.It's more complicated and there's a class issue compunded with race.
That's another reason why well to do Indians don't admit thgere's racism here.
anyway...

Stop raping Tasmania,
Stop fascist Brumby,
Ship bigots back to britain,
Queen off my dolla,
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
06:41 AM
273
Ah Sasha, so it's not necessarily about race in your view but class? Interesting
admission given the hysterical cries of racism levelled against Australia as a
whole we've been hearing.

You've just doubly done your dash with me on that one.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
06:55 AM
274
@ Sasha

I agree with you on some things, but what about bigots that are not from Britain.
Let's say I am a Greek bigot, or a Lebonese bigot or an Indian bigot. Do I get sent
to Britain too. What if I am of British decent the last 5 generations have been born
in Australia. Where should I go? The definition of 'Bigot' doesn't start with 'A
Briton who.....'

Secondly, I must watch the news more....what is happening in Tasmania?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
06:58 AM
275
Allan, I did not say it's not race. I said it's race and class. Middle class Indians
love thinking they are the anglo's closest ally or a natural ally. Even if some
middle class Indians are racially assaulted, they will not admit it because it's an
embarassment for them. That's how it works. But for the student class,most of
them come from rural Punjab where communities are socially and politically very
active. They will not accept racism. SOME of these communities have criticised
and attacked the Indian government for neglecting them for decades. These
students are political and it's a good sign for Australian democracy. What the
Australian government should do is to engage with these students and address
their issues. This problem could have been resolved years back. Instead, Rudd
and Brumby neglected it so badly and damaged relations between communities.
Boot Brumby Out,
Bigots back to Britain,
Stop trashing Tassie
Rudd Him Out;
Union Jack Off My Flag
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
07:00 AM
276
... and finally Sasha, when I see the evidence you're talking about of
institutionalised racism in the police I'll revise my opinion.

In the meantime, you haven't said anything to show that Brian's idea of a victim
mentality is incorrect. Your comment on ambulances (which you haven't justified
in any way) only reinforces that.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
07:08 AM
277
Pete,
1) When the Empire sent its convicts here, they did not consult the natives what
class and creed of convicts they wanted. So why should we worry. Let them be
greek, Anglos, Indian or chinese. England needs those louts more than we do.
For example, I can surely be without Pauline Hanson in Australia. Brumby can go
too. Rudd needs to be fixed here. We'll fix him in the next Polls.
2) tasmania is Australia's pride. Empire greed wiped out cultures and people in
Tassie, Corporate greed is trashing the place now. It's nothing new.

Queen to the Museum
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
07:08 AM
278
There is no cure for jealousy of the Australians and there is no reason for being
apprehensive as Indians unlike other Asians do not believe in interfering with the
internal affairs of the country they are immigrating.Look how subdued is the
response of the Indian media and the politicians even when their own brothers
are being targeted.The response would have been significantly different if people
belonging to the vote bank minorities like Muslims or Christians from India were
targeted.This alone shows the attacks were perpetrated by the racial and fanatic
white Australians.They must remember that thy too have ethnic non-white
population which is increasingly getting restive because of the same treatment
being meted out to them by default.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:19 AM
279
I think for Indian non Muslim and non Christians today Australia is the most
unsafe place to live on the planet than Pakistan.The attacks are both racial and
fanatical.I am sure there is a wider conspiracy to discourage the Indians coming
over to Australia through intimidation and creating a fear psychosis.The
Australian white racist thugs are emboldened by the mute response of the
Australian government and the lackluster and wavered response of the Indian
government.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:21 AM
280
Thanks for that Vijayrajan. Another stunning piece of social commentary.

It really is an education watching this page. I used to be more worried that
Pakistan would use their nukes against India than vice versa. I'm begining to
realise neither country has the political maturity to be trusted with nukes.

I hope like hell we don't sell our uranium to India.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
07:22 AM
281
Good Allan. As long as you are open to change it's all good. i'm sure you will see
a rodney king in Australia soon.

Teach Empire's Genocidal history in schools
The empire was as bad as the nazi regime
Queen to the museum
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
07:26 AM
282
Indians are known as a tolerant and a truly secular and liberal lot.If people like
them are targeted on racial and religious or fanatical ground it means there is
more to it than meets the eyes.Why there are no attacks on other Asians living in
Australia and significant amongst them being Pakistani Muslims.And out of those
reported attacks over Indians many of them are of non christian and non Muslim
Indian origins gives rise to serious doubts of selective attacks.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
Sure there is racism in Australia, but what do you expect from a country that still
2010
07:31 AM
283
has the Union Jack on its flag?

Most reporting of this makes dangerous generalisations (read racist) insinutations
that the majority of white Australians are violent and vicious facists. The reporting
assumes that all of the Indians are angels and innocent victims (wrong), and you
assume that all of the perpetrators of attacks are white (not reporting recent
murders of Indians by Indians in Australia), and of course you never acknowledge
the organised voilent racist groups in your country. And for your caste system?
Does the Australian media attack and vilify India for its cruel and unfair class
system?

People in glass houses should not throw stones.

If we cant have faith in the media to be responsible in reporting on this, then how
can we get people to understand and accept and respond positively to the
ugliness of the racism that does occur?
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:36 AM
284
"Indians are known as a tolerant and a truly secular and liberal lot."

That's not the way I see it Vijayrajan. To me the poorly educated Indian masses
seem very easily inflamed to anger and violence by the demagogue who knows
the right button to push, regardless of the facts of an issue.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
07:37 AM
285
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, India

No one is permitted to visit any other country without a prior and proper visa.I
think you know at least this fact before vomiting something.Its because of some
UnIndians like you that we have become weak and powerless and being abused
and insulted often.

Only lazy and lethargic people shy away from being ambitious.Only beig
ambitious one can venture and that poor Punjabi farmer boy has done no mistake
trying to better his prospects.Australia is a developed and richer nation than
India.Why the hell their people at all would come over to India searching for some
jobs.The issue here is the racial attack over the Indians and not your preaching of
idealism or way of living to others.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
07:44 AM
286
Sasha, most people agree with you about Pauline Hanson. There are morons in
Australia like there are morons in India. I'd like her shipped off somewhere, along
with a number of Indians that have come to Australia and committed crime. Just
this year, there has been a number of Indians charged with murder and rape in
Australia. Can we get rid of them too, or is their arrest due to a racist police
force?

I don't understand the thing with the queen either. Nice lady but why is some old
fart who lives 10,000 miles from here and never visits our head of state? And the
flag. Every time the Commonwealth Games is on I cringe because of 80 or so
Commonwealth Nations, the Australian team is one of only a handful of nations
that enters the arena with someone else's flag in the corner of their flag. You can
maybe understand some smaller, poorer countries that are still colonies, but what
has the Union Jack got to do with Modern Australia? As was the case in Sth
Africa, their prior flag that had the flags of 3 other nations was divisive. They got a
new flag and everyone there loves it. The Canadian flag is one of the best
recognised and loved flags in the world. Their government simply decided to give
them a new one. No referendum - nothing, and no one today would want to go
back.

On the whole racist Australia thing, I wont be convinced until someone provides
some data to support this case. Isolated incidents don't make a nation racist. If
that was the case, all nations would be racist. One hundred and 30 attacks
seems a low number to me, but India is playing Chicken Little here and people
like you and I are trying to rationalise one stance or another. Statistics take out
the huffing and puffing but despite all of the noise and millions of words printed,
no Indian journalist or politician has produced any data to support their case. Why
is that?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
07:52 AM
287
Alan

You may be right.But why pick Indians alone when there are significant numbers
of other Asians coming and who have been staying in Australia. Whether poor or
rich unless abused no one gets inflamed.Havent we seen how highly educated
and well placed Muslims getting engaged with terrorism resulting in gory
incidents like 9/11,7/7 Glasgow airport terror plot etc.Do you mean to say that the
attacks on Indians by the racial and fanatical white Australians is only because
they are highly educated and developed while poor Indians seeking jobs and for
better prospects are invariably poor,poorly educated and ill mannered.?.Your
assessment is totally wrong.If so why pick the Indians alone and that too non
Muslim and non Christians from India.
I believe in natural justice.What the Pakistanis are facing today is because they
spilled the blood of the innocent Indians and Australia is not very far.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
08:01 AM
288
Alright Vijayrajan, I see you don't think you're one of the easily manipulated ill-
educated Indians I was referring to.

Perhaps you'd like to demonstrate statistically that Indians are being
preferentially attacked by whites in Australia? Of course you'll have to only
compare the attacks with risky professions such as taxi drivers that Indian
students take-up as a sample. You'll also have to prove that it was whites that did
the attacking.

When you've done that (because no-one else has done it), you'll be able to say
that there's a problem with whites attacking Indians.

Until you do that, I'm afraid you fall into that group of ignorant Indians easily
inflamed by their media and politicians with their own agendas.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
08:03 AM
289
I have been waiting to respond after having read all my fellow bloggers
response. Racism is inherent in all of us at varying degrees and such dormant
prejudices we try to control and never allowed to come to the fore. It does come
to the fore from time to time even with our best effort to subdue it. Once up on a
time migrants from India were professionals and were inconspicuous. New
migrants, especially students are conspicuous-driving taxis, working at
convenient stores and service stations. Most of the students work at odd hours-
after hours- and easy targets for opportunists-drug addicts desperate for money.
Some of these attacks may be racially motivated. I dont think Australians, by and
large, are racists and are easy going types and give a fair go to their fellow
human beings, irrespective of pigmentation of the skin. I have had my share of
subtle discriminations of varying kinds and have ignored them and got on with my
life. I have to say Melbourne is the best place to live and the late Indian Prime
minister Indira Gandhi had concurred with my view. Last time she visited
Melbourne in the early 1970s for Commonwealth Prime ministers conference,
she said I have fallen in love with Melbourne. Moreover, so many times
Melbourne has been voted as the most liveable city at International forums.

Some of the attackers of Indian students are opportunists and others have some
grievances-like Indian students taking their university places and taking their jobs.
It is duty bound by the Victorian government to inform them that Indian students
are exorbitant fee payers and are not freeloaders at the taxpayers expense and
they are allowed to work certain hours to supplement the meagre amount of
money provided by their parents for their subsistence in Victoria during duration
of their studies. The grievances were reported in the Australian newspaper.
These are whinging Australians who have no intention to work at odd hours-after
hours- and are making their excuse for attack that they think Australian taxpayers
owe them a living and never get off their hindquarters and eke out a living.

The best advices to the Indian students have been issued by the Indian
government and follow those advices.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 02,
2010
08:22 AM
290
It's so easy to resolve this issue: Just do something to stop the attacks. At least
the government should have met the victims of crime. Not one official has met a
victim till date. Can you freakin believe it?
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
08:26 AM
291
Will
Sydney, Australia

No one in this world is perfect and complete.If the people in the developed world
think they are so placed because the lesser developed are lesser in everything
else will be an under statement.
If the attacks are of a general nature and irrespective of the victim belonging to
any part of the world instead of picking up Indians alone then we could have not
seen its a s racial but merely the handiwork of some misguided Australians.Why
most Indians still have not reacted is that they are aware of what you are saying
in that all Australians are not racist.But unless and until Australians like you come
out on the street and protest when injustice is done to any innocent human being
like how many of you did it in the case of Dr.Hanif from India who was
apprehended by your police on suspicion of being a terror link to that failed
Glasgow airport bomb blast case.
Indians are not angels nor the Australians are any Saints.Being a democratic
country and once a commonwealth partner country the Indians expected a fair
treatment as there is a rule of law in place.But if the fence itself starts grazing the
pasture then even god cannot stop it.The attackers are emboldened by the lack
of firm action by the Australian government.Indians in Australia may never have
interfered with the internal affairs of the country nor reported to have made any
harsh comments on its population or how its own ethnic minorities or aborigines
are treated.So you have no business to talk of the caste system which the Hindus
never have denied it being an evil.Two wrongs after all cannot make one right.
Its the Australians that are sitting inside the glass house as poor Indians live in
thatched house or with no roof at all.when you sit inside a glass house it is
supposed to be air tight and those inside will hardly hear the cries of the innocent
Indians outside suffering at the hands of those cruel,racist,fanatic fascist white
thugs.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
08:30 AM
292
"Indians are known as a tolerant and a truly secular and liberal lot" - Vijayrajan,
you must be kidding, Indians would have to be the most racist, discriminating,
prejudiced race in the whole world. You get discrimination at all levels there,
starting from the colour of your skin, religion, caste, north indian, south indian,
this indian that indian...the list goes on.

Might i remind you about the constant obsession with the colour of skin in India,
why on earth are there so many "fair and lovely" or "fair and handsome"
advertisements on tv and newsprint?? I recently cam back from a trip to India and
was astonished at the way they portray success with fair skin with these ads.

I think before you can start pointing the finger at other countries about racism,
tackle the issue a bit closer to home, and then get on the moral high ground.
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
08:40 AM
293
@ Sasha

As I have posted before, 176,000 Australian are assaulted every year, so the
govt does not have a dept that goes around to interview them, other than the
police. That said, lets say the govt sets up a team to interview the 130 Indians (of
176,000) that have been assaulted. Then what? If 37,000 people are murdered
every year in India at a rate 2.4 times the per capita rate in Australia, it seems
that the Indian givt struggles with violence too.

What specific action do you want from the government? Do you want someone
from the govt to accompany Indians through parks at night that are known to be
dangerous?

You said it was easy? What do they do? (Hint: "Do something" is not specifc
enough.)
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
08:52 AM
294
Sasha, I understand the issue very very well and have had 35 years experience
in Australia only the brilliant relationship that I and my family have with
multicultural Australia turn to cr#p overnight, and I am bloody angry about it.

It appears to me is that you only see Indian victims and have no sense of
perpective. Again, all you do is support my argument that Indians have a victim
mentality.

Indians see racism because they want to see racism.

They want to believe that the reason they are disliked in Australia is because the
whole of Australia is racist and it couldn't possibly have anything to do with how
their own behaviour here, how their media represents Australia, how their public
representatives whinge and moan or how their students/taxi groups behave.

Yes some attacks are racial but they are not racist (I hope you can tell the
difference).

...and finally it is obviously not your flag so do not please do not claim it. You
obviously have no understanding or respect for the sacrifices that many many
good Australians have made for that flag or what that flag represents

Although I presume you have an Australian citizenship you attitude shows that
you are still 100% Indian. Therein lies the problem.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
08:58 AM
295
I really think you have something there Aditya. If a person is as highly sensitive to
race and origins as you describe for India, and that person perceives that they
are being treated unfairly (whether in fact or not), the inclination would be to
ascribe the treatment to racism.

Reading blogs like this, there have been numerous scathing Indian references to
Australian bad blood from convict heritage that have come from dills like Elan.

It really isn't a healthy obsession.
ALAN
FEB 02,
Alright, that's Brian the Jingoist speaking. Everyone please stand up.
2010
09:24 AM
296
You must be a dual citizen and that's why you want to hold on to the Union jack.
british agents...the bonds of Australia
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
09:29 AM
297
I would also like to add, after the 11th September attacks in the US, Sikhs were
getting beaten up and killed for being mistaken for terrorists...i dont recall such
rigorous reporting on the topic of inherent racism in America...the article in this
magazine doesnt serve any purposes other than instigating more outlandish
reporting.
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
09:53 AM
298
I agree that it seems that Indians have a victim mentality. In some ways, I envy
them. If I am an idiot and I don't get a promotion or people in the office don't like
me, or I get a parking ticket, or I stub my toe, I don't have to do any soul
searching. I merely have to blame racism. It means I am not accountable for any
of my failures.

The Indian cricket team is an example. When a few decisions didn't go their way
on the last tour (and decisions were bad), it was racism. When Harhajan Singh
was suspended for his racist jibes to Symonds, ironically that was the officials
being racist.

By the way, most Australians agree that the Australian team displays poor
behaviour. But the Indian team is fined and suspended more than the Australian
team. (FACT). But their behaviour is shown up as a shining light for all to behold.

Want an example of Indian cricket sportsmanship?

Go to Youtube, Search on:

Harbhajan Singh v/s Kevin Pietersen.

There must be a racist get out of jail card there somewhere surely?
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
09:57 AM
You can do better than that Sasha.

I am not jingoist whatsoever, in fact I think that overt national pride is an insidious
299
tide that brings out the worst in people.

For a man (I assume you are a man, my apologies if you are not) to continually
slag off everything Australian, then have the audicity to claim the southern cross
as "my flag" is hypocrisy at it's finest.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
10:05 AM
300
@ Sasha

I still don't know what your instructions are for the Australian govt after they have
interviewed all 130 Indian attack victims.

You said it was easy.

Please advise.
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
10:05 AM
301
I think it's pretty obvious what Sasha's doing Bryan, and he kind of has a point
silly as he is at times. The inclination of some Australians to tell people who have
every right to be here but are critical of the way things operate to 'go home if you
don't like it' is close-minded and unlikely to result in good public dialogue.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
10:21 AM
302
Vijayrajan:

"Why there are no attacks on other Asians living in Australia"

There are, but most are East-Asian crime gangs attacking each other:

http://news.smh.com.au/national/two-charged-over-fatal-sydney-stabbing-
20080320-20nj.html

But white australia also attack each other:

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/two-sought-over-suburban-
sydney-stabbing-20100121-mnnf.html

Of course, Indians also attack each other. Especially in India:
http://www.wluml.org/zh-hant/node/204
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:33 AM
303
Aditya
I am not kidding but it seems you have rather misunderstood me.When I said
Indians are a tolerant lot I mean it and they are respected across the globe for the
simple reason that these god fearing people hardly interfere in the internal affairs
of any country they immigrate.That's why we see many Indian non residents
occupying highest posts in employment circle as well as in political circles.They
have earned it and are not received as gifts.As far as casteism is concerned if
you are interpreting caste as racism then the Hindus as such have never denied
that they are not suffering from its evil caste system.If Indians are most racist in
the world then they would have thrown a challenge to the Australian regime and
fought violent battles.What ever may be the differences the Indians may have
wihin themselves they have lived up with it and the discrimination is on the
waning unless some people with some vested interest,casteist inclinations are
interpreting it as so and say it as still flourishing.This world is very fierce and
highly competitive.When it comes to the best the best will go and not his caste
,region,reigion and colour along with him.
You must not forget fair skin is always attractive to black skins like how negative
poles attract.I am not either a fan of white skin.Its foolish to conclude that colour
has to do with everything.Its only an excuse given by one who has not
accomplished and wants to put blame on something else for his failures and
incompetence.
Here we are debating the issue of racism of Australians and not casteism of
Indians.Its you who is equating castesim to racism.Two wrongs do not make
Australians right in any way.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:38 AM
304
Agreed Alan, and I am not telling him to go home at all, rather than to just simply
pull his head in and and to stop being so blinkered.

I think that Australian values are clearly at odds with Indian values. It's obvious
that we have different opinions on what constitutes racism, as well as differing
views on family life, women in society, multculturalism, the environment, human
rights, animal welfare, politics, economics, sport, humour..all sorts of things.

So, how do you resolve these differences ? or don't you ?

It is a two way street and both sides need embrace these differences. I think
mainstream Australia has some work to do in this regard however equally I think
the new Indian community has not embraced mainstream Australia at all.

It just takes time.
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
10:39 AM
305
Brian, If you can presume things I can presume things too. Finally what's the
difference between your presumption and my presumption. You said I'm 100%
Indian with an aussie passport. And I'm saying that you are 100% british with an
aussie passport.

Allan, The Australian government should meet with foreigners affected in street
crime and reassure them. Till now Brumby has said only one thing:that Victroria
is the safest place and all attacks are not racist. If he's a good statesman, he
should sit with the Indian community leaders and talk to themface to face and find
out what's going on. Listening is veyr important. It's good diplomacy too. How
comebrumby has gone all the way to India to meet Indian leaders but never
bothered to meet the victims of crime here? He's got all the time to speak to the
Indian mediabut no time to meet people affected. you get my point?

Reconciliation begins with talking. Not denying. There is no need to accept or
deny. But there is a need to listen. Brumby and Rudd has not done that and that's
surely because they are scared of losing white votes. They are bigots. Howard
was so much better. We knew what we were getting into at least.
Rudd is a snake
SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
10:39 AM
306
Vijayrajan, you haven't provided proof that Indians are being preferentially
attacked by whites in Australia yet. Why are you still saying they are? Would it
hurt too much to admit you're wrong?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
10:43 AM
Sorry my response is towards pete
SASHA
307
FEB 02,
2010
10:48 AM
308
Matt
Sydney, Australia
Thats not what I asked for nor looking for.Your links do not satisfy me.
Why dont you understand that racism is not new to Australia.We have seen it
since our younger days when we used to get glued to the TV watching cricket
matches and the Australians when ever feel threatened used the sledging
shamelessly.It was seen being done mostly against visiting Asian teams.Earlier
the Aussies started it as intimidating tool to create fear in the opposition but later
they started employing when ever the opposition got an upper hand over it.They
as well their crony umpires were found vulnerable if they sense defeat and will
employ the tricks not written anywhere in the book.Such are the Australians the
crap that the British left there while the British as such are more gracious.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
11:00 AM
309
Alan

If you are an Australian yourself then you must be eiher not reading your daily
newspapers or watching TV however biased they are. But the government on
record said that there have been attacks taking place on Indians in particular and
some of them indeed are racial.How many of those attacks you want to wait and
watch before you can conclude it really as racial- two,three or a dozen of
them.?The Australians have proven it often on cricketing field through their racial
remarks interpreted smartly by the Australian media as sledging in kind.You know
the Australian players are supposed to be educated and have some social
awareness.Right?
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
11:06 AM
310
Yes there have been attacks on Indians Vijayrajan.

BUT - have there been more attacks than on non-Indians in the same risky
activities?

AND - were all these attacks by whites or other ethnic groups?

No one knows.

So if you've done the research perhaps you could enlighten us all? If not,
perhaps you'll stop showing off your ignorance?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
11:12 AM
311
Ethnic Indians in Australia are being attacked, and the motive in many cases is
racial, if not racist. What is the big complication here? Of course, the Indian
media and government are going to comment adversely on it, since it happening
so frequently. It's not just one or two incidents. People are seeing a pattern. What
do you expect the Indian media and government to do, be totally silent. Or
perhaps suggest, as some posters here have, that the Indians are partly bringing
this onto themselves!
In response to Aditya, yes India has many social problems. It's a poor,
overpopulated,semi-feudal( though dynamic), extremely diverse country with a
legacy of poverty that originates in the colonial era.
Do these conditions by themselves disqualify all Indians, every single one of
them, from commenting on the attacks on ethnic Indians in Australia? That's a
ridiculous position, if you are maintaining it.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
11:22 AM
312
Allan, Whatever form of legal work immigrants or anyone does, they should be
safe. Australia has a moral responsiblity towards it. We don't want this to become
another Joburg or LA. It's that simple. Like Delhi has an issue with safety for
women after dark. Indian laws and democracy allows the media there to debate
it, women's group protest for more safety as everyone knows it's a genuine
concern. Feminsits there accuse of the government being male chauvanists and
the debate continues. If India can allow such a debate for safety to thrive, why
can't Australia be open too? The delhi government till date has not come out and
said there are not rapists there. On the other hand, they sympathise with the
victim and they try and address it. Women are allowed to debate their concerns.
People migrate to Australia thinking it's a free country and it's the government's
responsibility to ensure this freedom---freedom to work in a safe envirnoment. If
they fail to do it, they should not be in power.They are here to proect everyone
and not behave like a mafia.

SASHA
FEB 02,
2010
11:47 AM
313
Sasha,

How is the debate going on in Delhi any different to that that is taking place here!

Indian groups are coming and protesting and screaming racists.
Governments saying, whoa wait a minute, lets have a look at the facts first.
Police groups admitting that some attacks are in fact racially motivated.

End result is just the same...lots of talk but no bona fide solutions!!

The Indian community does not want to discuss or debate the issue but simply
wants to shout down all other opinions.

Varun Shekhar - I expect the Indian media to report the facts and not
sensationalise or exaggerate events that are occuring in Australia. The first
response in the Indian media is to cry Racist Attack whenever something
happens even though the facts show otherwise (include attacks by Indians on
Indians, or insurance scams, or random assaults and robberies).
BRIAN
FEB 02,
2010
12:04 PM
314
All I have to say is everyone should also read an article published by this very
magazine on the very same day as this article, about the 'fairness' of skin debate
in India...
And don't forget to read the posts on there too!! Here's a link to it

http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?264026

If that doesn't raise issues about the colour of ones skin- I would say that this
article is just the pot calling the kettle black.
PRIYA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:06 PM
315
Vijayrajan, you assume that the people who attack Indians are all vicious racist
white people. Look at the facts.
Did you know white people here get bullied and beaten up too? Yes by Middle
Eastern gangs. Indians are constantly riding public transport without tickets. Like
the British, they are constantly breaching their visas, with the Indians working
more than the 20 hours allowed. Do the "white" Australian authorities target them
or audit them for this unlawful behaviour? I agree there is racism and there needs
to be something done, but pissing people off doesnt score any points.
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:16 PM
316
@ Sasha

Statistically Victoria IS safer than India. Do you have data to suggest otherwise?
If you do, simply reveal them. Certainly the murder rate in Australia is 60% lower
than the murder rate per capita in India. This is FACT.

Is driving a taxi in Melbourne safer than sitting at home in India? Probably not.
But is that a racial risk or an occupational risk? Give me data if you have some,
but you need to be mindful that taxi drivers have had the crap beaten out of them
for years before Indians arrived.

Working late at fast food joints is dangerous too. If it isn't why do all of the white
teenagers have their parents insist on picking them up when they finish work?
Because walking through poorly lit streets at night is dangerous for all races -
even whites.

In terms of Brumby's statement that not all attacks are racist; how is that not a fair
statement?

The Indian press went into overdrive about Ranjodh Singh's death being racist
and has barely reported the fact that that 3 Indians have been charged with the
murder. In fact the Hindustan Times reported that Australians had been arrested
and did not correct the story. So just this example shows that NOT ALL attacks
are racist. It also gives an indication of the integrity of the Indian media.

Besides, it is mathematically impossible for all attacks to be racist. No group of
400,000 people in Australia is immune from assault or murder regardless of race.
As I have posted before 400,000 Australias are likely to face 3200 attacks in any
year. This is statistical FACT. SO is 3200 attacks on whites just bad luck and
every attack on Indians racist? How is that possible?

Brumby has no credibility if he says that all of the attacks are racist when clearly
many are not, especially when the attackers are Indian.

Yes, he can sit down with the victims, but will that stop some moron beating up a
taxi driver at 2am on a Friday night? Will sanctions or banning Aussie cricketers
from the IPL stop some moron from attacking someone when the threat of jail
doesn't?

As for your preference of Howard over Rudd; I find it surprising that you can show
such distain for Hanson but admire Howard who copied Hanson's rhetoric and
policies.
PETE MC
FEB 02,
2010
12:22 PM
317
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jayant_Patel

Did you see the (mostly white) victims of this guy and their families protesting and
jumping up and down, holding traffic-stopping protests? Is there some kind of
organised anti Indian movement to stop the growing number of health
professionals from India who are putting OUR lives at risk? No, our Government
lets more and more in every year.
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:27 PM
318
Elan and JCollin

After reading the hateful, ignorent and bigoted comments by certain Indians I
think I finally understand their problem.

Here it is:

The English and to a lesser degree the French and Portugese owned you for
hundreds of years.

They played the Indians (Aryans/Dravidians/Others) off against each other, and
Indians were only too happy to participate. The ruling classes of India were so
desperate to control their Indian brothers, they would kill them and enslave them
for the English, just to get at the riches the English threw to them. These few
bigoted, ignorant and hateful Indians are now ashamed how their ancestors
behaved that they now want to take it out on Australia. As they see Australians as
representing their former European masters.

I also concluded that these same Indians are bitter as their birth lands are now
controlled by Pakistan. This is why they often treat Pakistanis with contempt, and
exhibit great hate towards them, even though they are the same race as the
Indian populace. But it could be becasue they are Muslims.

Most importantly, I believe that the main reason that sections of the Indian
Government have been happy for this to boil over and for the India media to
spread lies is because Australia prefers China over India when it comes to doing
business, and we won't sell uranium to India.

Now I can't solve all your other probelms but I can suggest that if you convince
the Australian public to vote Liberals in the Federal election we will sell you
uranium, and then all these problems will disappear.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:28 PM
319
I would like to congratulate the author of this article. To me it seemed fair and
balanced. Unfortunately, some Australians, including those in the Australian
Press don't seem to have read the article and have made all sorts of accusations
implying that the article is hysterical and making accusations that all Australians
are racist. I don't think the article makes any judgement, it just presents opinions
from various points in the spectrum of opinions.
I am sorry that some of Australia's newest arrivals are subject to racism and
violent attacks. Unfortunately, racist remarks directed at newly arrived immigrants
has been an occurence in Australia for many years. My mother who migrated
from Malta to Australia with her sister and brothers just after the Second World
War. They each spoke and understood English. Sometimes, however, they would
converse in Maltese in public and hear comments from English-only speaking
Austrlaians such as "Why don't they learn to speak English or go back to where
they came from ?". My mother and her siblings would shock them with a
response in English. Migrants from Mediteranean Europe were labelled with the
derogatory names of "Wogs" and "Dagos". When European migration eased and
was surpassed with migration from South-East Asia, these people were labelled
with other derogatory labels that I believe are too offensive to repeat in print.
However, every person whether they are Indian or not should have the right to go
about their lawful day-to-day business without fear of physical attack or abuse
whether it is based on racism or not. Unfortunately, it is not only Indian students
who are victims of violence in Melbourne. This is a problem that the Victorian
Government has to grapple with and overcome. People in Victoria should be
taught to respect others. It should be part of the educational curriculum and if a
person fails to demonstrate their civic responsibilities, then the criminal justice
system should deal with them appropriately.
civic duties
GREG
FEB 02,
2010
12:30 PM
320
Tell me Vijayrajan of Bangalore, India, what they yelling at Andrew Symonds at
the cricket?

This article is just more sensationist rot. Where would you rathter be Dalit - in
India or Australia? How are the christians getting on in India? The Muslims? How
many Dowry murders are there in India each year? Plain old murders? Culpable
homicides? (I'll give you a hint - close to 3 times the per capita rate of Australia).

Do Indians even get the irony of their rants on this forum and others like the
Times of India?

Now, are there racists in Australia? Of course. Are some of the attacks on Indians
in Australia racial? Of course.

But don't call an entire nation racist because of the few. After all, some of the
attacks were committed by people who weren't white (after all, only white people
are racist). Some of the attacks were even committed by Indians.

This magazine states that some of the attacks were committed by Asians, some
by Africans, some by people of Middle Eastern background, and "many by white
Australians." I guess those are the racist attacks.

OK then - tell me how many? I really don't know.

I've seen a lot of the commentary coming from Indian nationals around the world
and in India and it is awful, racist, bigoted and nasty. But I don't think that all
Indians are racist or the whole country.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
12:34 PM
321
You're shooting from the hip there Will, and that is totally irrelevant. Jayant Patel
is just another psychopath and we already have plenty of them here.

This issue is about the types of people in Australia that bother immigrants. The
people responsible are the thugs in the western suburbs of Sydney and
Melbourne. They collect the dole as well as engaging in drug taking and crime.
There is an attitude of entitlement among these "bogans" who live in what used to
be called the "working class" suburbs. These types naturally do not like to be
shown up by hard-working Indians.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:38 PM
322
I agree David Morgan
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 02,
2010
12:49 PM
Pratyush from Melbourne, Australia writes:

"Why do Indian people want to go to Australia? Because they know even idiotic,
323
Landcruiser."

Et cetera, et cetera.

And you live in Australia, mate? So it was easy for you to get here and out
achieve all us idiotic beer swilling labourers. Couldn't cut it back in India? Not
good enough for home?

So you thought you could slum it with the convict trash, and then belittle us with
your obnoxious rant.

Really, Indians do not get irony.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
12:56 PM
324
David Morgan of Sydney. Are they bogans? I mean really? How do you know?

I think you might be surprised to know that there are certain african, asian and
middle eastern communities also committing crimes against Indians. But those
aren't racist are they?

Do you know how many of the crimes are being committed by these bogan
whites? What proportion? Do tell.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
01:50 PM
325
Greg

So far the Asians excepting for some extremist Muslims have shown incredible
and exemplary restraint even when abused and provoked though not committing
any physical injury.But when it comes to physical injury then the law of survival
demands retaliation when the law of the land and and the law makers and law
enforcers fails to protect.For me how much the Australians are racist is well
known since I was a teenager when we used to watch cricket matches on TV and
your brothers used to sledge the poor Asian cricketers.We used to call the
Australians then as stinking British craps for their ugly behavior.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
If you're here for a degree Sasha, it's clearly not one based on logic or science.
2010
02:02 PM
326

1) Indian students are working in dangerous activities such as taxi driving and
convenience store work
2) If the proportion of these Indians being attacked is significantly higher than
non-Indians in those activities, then we can say there's probably an anti-Indian
element.
3) If the proportion of Indians attacked is similar or less than non-Indians, then it's
probable that anti-Indian feeling is not an issue.
4) Therefore, before we can say either way, we need to know this information.
5) Since we don't have this information, the accusations of an entire nation being
complicit in racial attacks on Indians is a complete beat-up.

Is that simple enough for you?
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
02:05 PM
327
VIJAYRAJAN from BANGALORE, INDIA,

It's about cricket for you isn't? I think every one of your posts has mentioned the
cricket...We get it - aussie cricketers are racist. So, while we're at the cricket...

You still haven't answered my question, and since I don't speak Hindi, I need a
Hindi speaker.

What were they yelling at Andrew Symonds at the cricket in India?
CP
FEB 02,
2010
02:09 PM
328
Will
Sydney, Australia

You mean to say then that there is no rule of law prevailing anywhere in
Australia?.That's bad and a shame as well.I have not come to any conclusion
after a couple of incidents that the Australians indeed are racists..But when the
very Australian government and top cops accepted gracefully that it does happen
in Australia.then don't you think I was not wrong.
There are Indians and too many of them in America .Even when America is often
accused of as racial tinder box the immigrants and citizens of Indian origin are
not given such a bad deal as Australians did.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:19 PM
329
Vijayrajan - your preparedness to judge an entire nation as racist based on the
activities of a hyper-aggressive and obnoxious sporting team says more about
your prejudices than it does about Australia.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
02:22 PM
330
Liked that very first comment by Manish Banerjee.

Follow that old Arabic proverb: "Better the ganji (gruel) in the house than the
feast in the neighbor's", look inward, and develop India.

When the OZs want to come in and take a piece of that cake, keep them out ;-)
SRINIVAS SHASTRI
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:45 PM
331
CP

why not to start with cricket .you know we know Australians as racists ever since
our teenage days when we used to watch cricket matches for hours together and
how the Australians were sledging and passing racist remarks how the Australian
crowds were making cat calls and displaying abusive posters and placards.like
how cricket is fanaticism for Australian so is is cricket is like a religion for India.
I pity for poor Symmonds an aborigine himself but seems to have converted into
a racist Australian.It was Symmonds who first abused Harbhajan Singh to which
he retorted in kind and deservingly so.Probably the Australians still thinking that
the Indian cricketers haven't grown up or reformed.A few more exchanges in kind
will silence the racist squad.If you have seen the video clipping then you wont ask
this question again .What Bhajji said to Symmonds is monkey which anyway
every one's ancestors they are and even more closer to Symmonds tribe.When
the Australians are so proud of Kangaroos what hurts them if they are called as
monkeys too.If they can call Indians as 'curry' why not they gracefully accept
what Indian call them.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
02:58 PM
Alan

I never accused the entire Australian population as racist.So far I have was
speaking of only the Austraila cricketers and when a cricket team which is the life
332
line of Australians are not protesting against some team members for their ugly
behavior then the blame goes on the entire country.Rest is like a soap opera like
a daily broadcasted episode where reports pouring in where an Indian was
attacked and hurt yesterday and tomorrow.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
03:02 PM
333
Vijayrajan

Your comment about Symonds 'tribe' being closer to monkeys is not only
completely wrong scientifically, but extremely racist and offensive. If you're an
example of the typical Indian, you've confirmed that Indians are far, far more
racist than the average Australian.

I said it before, but I'll say it again. This discussion is a real eye-opener.
Unfortunately, my opinion of Indians is plummeting further and further.
ALAN
FEB 02,
2010
03:27 PM
334
Alan of Melbourne - Vs comment is typically Indian. You should see what they
have to say here: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-
abroad/articlelist/222023.cms

Love and respect all round.

Like you, I have completely changed my opinions about Indians after reading
some of the bile there and here.

I came to these web sites because I was interested in what the Indian Media and
public had to say about Australia. Now I know that is largely ugly. At first I was
worried - because I didn't want people to think of Australia and Australians that
way, and because I thought that it was unfortunate that Indian students seemed
to be being targeted.

Now I no longer care so much. The Indians are really not very nice. And not just
to Australians, but to each other. Check out Raj Thackery and Shiv Sena (India's
Hitler and Nazi Party). Read what the southerners have to say about the
northerners and Punjabis have to say about themselves, other Indians and the
rest of the world.

And they really don't do Irony.
CP
FEB 02,
2010
04:09 PM
335
Hi guys,

I would like to say from bottom of my heart that " I AM ASHAMED TO BE AN
INDIAN". i living in melbourne for the past 15 yrs and i was a student here in
Australia before i got my permanent job. This a disgrace to every honest indian
for what happened. I have so many Aussie friends including Italians and greek
and honestly they are so good i cant describe.
No one has crossed their line and it is a clean and healthy friendship but now
because of few "villagers" coming from Punjab has ruined the relationship here in
Australia. I am sorry but this is a disgrace to Indian community and all i say is if
any indian dont like to be here in Australia, please leave the country and dont try
to change the society.
I had enough and now i feel the harmony of Australia is been destroyed and more
than that few Indian guys who got Citizenship here and call themselves as the
representative of Indian students should be chucked out.
I also advice to check the background of the Indian student association whom the
president is a bouncer in a nightclub in melbourne and the spokesmen mr. gupta
is jobless sitting at home with his young family. This is disgrace to everyone.
PLEASE INDIANS INCLUDING ME WHO DONT LIKE AUSTRALIA PLEASE
LEAVE. we cant change MNS political party bashing people who migrated from
Bihar (near by state) how u can change Australia. Thanks guys for the damage
ANAND SAMY
FEB 02,
2010
04:17 PM
336
Another BREAKING NEWS fellow indians,

Look what Brits have done - They stopped accepting student visas in North india
for some time. The statistics is that last year same time there were 1800 visas
filed and this year it is 13800 filled. Thanks to negative australian media
coverage. check out the links guys -
http://o3.indiatimes.com/mytimes/archive/2010/02/01/4998767.aspx
I think Indians like me and you all deserve this treatment. Good work my fellow
indians and i am surely Ashamed of you and the way you guys spoiled your own
opportunity.
Lucky me to be a CEO of a company in Australia and I am not a cookery or
hairdressing or community welfare student.
eagerly waiting for the comments by fellow indians.
ANAND SAMY
FEB 02,
2010
04:39 PM
337
This is (and was) sure a cause of concern to all of us if Indian, or any other
community is specifically being targeted.

We know that media is prone to exaggerated things at times, and we are used to
it.

I very much know the rudeness of Punjabi villages, so I had my doubts over "poor
innocence Indian student" image, in this whole drama.
But today after reading all these comments from Australians, I am confused
again.

We have both kind of comments from "Argumentative Indians" here, which is
indeed the foundation of democracy.

But Australians seems outright, either in denial, or on offensive.

I will conclude, may be Australians are not racist generally; may be these attacks
are not purely racist; but sorry to say, Australian seems way too much intolerant
as a society.
None whosoever found anything wrong with them.
BUNTY
HSINCHU, TAIWAN
FEB 02,
2010
04:40 PM
338
I personally feel the Indian students from North India feel the pinch as because
they feel so inferior to others...i think. this is completely my comments as they are
the ones who do taxi driving and the survey by the student communities in
Australia suggest that out of 100 indian students 78% of them are from North
India. Guys please think for yourself...why u have to go all the way to Australia
and drive taxis why cant that been done in Delhi...just a thought.
ANAND SAMY
FEB 02,
2010
05:46 PM
339
The issue at hand is not racism as this article implies. Was it racism (by "white"
Australians)when 3 Indians murdered and burnt another Indian Student recently
in Australia? Was it racism by "white Australians when a group of Asiana
"attacked" Indian students? And why is it that only Indians are being attacked?
What is happening to all the Pakistanis, SriLankans etc??? The white Aussies
cannot distinguish between a Srilankan or an Indian or a Pakistani - so why are
they not being attacked?
You know it bothers me that instead of investigating and writing articles the
journalists are opting for sensationalism and creating more problems. Why have I
or my many friends not been interviewed to get our side of the story? I am of
Indian origin and I have exprienced more racism from my fellow countrymen and
women. I was sympathetic initially but it has come to a point where I am thinking
why are all these students coming to do such short courses (who does a double
diploma in IT and Hospitality - which is being offered in one of the private Unis
here!) instead of going to other countries if Australia is so racist? Is it because
they know that if they go to countries suckh as UK it will be harder for them to
survive and because there is more acknowledged racism racism there. where all
Indians are also called Pakis? Or why not Singapore? You can easily see how
Indians are treated. And why not the US - is it because they know that there is
definitely more racism experienced there and that they won't put up with any
nonsense in these countries? Or why not just stay in India? Maybe because ( as
much as I love the country and it hurts me to say this - even though it is not the
country but the people who have made it this way), because there is even more
racism that occurs there and less opportunities. There is an old saying that can
be summed up - that when you point a finger at someone there are the other
fingers pointing right back at you. So before calling anyone racists - whatever the
nationality, look at your own country and fix the problems there first.
MN
FEB 02,
2010
05:51 PM
340
Vijayrajan, not sure what you are trying to argue there but maybe you should re-
read my post i never equated racism and caste, i mentioned it as a form of
discrimination as racism is. Maybe you shouldnt equate violence with racism, you
can be a racist and not be violent, so your comment about if Indians were racist
they would have thrown down a violent challenge to Australians is really quite
silly.

I think you must be living under a rock or a small boulder there in India or you
have very big blinkers on and not seeing whats in front of you...your description
of India is quite idealistic, maybe you should venture out see India...

Lastly your comment about fair skin always being attractive, mate either you are
really stupid and dont realise your own rascial connotation or you are just in
denial like most Indians are...
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
06:01 PM
341
Varun Shekhar - no need to make excuses for the discrimination that exists in
India, it has been present for many many years and it wont change any time
soon. I am of Indian origin and have lived here pretty much my whole life (30
years) with my family, of course i have encountered racism, but that hasnt
stopped me from living a normal life and not living in fear of this discrimination.
What im trying to say is that racism exists everywhere, and more prominently in
some places and you cant get on a moral high ground about discrimination in
another country when there is extreme discrimination right under your own nose!
Surely one should address the same problem in ones backyard before jumping
up and down about it in your neighbours?
ADITYA
FEB 02,
2010
06:52 PM
342
Hi everyone.

I have contributed my fair share to this appalling article in Outlook magazine.....

Please refer to my comments 121, 127, 130, 138, 150, 176, 180, 240, 265, 266,

Looking at all the comments I feel more proud to be called an Aussie Indian

I am proud of all my Australian mates no matter what race they are...

All I have to say is this

Indian media ..you dont understand the power of us individuals getting our voice
heard .

You think you can create chaos and disharmony amongst us for the sake of you
D**k heads making more money ...

I challenge you..

MR Editor-in-chief Vinod Mehta,

Try to do that .. Your Magazine and the so called ludicrous reporting media will
perish very soon......
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
07:22 PM
343
Many Australians in this forum are in denial. There is no excuse for these
repeated attacks. It's not about India's poverty, caste issues, language issues,
gender issues, not even cricket issues. A bunch of innocent, peaceful, largely law
abiding Indians are assaulted over and over. The first thing to do is to denounce
it, and admit there's a problem.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
07:40 PM
344
Varun, It's not an "Indian" racism issue. It's a violence issue. And the violence
against all - yes folks hard as it may be to believe it, but there are non Indians
who are getting bashed, etc... and this group is actually in the majority as
opposed to what you might be thinking - the Indians students are the only ones to
be attacked. I do have another point to make - something that no one has pointed
out . Why is it that we do not hear of the Indians students from universities such
as University of Melb, Monash, Swinburne, Deakin, RMIT - why aren't they
getting bashed? WHy is it mostly students from these private run colleges the
most affected?
MN
FEB 02,
2010
07:46 PM
345
Is MN suggesting the Indian students from the private colleges have it coming to
them? Even if the credentials of a few of these students are questionable, it still
doesn't justify the attacks on them.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
07:54 PM
346
CP, you are shallow. If this Outlook series of articles shows anything( and it
shows a lot) it shows that India has a very open society, with a free, lively press
that you wouldn't see in most other developing countries, and perhaps even in a
few developed ones. The articles look at the recent attacks from different angles,
and one of them mentions the dubious behaviour of some of the Indian students,
without of course justifying the violence. It also mentions unemployment in
Australia as being one of the causes of the turbulence. It quotes an Australian
official who asserts that not all the violence is racially motivated. There are other
nuanced comments as well.
Where else in the third world would you see such a variety of comments and
perspectives on racial incidents involving a specific country's nationals? China,
Indonesia, Saudi Arabia?
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 02,
2010
07:58 PM
347
Hi Varun

To answer your first question..... Unfortunately Yes!!!!! The reasons are
obvious....

To answer your second question ..... No it does not. But the reasons are obvious
again..........
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
08:01 PM
348
No and it's interesting how Varun has jumped to the worst possible explanation. I
would never imply such a thing. Are you accusing me of being racist? Well I am
an Indian! Satire aside, I was implying that maybe these students do not live in
crime prone areas, are not driving taxis when they should be studying ( before
you start saying anything come to melb and catch a taxi - all will be revealed!)
and do not travel alone (even after repeatedly being told not to do so at such
early hrs in the morning) and not carry visibly expensive items on them.
MN
FEB 02,
2010
08:04 PM
349
Varun Shekar

I think you are joining the other ignorant uninformed "swallow what the media has
to say " people in this forum

KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
08:10 PM
350
MN

Logical and sensible people speak like you..... well said!!!!
KARTHIK
FEB 02,
2010
09:34 PM
351
Aditya

I am also not sure and understand why some Indians or rather some UnIndians
staying in Australia have become the slaves of the white racist Australians and
taking sides and denigrating Indians staying in Australia and those in India.This
world is not perfect.Some fight as castes while some others as communities like
how crusaders and jihadis fought then and even now and the sectarian wars
between various sects amongst Christians and Muslims.Then its is irrelevant
whether its casteism or racism.on racist violence I simply referred to it as only a
worst case scenario.Indians will be the last people to take law into their
hands.But its adversaries have a wrong impression that the patience and their
tolerance as their weakness.
I have traveled to many parts of the world and toured India extensively.Probably
you have gone out of India for the very first time and think Australia is the only
eden on earth.Even if I am living in India in a thatched house I am not like a toad
in a well.Yes I wear blinkers only to alert others to be watchful and careful of guys
like you.
I am proud of my country and always optimistic that we are on right path to
progress and prosperity.On white skin what I said is that Indians became the
slaves of the British only because of their weakness for white skin like how the
country today is suffering for having accepted a white Italian lady to lead us.I
have no special mention to make when it comes to attraction for white or black
skin.If you are not able to follow what I wrote or properly comprehend then I can
only pity upon youand your stupidity
I am not in any denial mode if you are talking of the caste system of India.I have
always stood by our poor irrespective of their caste and I have always been
saying that casteism in India is on the waning though not significantly at the
moment but if the progress is on fast track then this evil can be ultimately
eradicated.Going by the increasing number of inter-caste marriages in India I am
optimistic of India thus becoming a stronger nation than ever before.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
09:35 PM
352
Oh, God ! this is full scale invasion. At the latest count there are 350 posts mostly
presumably from Australia. I don't know any thing about racism. Nor do I think it's
anyting about race. It's the economy, stupid!

If the bumb Indian media thought it will be cake-walk pelting stone into this bee-
hive, they now don't know where to look.
MANISH BANERJEE
KOLKATA, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
09:59 PM
353
While I have a first hand experience of sensational Indian media coverage of post
9/11 events, I find this article to be pretty balanced. There has been issue of
attacks on Indians in Australia. The reason may be racial or normal robbery. But
it presented opinions from every side. I have seen far more sensational and
biased coverage specially in western media with incidents involving their own
citizens in other countries.
MAHA
NJ, UNITED STATES
FEB 02,
2010
10:31 PM
354
Alan

It may sound as racial to you but its not intentional.Do you think
insulting,intimidating,Injuring badly and even killing on racial grounds is less
harsher than making any racial comments.Two wrongs of course do not make
one right.But that's how earth has evolved.
Please remember I have not shot a comment at Symmonds alone but against all
those Australins who are racists.I never said all Australians as racists.Dont try to
put your words in my mouth or try to spread disinformation against Indians.
Calling Indians as 'curry' during a cricket match which in fact is Indian's staple
food also amounts to a racist comment.Every Australian is typical Australian like
how every Indian is a typical Indian.Why I have to separate myself from the
rest.Indians have been lying low so far but no more.Why should they tolerate
some one's racism after all Australia is not making any charity to Indians by
allowing them into their country.
Going by the number of reported cases of racial abuse and attacks,the
admittance of the government and the top cops that the racial attacks did take
place and have since increased is a mirror to the Australian society in a civilized
world.Taking into account the number of attacks in Australia today it stands
number one in the world as the most racist country.
when it comes to a question of self defence any retaliation by a victim of a
circumstance cannot be attributed as violence as long as the law makers and law
enforcers fail to protect the victimised community.The earlier the australians
realise this would bebetter.otherwise they may loose a dependable ally in any
future war on terrorism.England has realised this long back.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 02,
2010
10:47 PM
355
Vijayrajan

As i've read the posts made you, how could label all the people living in Australia
as racist by watching cricket for like you said, "growing up watching cricket"....I
Think your commenting australians as rascists based on cricket doesnt make
much sense at all. Please try to think outside cricket. And as far as i know, people
here atleast donot discriminate you as Madrasi, North Indian, Bihari or whatever it
maybe!
VIJAY
FEB 02,
2010
Will
Sydney, Australia
10:53 PM
356
if you haven't observed the list of facts at the beginning of this story then I am
reproducing them here for your benefit and record.
* 130 Indians attacked countrywide, the Indian high commission says. Of these,
30 were students.
volunteers, to police a population of four million.
* On Jan 5, the Indian government issued an advisory to Indian students in
Australia
asking them to take certain precautionary measures while traveling.
* 33.2% visa applications turned down by Australia between July 1 and October
31, 2009, up from 6.5 per cent for the corresponding period in 2008. These
applications were mostly turned down because of documentation fraud.

These are the facts.you can also provide your own facts or evidence to
substantiate your claim or to repudiate the Indian official claim.simply saying
'hear-say' will not help in a serious debate.
VIJAYRAJAN
BANGALORE, INDIA
FEB 03,
2010
12:17 AM
357
I too think only some Australians are racists, just as some Indians, like Varun
Shekhar and Vijayrajan, are racists. I believe that most of the attacks on Indians
in Australia were carried out by sociopaths, some of whom may have been
further motivated by racist instincts.
ANWAAR
FEB 03,
2010
12:29 AM
358
Let's see if the Indian media covers this:

Police allege an Indian man .. who claimed he was set alight by assailants near
his Melbourne home last month .. accidentally burned himself while torching his
car for an insurance claim.

29-year-old JASPREET SINGH .. of Essendon ..has faced an out-of-sessions
hearing...charged with making a false report to police and criminal damage.

SINGH told police he was doused with petrol and set alight as he parked his car
near his home early on January 8.

He'll appear before the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on March 15.
ROB
FEB 03,
2010
02:40 AM
359
vijayrajan:


Um...






MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
vijayrajan:

02:40 AM
360

Um...






MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
02:53 AM
361
You are a sad person Vijayrajan, firstly you say how great India is for having an
Italian born prime minister then you denigrate me for being a 'slaves of white
racist Australians' - you are gamut of contradictions. For you reference, i am not
Indian, i am Australian, i have lived here my whole life and am from an Indian
background. Im glad that my parents left India, because i would hate to be like
you. I would be embarrassed to call myself Indian with your views...Australia is a
land of immigrants so maybe you should come out here and see for yourself
rather than relying on such ludicrous reporting to form your opinion.

Its quite obvious that you really dont understand (through your stupidity or your
naivety) the issue, you are confusing yourself and everyone who reads your
ridiculous statements, for the sake of the rest of us, please stop posting your
idiosyncratic slander. I really doubt that you have been outside of India with the
comments that you make - Australia is quite a safe place to live compared to the
rest of the world! Your comments about Indians being the last to take the law into
their own hands, mate, they are the first to take the law into their own hands, they
will be the first to find some loophole in the law and exploit it! Why do you think
the UK government has restricted visas for people from India, particularly the
Punjab area?? You must be so sheltered that you dont even know whats
happening in your front yard, you have some ridiculous archaic views and i am
glad that people like you stay in India!
ADITYA
FEB 03,
2010
03:00 AM
362
Anwaar:
"I believe that most of the attacks on Indians in Australia were carried out by
sociopaths, some of whom may have been further motivated by racist instincts."

"Sociopath" is such a nice word. Colloquially they are known here as "dickheads".
Although there may be a racial motivation, it's more likely that Indians are
perceived as easy targets who tend not to fight back.

Its also worth noticing that until the Indian Media beatup, nobody regarded
Indians as a problem at all. Yes, you have the groups Eve Teasing on trains, but
thumping somebody for harassing your girlfriend, sister or friend is not a racially
motivated attack - its a dickhead motivated attack.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
03:28 AM
363
vijayrajan, your arguments just go from bad to worse.

What you are spouting as facts are just statistics quoted in the media without
naming a credible source or any context. You will find that in Victoria, the
percentage of Indians attacked is very small compared to the overall crime rate.
Unfortunately it is still proporationately high given the size of the Indian
community but this is weighted the propoprtion of Indians working in jobs that
expose them to criminal elements.

Also, can you please be more specific of the 33 Indians...how many of these
were victims of hate related crime as opposed say, Indian worker revenge
killings, or Indian husbands killing their Indian wives.

Your arguments about cricket and the Aussie cricket team are completely
laughable. Aussies play all sport tough and hard but are generally pretty fair.
Sure they may sledge, but I very much doubt the majority of it is racist given the
public attitudes and the potential penalities involved (please prove to me that is
was).

By the way, Gautam Gupta is way out of his depth with on this issue. He is a
complete lightweight. What is needed from the Indian community is real
leadership.
BRIAN
FEB 03,
2010
03:30 AM
364
I thought this is quite a balanced article.
But I agree that more media attention to this issue can risk flaring up of racial
tension affecting a larger section of people, but can also arouse the authorities
from the slumber of denial.
Hate crimes exist in the US. But the society does not downplay nor defend such
crimes as mere law and order lapses citing statistical significance of # of crimes.
The law and order authorities swiftly track down the offenders, the laws protect
the victims and the justice system promptly punishes the offenders.
I do not know whether white Australians have racial biases- I have never lived
there. However after reading comments from so many Australian readers in this
forum I am convinced that if these commentators represent the majority opinion
of Australia then Australia certainly has a significant proportion of people with
racial biases.
DC
FEB 03,
2010
03:58 AM
365
Further to this, generally this article not as sensationalst and makes some good
and valid points although some are off the mark.

For example, the comment about Indian students flashing iphone and laptops
makes them a target. Every teenager irrespective of race has a laptop or iPhone
or whatever and uses them in full public view, some end up being robbed
because of it...of course this is not reported.

Also, the comments about "Those who are rich and have resided here for years
vehemently deny that Australians are racist" is misleading. Money has nothings
to do with this. My Mum and Dad, like many other Indian families at the time,
came here with very little in their pockets. They worked hard to provide for their
family, fitted in, made good friends of all nationalities and embraced the
Australian way of life.

However we see many new Indians coming to Australia and their behaviour is
totally opposite this is painting all Indians here with the same brush.

My Indian friends and family were and are welcome in Australia, however this
relationship is unravelling fast and we are furious about it.
BRIAN
FEB 03,
2010
04:05 AM
366
This report in the Melbourne "The Age" newspaper should take some of the
heat(pardon the pun)out of the argument. Here is an example of a self-inflicted
injury as part of an attempt at insurance fraud being attributed to racial hatred.
Nothing is further from the truth. Australians generally will shrug their shoulders
and say "what an idiot" and that his racial origins are irrelevant.

Burned Indian faked attack to claim car insurance: police
February 3, 2010 - 7:08AM

An Indian man who said he was set alight by assailants near his Melbourne home
last month accidentally burned himself while torching his car for an insurance
claim, police allege.

Jaspreet Singh, 29, of Grice Crescent, Essendon, in the city's north, faced an
out-of-sessions hearing early this morning before a bail justice at St Kilda Road
police complex charged with making a false report to police and criminal damage
with a view to gaining a financial advantage.

The case gained international headlines among a series of attacks by white
Australians on Indian nationals in Melbourne.

Singh, who is in Australia on his wife's student visa, told police he was doused
with petrol and set alight as he parked his car near his home early on Saturday,
January 8.

Singh was taken to The Alfred hospital with burns to 15 per cent of his body,
affecting his face, arms and hands.

But Detective Senior Constable Danielle O'Keefe of the arson and explosives
squad told the hearing Singh suffered the burns while trying to torch his 2003
Ford Futura.

Detective O'Keefe said arson chemists and hospital staff had concluded the
damage to the car, Singh's clothes and his injuries were not consistent with his
story.

"Police inquiries have led us to believe that Mr Singh is in some financial difficulty
and that he intended to sell his car but instead stood to gain $11,000 from an
insurance claim out of this particular incident," she told the hearing.

Police had obtained security footage depicting Singh buying a 15-litre opaque
plastic container and 15.96 litres of petrol on the day before the attack.

The container and other evidence was found at his unit when he was arrested
yesterday, Detective O'Keefe said.

She said Singh had been very co-operative but denied all allegations.

His wife had been questioned about her knowledge of the incident, she said.

Burns were still obvious on Singh's face and neck, and he wore pressure
bandages on his arms.

Through an interpreter, Singh told the hearing he and his wife planned a holiday
to India, leaving on February 20 and returning in late April to visit his child and
extended family.

Detective O'Keefe said police did not oppose bail but noted that Mr Singh was a
potential flight risk.

The bail justice, who declined to be named, granted him bail with strict conditions
banning him from contacting witnesses and attending points of international
departure.

He must report to police three times a week and surrender his passport.

He will appear before the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on March 15.

At the time, police Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Neil Smyth described the
attack as "a bit strange" and said there was no evidence the attack was racially
motivated.

AAP
GREG ANGELO
FEB 03,
2010
04:21 AM
367
Vijayrajan, we agree there is racism against Indians in Australia. And we all want
to do something about it. We disagree on how to deal with it. You want to deal
with it by attacking protesting and causing a stink and getting peoples backs up.
You wont recognise or acknowledge the documented fraud by Indians coming to
Australia. You are looking through rose coloured glasses in assuming that all
your people are angels and all of the (white) people are devils.
Please dont acknowledge or respond to this guy. He is a waste of oxygen.
WILL
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
04:23 AM
368
So it was insurance fraud rather than a racial attack:
http://www.theage.com.au/national/burned-indian-faked-attack-to-claim-car-
insurance-police-20100203-nbfr.html

And he couldn't even do that right. What a dickhead. Any comments from posters
screaming about Australian racism here? How many of the "white attacks"
mentioned in this article have now been found to be inflicted by Indians, non-
whites, or self-inflicted? Anyone changing their opinions or are you just happy to
keep wallowing in your prejudiced pigsty? I'll keep an eye out for apologies to all
Australians on this blog.

I hope:
- This bloke is hugely embarassed
- In a great deal of pain
- Gets the book thrown at him in court.

I also hope the govt cracks down on the PR rort and keeps these dodgy Indian
'students' out of Australia. Any amount of money isn't worth it.

Decent Indian immigrants always welcome.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
04:27 AM
369
@ The people who find some of the comments from Indians here inflammatory
and unfair: Read the type of vitriol and vileness that spews from Op eds and
blogs from such newspapers as the Melbourne Herald sun etc.

What I am saying is, don't think a few rude, upset or nationalistic people
represent the views of all. Unfortunately that also works the other way and one
should not assume that level headed, balanced and open views are also
representative.

Crime statistics, vox pops and shallow journalism don't help give a true picture of
what's going on. The fact that the vast majority of Australians who have made
positive comments regarding India and tried to be balanced are probably doing
so because this article was linked from a centre-left Newspaper similar to
Outlook.

Racism is not the overall position of Australians. Parties that are overtly or
covertly racist have little to no support except from disaffected idiots. While
Xenophobia is an issue here, there is little endemic racism in Australia as
understood in other countries: Ie: "I am racially superior to you." Those type of
dickheads lurk on the fringes.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
04:45 AM
370
Oh Cmon Allan, Everyone knew that the attack in NSW and this particular attack
was not racially motivated. In fact the essendon one was a fake one, the
neighbour was quoted long back on this one. What about all the other attacks
that are really racially motivated. How come the culprits are never caught unless
it's an "ethnic" involved?
SASHA
FEB 03,
2010
04:53 AM
371
Any word on how you know that ambulances turn away from Indians in
preference to whites yet Sasha?

How about telling us the steps the government should take to stop 'all these
attacks' that you claim is so easy to do? Perhaps ban Indian students from
buying petrol?
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
05:00 AM
372
Vijayrajan

Mate, Andrew Symonds is not Aboriginal. He was born in Birmingham in the UK
and one of his parents was West Indian. He was adopted in the UK and his
adoptive parents migrated to Australia. Amother great example of people coming
to Australia and reaching the top despite their skin colour. And before you try it
on, he was removed from the Australian team for disciplinary issues related to
drinking.

Can we believe anything you say? Do you know what you're taliking about?
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
And some more interesting stuff on Indians in Australia

05:09 AM
373
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/Indian-found-guilty-of-
raping-Oz-lingerie-model/articleshow/5512562.cms

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/After-Indian-couple-25-yr-
old-detained-in-Oz-murder-case/articleshow/5512487.cms

And when Indians are attacked, the Queensland police act quickly to make
arrests. Please note that the ethnicity of the attackers has not been released by
the police.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/More-violence-Four-
Indians-attacked-in-Australia/articleshow/5508451.cms

And finally, the Indian Goverment via their Brisbane consul, Mr. Singh, is sitting
down with the police and community leaders to work through teh issues, just as
the Chinese government did years ago - rather than yelling "racist" through the
megaphone of the media.
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
05:22 AM
374
Vijayrajan

You are the same as Varun Shekar

You are joining the other ignorant uninformed "swallow what the media has to
say " people in this forum


Andrew Symonds an aboriginal??

You and the Indian media are the same...
KARTHIK
FEB 03,
2010
05:24 AM
375
DC, you feel the article is balanced and the response by the Australians shows
we are racist. The issue with this arrticle are the key facts are missing that make
it balanced.

All murders of Indians committed in Australia during 2009 were found to be
committed by Indian nationals and the only one still outstanding an Indian
national is under investigation and even the Indian Government agree it is likely
he killed his wife. A point left out in all Indian media articles, including this one.
There was a massive outpouring in India of hate gainst Australia of the racist
attack that resulted in an Indian man being attacked and set on fire in early
January. He claimed to have been set on fire by 4 white Australians. He was
arrested overnight and charged with insurance fraud, and a number of other
crimes.

The 2010 murder of Nitin Garg s still under investigation. Should the police just
claim it is racial and only investigate people belonging to racist organisations?

You claim the US would take this more seriously, possibly so but do observe their
recent history where blacks have been chained to the back of a pick up and
dragged to their death, or beaten and tied to stakes until they died, and hundreds
more heinous race hate crimes. This we never see in Australia.

The comments made by the majority of Australians are tongue in cheek, as we
are enjoying ridiculing a number of the fools in this blog who made incredibly
vicious and racist comments.

One issue that though vaguely referred in the article is overlooked. Up until
2006/7 Indians were rarely involved in any issues. This is becasue until then the
average Indian was a highly educated professioanl, mixed with Asutralians, and
spoke English. This changed dramatically with the majority entering after 2006
not being highly educated, not mixing with Australians, and not speaking English.
In an interview of 60 Indian students in Melbourne during an article on this matter
all but one openly admitted they were not real students.

There is not a denial of the crimes that have been committed in Australia. It has
been openly stated that some of the crimes have a racial element, and these
comments go back into 2008 when a noticeable rise was made of the number of
Indians being assaulted or robbed in Melbourne. Up until 2008 they were
substantially below the national averages. For assaults they are still below the
national average, but for robbery they are above the average. The majority of the
robbery cases are against taxi drivers, service station workers, and convenience
store workers, which are now the most common place you find the unskilled
Indian 'students'. Prior to the Indian students' working these jos other unskilled,
low educated immigrants worked in these roles until they made their way out of it
and now have educated themselves and their children. Very few Australia
nationals would ever work in these jobs as they are deemed unsafe, exactly the
same as in Canada the US, UK etc. Asutralian youth do not need to work in these
jobs because as our economy was not impacted by the GFC, Australian youth (of
all ethnic background) still can pick and choose higher paying, safer jobs, or are
supported by their families when they study. In the 80's and early 90's these jobs
would have been done by Australians, and they were the ones being robbed. I
know this becuase my parents were held up and threatened with being killed. The
criminals were not white Australians. You see it isn't a race issue. It is a crime
issue.

One of the complaints of the Indians is we are not given them a break down on
the race of people that are committing the crime, and we are not releasing these
details in the media. In Australia this is deemed racial profiling and if we did that
the same people complaining that we don't do it would start complaining that we
did do it. Imagine if we release a front page story that shows Indians are over
represented in the murder of Indians in Australia. Then based on this we prevent
all Indians migrating to Australia. We could treat them like the US do Arabs,
Pakitanis, Africans or even how the US Airline treated Indias President.

The problem is India has made it a race issue and claimed ALL attacks are racist.
Do you expect the Australian Government, people and Police to just say, "Yes
India, this is correct all attacks are racial.". You need to understand, that if the
police follow the racial line, then they limit their capacity to investigate, as they
would then assume the attacker is a racist which then limits th profle of people
they investigate.

Unlike India, our police do not have a tendency to kill large numbers of suspects
then claim we close the case. Even the Indian Government admit this is a major
problem in India.

Very little of this issue is about Indian students being attacked, it is about trade
and saving face for India, and the fact is since 2007 the Indian Government have
complaining about our relationship with China, our refusal to sell India uranium,
that our Government does not value India as much as China.

So it is about crime, but has a lot to do with politics.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
05:32 AM
376
David,

The Herald Sun (Hun) has a notrous gang of trolls to write stupid right wing
comments to get "click-bait" - the more clicks on the site, the more advertising
revenue. Please see Daryl Mason's archived blog posts for more info.

http://theorstrahyun.blogspot.com/
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
05:53 AM
hear hear Craig.
BRIAN
377
FEB 03,
2010
05:53 AM
378
@ Ian

That is disturbing. You'd think there are enough morons to write inflammatory
posts without resorting to using your staffers and family/friends to boost
readership and revenue.

What market are these people catering to?
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
06:20 AM
379
For all those chest beating Indians, what do you think of this now :

http://tinyurl.com/yl8gpvb

I am not sure if Indian media is going to give any prominence to this news or not,
but knowing how spineless creatures we are, I highly doubt it.
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 03,
2010
06:27 AM
380
Allan, It's hard to argue with people like you. You win. I accept that Indians are
whipping up a frenzy because they have ulterior motives to give Victoria a bad
name. Indians in Victoria lie. The attacks on them are not racist. Whatever you
say is right. Take care
SASHA
FEB 03,
2010
06:42 AM
381
Post No 375 by Craig of Adelaide is spot on. I will also like to add to this the fact
over lat 10-15 years, because of some economic growth in India (which is all
based on sweat shops setup by MNCs), Indians have started believing as if they
are a world power and they can bully other countries. The ground reality however
is : "India is a third world country and will continue to be so for another 100 yeras,
with its myriads of problems like corruption, caste based totally fractured society
etc. etc"
AUSSIE INDIAN
FEB 03,
2010
06:42 AM
382
This forum is showing how intolerant Australians are to criticism. They just can't
take it when criticism is leveled against them from a poor, non-white, third world
country. Indians are a small, non-aggressive,non-offending, law abiding
community. They definitely deserve consideration and sympathy.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 03,
2010
06:58 AM
383
@ Varun.

There's a substantial difference between being overly sensitive to valid criticism
and offering counter-opinions to being misrepresented as a national body. Think
about some stereotypes and assumptions people make about Indian people and
see if you wouldn't want to try and get your view heard.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
06:59 AM
384
Sasha - I'm sorry if you find logical arguments difficult. Unfortunately that's what
you need to do to make people believe you have a point. This does seem to be a
somewhat foreign concept in India. Strange since Indians claim to be racially
gifted in maths, and logic is it's underlying basis.

You've made 2 claims that help underpin whether you're credible or not. Firstly
you've stated that ambulances in Australia bypass Indians in favour of whites.
Secondly, you've claimed that the govt could easily deal with the Indian attacks.
When questioned on these, you haven't been able to substantiate them.

So why should you be believed in your other claims?
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
07:18 AM
385
Varun - "Indians are a small, non-aggressive,non-offending, law abiding
community"

Have you not read Craig's posts refuting that? Do you consider insurance fraud
to be law-abiding?

There's a young woman I work with who was sat next to in a bus. There weren't
many people, so there there was no need to sit next to her. He then used the
motion of the bus to rub himself up against her. Contrary to your statement on
inoffensive Indians, she found this extremely offensive, and unfortunately now
intensely dislikes all Indians. I think she's being very narrow-minded on this, but
she won't be convinced that all Indian men aren't all sexist sleazebags.

I have friends and acquaintances whose family is of Indian origin or who are
Indian immigrants, and I can't tell you how angry I would be if they were targetted
in a racial attack. That's why I get pissed-off when I see statements and articles
about how racist I am because I'm Australian.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
07:34 AM
386
Peace y'all.

I don't think we've solved it yet. Those statistics that were mentioned:

Victoria alone.

And to refute all this we can say a handful of those were done by Indians against
Indians, (or Indians against themselves) and some are suggesting the rest were
done by other immigrants. I haven't seen much acknowledgment from Australians
that we do in fact have an ignorant, alcoholic, violent and racist class of people in
this country who have been that way since our beginnings only 200 odd years
ago.

It's the bogans I tell you.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
08:20 AM
387
Few if any Australians are refuting the facts, but the facts are not being
published.

Gautam Gupta states that 33 Indians have been violently killed in Australia during
2004-2009. No one can dispute that 33 Indians were killed during this period, and
the Vic Police aren't or the Government.

What is disputed is it is presented as factual and whole, when put into context of
the article and the Indian hysteria it is implying Australians murdered 33 Indians
due to racist reasons.

What is missing is the fact, all 2009 murders were committed by Indian nationals.

What is missing is the fact that the majority were not murder, it consisted of
suicide, car accidents, accidental deaths ie. drowning, and a few murders, and a
few unknown.

Gautam Gupta is presenting the details to the Indian media selectively for political
gain and fame. He is positioning himself as the saviour of all the down trodden
Indian masses in Australia. Mind you all the Indians I socialise with are far from
down trodden. Either he is lying or the journalist is incompetent.

1,447 crimes were committed against Indians in 2009 against Indians. Slightly
misleading.

Fact, 1, 447 crimes were committed against 1,447 poeople of South Asian
appearance, this includes Fijian Indians, Malay Indians, Bangladeshis,
Pakistanis, Indians, Sri Lankans, Australian Indians, American Indians, Anglo
Indians etc. etc. The crimes include all forms of crimes including house breaking,
car theft, assault, murder, financial crime, petty crime etc.

What this story and others in the Indian media imply is that these were all crimes
of physical violence committed against Indian nationals by Australians.

Fact, Indians that had committed crimes against Indian nationals are also in this
number.

Fact white Australians committed some of these crimes.

Fact, some will be fraudelent claims.

Fact, Lebonese Australians comitted some of these crimes.

Fact, Asians comitted some of these crimes.

Fact, numerous ethnic groups would have committed these crimes.

Fact, many of these crimes will not be solved as they are minor and are only
reported to enable people to put in legitimate insurance claims.

The majority of Australians know there are drunk, violent, racists in Australia, but
we also know this is a tiny minority, it is just that the Indian Government, the
Indian media, sections of the Indian populace, and sections of the Indian and
Australian community in Australia are using this to tar ALL Australians as racist
criminals. With some doing it purely for their own gain.

DO you think this is not in the interset of idiots like Gautam Gupta and FISA. The
BJP are also loving it. So are the right wing neo-nazi groups in Australia, because
now they aren't having to do much at all to stir up resentment.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
08:38 AM
388
David Morgan - actually the girl I was referring to is pretty-much a bogan,
although her parents migrated here only recently. And if her brothers had been
able to catch the Indian guy who sat next to her in the bus, I wouldn't have liked
his chances.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
08:38 AM
389
I hope that the postings here are not encouraging fanatics. I think forums like this
are constructive in that a lot of views get aired, facts are unearthed and fanatics
are shown up.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
08:49 AM
390
Do people who live in India actually read this magazine? I haven't seen many
posts from people living in the Republic of India. Maybe we're just talking to
ourselves and a few disgruntled Indians living outside their homeland.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
08:53 AM
391
David Morgan - If the girls brothers had caught the Indian guy, he would have
been beaten-up. We would then have another statistic of how racist Australians
are, regardless of the fact that they would have beaten-up anyone who molested
her like that, of whatever race.

The story therefore had a point. I really don't think hiding these sorts of incidents
help with getting "views aired".
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
Hey don't beat me up mate, I was talking about the blog, not the article!
08:59 AM
392
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
09:06 AM
393
Sorry mate - thought you were saying I shouldn't have mentioned the incident
with the girl.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
09:16 AM
394
Not at all mate, not at all. That's cool. We're all together on this so we can all
wait a second, what's that tapping noise? Look out, here comes the next
comment!!!
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
09:52 AM
395
There was a Nepali guy attacked from behind 2 days ago near where I live on the
Northern Beaches of Sydney. He looks Indian, but...his attackers were Pacific
Islanders who had only been in the country for 3 weeks. Unfortunately his
situation is rather serious and I hope he makes a full recovery.
RICHARD BLACKBURN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
10:25 AM
396
Bloody hell. KEEP YOUR DAMN HANDS TO YOURSELF.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
11:31 AM
397
hey Guys,

disappointed I am as being an Indian. Sick and Sin. There are few points from my
side after getting up in INdia today and the television channel having a little say
about the idiot being caught for burning himself but more emphasis is on Indian
high commissioner in Australia is been called to Delhi to meet foreign minister
and the caption says " pressure of Australia". I would say "bull S**t". India you
have to grow up even though i am now in Chennai and writing this message.
Cant wait to land back in Melbounre.

secondly, Mr. vijay i think you even might be Gautam Gupta. by the way guys Mr.
Gautam Gupta is jobless and sitting at home doing nothing after getting his
Aussie passport. All he does is getting media coverage but he does not know
after the latest news do u all think he is going to get recognition in Australia no
way. No aussie will go to him because he does not have any credentials any
more. Another news the president of FISA is a bouncer at a night club in
melbourne. what a credit for so called indian student union. Bull according to me
ha.

I also like to mention that Mr. Varun...and sasha you have to grow up because
you are giving the Indian strategy of escapism when the reality is thrown at you

I feel Karthik like me who has adopted Australia as home has a general view.

I condemn the attack. but condemn only if it is genuine. I think poor gautam gupta
once in a interview in Indian channel said "hope victorian police know what they
are doing" ...hey Gautam i think now i say "yes i know what they are doing"
hahahha you are deep trouble mate.

honestly from my heart if the Victorian police checks Mr. Gautam Gupta's record
he might be in trouble as well. he came to australia to study and for sure he
would have worked more than 20hrs a week. That is violating student visa
regulation. he might even be deported to India does not matter if he is a citizen
because he declared legally that he has not violated anything. Mr Gautam you
should be going to speak to a lawyer now mate.

I was also been told that the representatives of FISA is standing in front of
flinders street collecting addresses and requesting them to become a member of
fisa. disgrace dude. this is not how you guys should do things
ANAND SAMY
FEB 03,
2010
11:44 AM
398
I wonder if the two Indian brothers who died at a New Zealand glacier when they
left a safe area to take pictures are included in these statistics? They were
residing in Australia at the time so maybe they were. No doubt it would have
been a violent and unfortunate death for both of them. As for the guy who torched
himself as well as his car lets hope he is deported back to India as soon a
spossible.
RAY
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
12:57 PM
399
Just announced in the press - An Indian national has been arrested in Horsham
for sexually interfering with two girls. Allegedly he gave them alcohol before
allegedly molesting them. They were minors.

I guess those racist aussie girls somehow trapped him.
CP
FEB 03,
2010
01:22 PM
400
Hi all,

Brief background to myself first, I am an Indian Australian, settled in Sydney for
the last 9-10 years, working for one of the largest financial services company in
the country in a very responsible position & have also interacted/worked closely
with clients (people) from other large organizations within Australia.

I categorically REJECT the assertions made in the Indian media and some within
this forum that Australia is a racist country. Also I truly believe that Australia is
one of the best countries, on the face of this earth.

I love its people especially the universal respect & consideration they have for
others, love the Australian generosity of giving everyone a fair-go, no matter
where one comes from. I love the diverse cuisine found in this beautiful
countryItalian wood fired pizza fresh out of the oven/Spanish chorizo & green
salad /Lebanese kebab/Thai fried rice/Indian thandoori chicken/Croatian
Chevapi/Australian Angus beef steak and off course the great Australian white
wines from South Australia.

I love the vast landscapes especially the long golden white sand beaches of the
east coast.I love the clean fresh air found everywhere (not just in the countryside)
and ABOVE ALL
I love Australia for the LACK of institutional corruption, societal hatred & cultural
prejudices found in most other countries and PERSONALLY experienced this, in
my own country for 30 long years.

Therefore when Indian media makes accusation against Australia, I for one do
not/will not support it... Not because I am blind or I am an illiterate idiot...but
because I have first hand experience of this beautiful country.

Also my wife is a non Indian/ my in laws (extended family) are non Indians...all
my friends are non Indians and my colleagues are non Indians...so I would know
surely IF Australians are racist!!

So trust me when I say this, Australia is one of the best country on the face of this
earth and its people, one of the best you can find.

All I have to say to my Indian brothers everwhere is that...
I love Australia, I love India and Iam fortunate enough to have known both.
RK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
01:45 PM
401
Breaking News!!!

The indian Nobel prize winner (living in USA) is now calls Britain about
racism.....cant believe this. What a confused Indian....he feels Brits are racist
because his O2 mobile application is been rejected because of credit rating.
What a dum....god SAVE India and sitting here and having my holiday is making
me more agressive and cant wait to land in melbourne and be away from the
indian media and few morons here....god save India

http://www.timesnow.tv/Indian-Nobel-laureate-cries-
racism/articleshow/4337678.cms
ANAND SAMY
FEB 03,
2010
01:48 PM
402
Nice post RK - the more positive testimonials from Indian Australians the better!
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
02:46 PM
403
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/03/2808440.htm?section=australia

http://www.theage.com.au/national/brumby-slams-indian-government-media-
20100203-ncqv.html
NIN
FEB 03,
2010
03:58 PM
404
"hey Guys,

disappointed I am as being an Indian."

You don't help your cause being a Quisling. A rational debate is fun and
interesting, but I thought this whole issue was about journalistic integrity and
finding the truth, not attacking people because of perceived stereotypes.

I'm confused at some of these posts which seem to shift the blame between the
parties. That isn't the issue is it? It's a matter of perception and how
sensationalism can cloud people's ideas about other people.

I'm not being philosophical here, saying "yeah we aren't racist" is admirable,
because in general I believe it's true, but as has been said before, clearly
something is happening. What it is I don't know? Parochialism? Nationalism, bad
reporting? I'm starting to think an English language magazine from India isn't a
forum to convince anybody of anything.
DAVID
FEB 03,
2010
05:11 PM
405
'Quisling' is a bit harsh David. If some Indians/Indian Australians have an issue
with the way others are behaving in Australia, they have a right to express it.
ALAN
FEB 03,
2010
05:35 PM
406
DC Post 364
New York
Fortunately Australia is a long way sort of crime rates in the USA ( homicide rate
1/50 per capita). I totally disagree with you in respect of the effectiveness of hate-
crime legislation and law-enforcement. It has done nothing to decrease the extent
of hate crimes, anymore than the death penalty has for the homicide rate. As to
suggesting that on the basis of reading some posts on this site and making the
determination that a significant proportion of Australians have racial biases?
Huh? Which posts are those and in any event are you not making excatly the
same error as the author of the article: making comments and ascribing motives
when, as you concede, you don't know anything about australia. Strange logic.
Maybe stick with the New York Post
PAUL
FEB 03,
2010
06:25 PM
407
I moved to Australia with my parents in 1982, I have lived in Australia all this time.
I have never been racially abused or attacked in any way. I love India the country
of my birth but I am ashamed of the way the Indian media, politicans, people
accuse Australia of racism. Indian is one of the most disgusting countrys on
Earth, the politicians are corrupt, the police are corrupt, the people live in filth and
squalor. India is a racist country, where politicians rape foreign women and get
away with it, where Indians sexually assualt children and get away with it, then
these Indians come to Australia try to do insurance scams, sexually assualt
Australian women, murder their own and calim all Australian are racist. I am
embrassed to be a Indian after all this, my best friends are Australian, Greek,
Italian, Chinese and they are some of the warmest, nice people I have ever
known. Why don;t the Indian media investigate the Indians coming to Australia on
fake visas to get a PR status? Why don't the Indian people and politicians and
media investigate the rapes, scams, murders Indians commit here in Australia? If
Australia is such a racist country why don't all you Indians stay in your safe,
uncorroupt country? All you Indians have done now is make life hard for the rest
of the Indian people living in Australia in peace and have grown up in Australia a
great country which India will never be able to compete with. India is a disgrace
and a laughing stock in the world, stay in India and as a Indian living in Australia
we don't want you here.
ROSHAN1R@GMAIL.COM
FEB 03,
2010
07:12 PM
408
@ post 404 David, you got it wrong mate. I totally agree that we are here to
debate and find a way to communicate and share a clear pathway why all this is
happening which has never happened before. The reason for my post if that is
what you are referring to as a complain....I am sorry mate, I think i was right to
say that "I am ashamed being Indian because of few Indians here in Australia
who has used Racism as the way to get popularity. Is that right? that was my
question and that's the reason why i mentioned names like Gautam Gupta who
has used this as his platform to promote himself. Just saw channel 9 news via
internet, and he is there and the news reporter said "Gautam Gupta who is the
representative of indian Community" in her comments, I TOTALLY disagree and
it will be a big SIN for the Indian community in Australia to have him and as well
No one is approving or acknowledged the same.

Dont take me wrong here, i am not against Guptas...i am against propaganda
about Racism by him which is not so. where is his comments about the Indian
arrested. Has he met them and spoken to them. what is he doing. See the whole
point here is misleading the people in India and creating communal riots. Not
right mate. The indians like me are living here for long time with out any issues
and would like to do so. I think i can vouch for my 15yrs of experience in
australia.

Sorry for the long message but i have to say this to clear the air.

cheers
ANAND SAMY
FEB 03,
2010
07:47 PM
409
Hello Friends. I have been witnessing this intense issue of Indians being racially
targetted by Australians. I feel its completely unfair to the local people of Australia
who are being subjected to intense media criticsm back in India. I am an Indian
national on PR and migrated 2 years ago to Australia. My experience so far has
been absolutely amazing. The people here are warm, have great sense of
humour and generally happy. Most of them go about their business without
meddling into other peoples business. We can practice our religion freely without
being ridiculed or judged. Well i should also say that there is a bit of ignorance
about Indian culture, but thats understood given the limited interaction Australia
has had with India in all this time. coming to the Indian students problem, let me
share a first hand account of my freind who works in Seven Eleven in St Kilda.
According to him our students coming particularly from punjab are a big
nuisance. they not only disrespect the local culture but are rude and rowdy in
their behaviour. Only last week few of these guys bashed a lebanese guy outside
a restaurant on silly reason. He says he actually feels ashamed when he see's
such behaviour from his own country mates. Remember its simple rule. Respect
the local culture and the culture will respect you. We Indians have to respect the
local culture here or else we better be on our way out. Let not the lovely people
here be subjected to such useless and baseless criticism when we know that the
facts are very different than what it is made out to be.
BHARAT
PERTH, AUSTRALIA
FEB 03,
2010
07:59 PM
410
No nation or group of people is perfect. But sadly I find Indians this time
completely wrong side of line. two points I think are prime reason for whole issue.

1. Poverty and extreme competition for survival in India which naturally pushes
people to go in search for better life out there in developed nations. No matter
what they have to do, to achieve it.Plain and simple.

2. Ultra nationalistic but haplessly naive Indian media which refuse to do a self
introspection.
STORM
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 03,
2010
09:38 PM
411
Those Australians, including Indo-Australians, making accusations, that the
Indian media is being hysterical or hyper-critical, are way off base. This very
Outlook article contains many balanced, nuanced views of the recent spate of
violence. An Australian official is quoted to the effect that not all the attacks are
racial. Actually, India has the freest and liveliest media in the third world, with a
variety of perspectives and information presented openly. In some ways, it's freer
than a large section of the American media.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 03,
2010
10:54 PM
412
" Do you speak Australian?" is not a very articulate thing to say. Doesn't reflect
well on the person doing the asking, nor on Australia as a whole, if it is a popular
question.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
01:08 AM
413
Paul
I am commenting not on the situation in Australia but on the comments of several
people on this board that are overtly and covertly racist. I am sure you are neither
blind nor ignorant to see these comments for yourself. And if you can't then I am
sorry- you take a racist tone for granted. (Of course a number of disgusting racist
comments from certain Indian readers are utterly deplorable. )

I draw a parallel with the US not to make a statistical comparison of crime rates -
that's what you and many others are doing in this forum to underplay allegations
of hate crimes.

Americans never deny the presence of hate crimes by citing statistical
significance - nor does the law and order blame the accusers when they cannot
apprehend the criminals. And allegations of racial profiling is taken very seriously
- if you donot care about the victims you will certainly care for big ticket lawsuits.

Instead of apprehending the culprits if you guys deny that there is no hate crime
in your country and the accusers are all lying that's fine. And blaming Indian
media or asking immigrant Indians to go back will not resolve the brewing
animosity.
DC
FEB 04,
2010
02:23 AM
414
How do you know there are hate crimes in Australia DC, given you live half the
world away? Is it because you believe everything you read in the Indian media?

Why don't you believe the many positive posts written here by Indian Australians
who are first hand witnesses?

Why do read general Australian racism into posts by Australian here, but treat the
much worse comments by Indians as isolated incidents? If Australians were to be
as prejudiced as you, we'd be justified in thinking all Indians are as racist as Elan.
Luckily we're not, and you should think about that before posting your nonsense.
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
02:30 AM
415
DC
I am certinly not denying the existence of hate crime in Australia ( and I can't see
any other posts doing that either). All legal jurisdictions in Australia have racial
vilification legislation. It goes without saying that there are racists in
Australia....this magazine chose to interview the fanatical right ( probably
regarded ans centre-right in US terms) and on the basis of that ascribe motives
and behaviour to an entire country. And you think thats ok? Fortunately Australia,
while conceding that there is a tiny lunatic fringe here , is a deeply tolerant
society
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
02:58 AM
416
And DC...if you believe the USA has some international best-practice for dealing
with hate crime you might take a closer look at the Matthew Shepard( u of
Wyoming) case and the extraordinary bitterness associated with the 11 year fight
for federal legislation.
Minister Krishna was quoted yesterday as saying there have been no problems
for indian students in the USA. The dead can't speak for themselves, so
someone needs to remind him of the 2 Indian PhD students murdered ON-
Campus in Louisiana, another murder at Duke and hundreds of other incidents
against Indians. Whether they are hate crimes or opportunistic is not clear but
Krishna's denial of any 'issue' and the absurdity of the claim that the USA is a
safer destination for Indians should be challenged.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
03:03 AM
417
Varun:
> This forum is showing how intolerant Australians are to criticism.

You are ugly, fat and smell like elderberries. Any attempt to refute these
criticism.

> Indians are a small, non-aggressive, non-offending, law abiding community.

There are 400,000 Indians in Australia. That may be small when put against a
population of 1 Billion, but its a significant proportion of our 22 Million.

I agree that they are overwhelming law-abiding and non-aggressive, which is why
they make a preferential target for idiots looking for trouble. Maybe the
community needs to raise local knowledge of silambam and other traditional
martial arts to build the perception that maybe, just maybe, their intended victim
will fight back.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
03:12 AM
418
"You are ugly, fat and smell like elderberries. Any attempt to refute these
criticism."

That's not the tone of the series of Outlookindia articles, at all. You are now
misrepresenting the Indian media, due to your hypersensitivity to criticism. If you
read these articles carefully, they give a balanced picture of the recent incidents,
and even mention the lewd and crude behaviour of some of the new Indian
arrivals. But it doesn't in any way justify the attacks, or alter the fact the violence
is continuing.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
03:21 AM
419
Varun: "Do you speak Australian?" is not a very articulate thing to say.

I've never heard anybody ask that question, though of course "Do you speak
English" is quite likely if communication is proving difficult.

Interestingly, the last time I asked was in response to an American tourist:

"Do you speak American?"
"No. Do you speak English?"
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
03:27 AM
420
Varun:

Firstly, the tone I am refuting is not that of OutlookIndia, it's that of Varun Shekar.

Secondly, by definition, a balanced view requires at least two opinions. A single
article, unless peer reviewed and referenced, will have great difficulty providing a
balanced view.

So, by our interchange, you and I are presenting a balanced view. Future readers
to this forum will be able to read our opinions and draw their own conclusions.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
04:05 AM
421
Bharat, I'm afraid your words are falling on deaf ears.

Like you I have an Indian background and I love the Australia. It is my home.

It does not matter what we say, the Indian media and Indian self interest groups
want to protray Australia as a racist nation even though the truth is completely
opposite.

I have been bashing my head against a brick wall for a while now but there is
nothing that you or I can do to prevent this.

It breaks my heart.
BRIAN
FEB 04,
2010
04:09 AM
422
Alan and Matt,

what exactly are you arguing about? There is no balanced view by refuting every
point that has been raised. And Matt, whether you speak Australian or English - is
this a so called balanced view on the issue that has been raised here.

Some of you agree that there are racist elements within the society so what
exactly are you arguing about?

And PeterMC, Indians might have BPO meetings - there is nothing wrong with
that. But Indians also have a lot of excellent achievements - We specifically dont
need to whore with the US because of our insecurity living in Asia.

And Heath: you mentioned Indian students are sometimes loud and that is why
they are attacked. I guess you would say that the Bali bombing happened
because of all the drunk Aussies?
ROHAN
FEB 04,
This is what I believe is happening in Melbourne. Its only conjecture, because
2010
04:20 AM
423
really, theres no hard evidence.

I believe Indian students are being robbed because theyre in risky occupations
such as taxi driving and convenience store work, because they live in poor and
violent neighbourhoods, and because they tend to carry cash to avoid financial
scrutiny. Also, I believe Indian students are perceived by the criminals who attack
them as not being part of mainstream Australia and therefore vulnerable. I
believe the students are probably subjected to racial taunts while being robbed.
These attacks will be being carried-out by impoverished drug users and drunk
thugs of all races and ethnicities (including whites), and recent immigrant groups
who are having trouble fitting into Australian society. Because of the racial taunts
the robberies are being interpreted by the likes of Sasha as hate-crimes.

Some Indian students may also be being attacked because of inappropriate
behaviour around Australian women. Again, racial taunts will almost definitely be
involved and Sasha will be interpreting these as hate crimes because of the
taunts.

Indians in places where young people go to let-off steam like the CBD may also
unfortunately be targeted with racial taunts by idiotic drunk young men with too
much testosterone, probably whites of all European backgrounds, and probably
middle eastern men too. This is undoubtedly an example of low-level racism, and
unfortunately it's been applied to each successive group of migrants into
Australia - Italians, Greeks, Vietnamese, Lebanese etc.

I consider a racist attack to be where someone is attacked simply because of
race - not for theft or retaliation. The attack on the Nepali mentioned below may
be such a case. I think there was another attack on an Indian (last year?), and
that was by a middle eastern gang. The recent attack on 2 Indians by East
Asians may also be a racist attack, but it might also be a result of the recent
tensions between China and India. Such abhorrent attacks dont seem to be very
frequent.

Now the Sashas of this world and the Indian media are lumping all these
together as hate crimes and out of reverse racism concluding theyre all being
perpetrated by white Australians because of an all-pervading Australian anti-
Indian racism. To justify this, ridiculous claims are being made of ambulances
giving preference to whites over Indians, and police are accused of inaction. To
put that into perspectivem, Ive been bugled 3 times in Melbourne and had a car
stolen twice. The police have dutifully come and taken notes, and thats the last
Ive heard of it. Sometimes, theres just nothing police can do. Unfortunately the
case of Nitin Garg may be in this group.

On a brighter note, my group of friends includes Europeans, Australian east
asians, and Australian Indians. This includes a girl of mixed Chinese/Anglo
background married to a bloke of German origin, a girl of Indian origin married to
a bloke of Chinese origin, and a girl of Chinese origin married to a bloke of Irish
origin.
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
04:43 AM
424
Rohan:

Actually, refuting every point theoretically does produce a balanced argument. It
is the very basis for the confrontational legal systems found throughout most of
the Western World, and bits and pieces of the east.

Is it perfect? No, but it presents both sides and permits an impartial observer
(such as judge or jury) to weigh up both sides, and draw a conclusion.

So, as my closing summary to this debate:

Are there racists in Australia? Yes.

Are the attacks on Indians in Australia racially motivated? Some yes, some no.
We know that some attacks were indians attacking other indians, and one was an
accidental self-immolation.

Does this mean that every as-yet unexplained attack was racially motivated? No.
Not logically. Not statistically.

Does this mean that every as-yet unexplained attack was NOT racially
motivated? No. Not logically. Not statistically.

Does that mean we don't know which attacks were racially motivated? Yes, and
until more data comes through, any division along those lines is just a guess.

In Australia, are Indians proportionally more likely to be attacked that other ethnic
groups? No. In fact the evidence is that statistically they are under-represented in
victim of crime numbers. That Aborigines are over-represented should be more of
a national embarrassment. Native Australians don't have a high-commissioner
that they can symbolically recall or a tabloid press where they can run
nationalistic comment.

Does that mean Australia doesn't have a problem with violent attacks and
assaults? No, but it means its a bigger issue, not directed particularly at Indians.

Will the Australian economy fall-over if all the Indian Students leave, or if we
never sell Uranium to India? No. We'll feel it, but its more than made up for by
exports of primary products to China.

Does the average Australian care whether Indians are here or not? Probably not.
A few will feel threatened, and a few will miss them should they leave (In
particular, a white friend of mine who seems to have had a long string of Indian
girlfriends).

Does Australia have a monopoly on racists? No

Is India free of racism, and thus in a position to point the finger? No

Is the US free of racism, and thus in a position to point
the finger? No

Is Canada free of racism, and thus in a position to point the finger? No and
Maybe. They are definitely one of the more advanced nations when it comes to
integration.

Is Varun arguing from an informed position? No

Is Varun turning to personal attacks and gross generalisations in order to build
his case? Yes.

Is that technically even an argument? No.

Over to you, Varun.
MATT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
07:00 AM
425
As a White Anglo Saxon Australian I am actually quiet offended by allegations
that all Australians are racist against Indians.

I have neighbours, freinds and work colleagues who are of Indian back ground
and they like I can not see the racism that the Indian Journalists are reporting.

My Indian neighbours children are teenagers and just starting to drive. I see
many of their teenage freinds coming to visit and whilst alot are of Indian heritage
quiet a lot of them are white and from other backgrounds whom they have net
through school.

My Daughter and the Indian girl next door have been freinds for many years

That is the real Australia

Geoff
GEOFF MARTIN
KINGSWOOD, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
07:14 AM
426
Canada is one of the more enligtened countries when it comes to the matter of
policies on racism, but shares very similar history to the USA, Australia and other
places in relation to its dark racist past. Many posters here refer to the so-called
white-australia policy ( in effect abolished in 1966) but would not understand that
Canada had a virtually identical policy until 1967.
In any event, the white Australia policy has very little to do with the situation
facing Indians in Australia....except perhaps rather ironically in the sense that
much(but not all) of the street crime in Australia is undertaken by the alienated
and dissaffected children of those who came to Australia as a result of the
abolition of the white australia policy.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
08:04 AM
427
Alan's comment (no 423) sums up what the situation is in Melbourne vis-a-vis the
indian student attacks.

However Alan, I dont think there will be many indians who will actually read your
viewpoint with an open mind and concede that perhaps they may have jumped to
conclusions too soon (after all, one has to save face, even if it has mud all over it)

Indian's are by nature given to emotional and sometimes violent outbursts. Mostly
because we tend to accept things that come our way even if it bothers us (and
dont actually do anything to address it at that point), and then when it gets too
much explode into irrational reactions, childish name-calling, and disturbingly
violent riots.

As an indian-australian living in Melbourne, I have been asked what I think about
all this, and in my conversations with australian colleagues at work, I found that
most seem to want to deny that racism exists in australia or that there can be
some racism behind some of the indian attacks. There have been a couple who
just say 'So what, other immigrants faced it too, why should indians complain?'
That attitude is just as reprehensible as indians grouping all these attacks as
racist and calling all (white) australians racist.

By that same token, I noticed today (on online papers like the Herald Sun) that a
lot of australians seem to think that because the indian guy set himself on fire for
an insurance claim and there were 2 indians involved in the murder of the indian
fruit picker, that all the other assaults on indian students and racist taunts that
accompanied (some, most of them?) can be waved away.

Unfortunately, we haven't heard the last of this. There are still many poor, indian
students in melbourne, mostly from indian villages who are ill-equipped to deal
with life in a western metro.
SUMERA
FEB 04,
2010
08:36 AM
428
I meant comment no 424 by Matt. Although Alan's post is spot on too! :-)
SUMERA
FEB 04,
2010
08:37 AM
429
Breaking news from Australia.

Another racist attack has occured in Melbourne. The man used a club and drove
past the pedestrian hitting him in the head knocking him unconcious. Then a
large number of people turned up and assisted in beating the already unconcious
person. A bouncer had early seperated the criminal when he had attacked the
victim from behind in Ackland Street.

The man with the club was an Indian taxi driver, the gang that assisted him to
beat an already unconcious person, were Indian taxi drivers, the victim a white
person. The Indian has now been arrested and charged with serious assault. This
must be a racist conspiracy to arrest peace loving, tolerant, well educated Indian
'students', who drive taxis.

While I'm on the subject, the other Indian that has been arrested for the rape of
the two 11 girls in Victoria after he slipped them alcohol must also be subject to
the same conspiracy.

We will return this Indian Peadophile soon. He can pratice legally what is illegal in
Australia. I think he is confused, and thought child brides were legal in Australia.

I notice very many similarities with all cases involving Indians, be they victims or
perputrators. The surname is nearly always a Punjabi name. Is this a
coincidence? Or a white racist conspiracy?

We know most Indians hate Punjabis, based on articles within Indian papers, has
this now lead to Australians hating Punjabis?

I am also now confused, have we Australians developed our racist brains so far
that we now can determine that someone is a Punjabi and not a Maharashtrian?

I also find it interesting until recently Sihks were not called Indians in the Indian
media, only Hindus were.

My racist brain is now so confused.

Apologies, this ridicule is not directed at the educated Indians, which in India is a
minority based on Indian, NGO and UN statistics, or at the real Indian Students in
Australia.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
08:41 AM
430
It's all an ugly business Sumera. I suspect people denying the racist element are
at least partly reacting to the exagerated reports from India. Afterall, when you're
unjustly accused of being complicit in race-hate, the tendancy is to get indignant
and over-react.

Here's to understanding between all parties eh?
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
08:51 AM
431
The Colombo Plan is the one thing you never hear about. When Indians and
others want to prove we are racists they refer to the White Australia Policy, which
when put in context for the times would not have been considered by most
people but that is for another blog.

The Colombo Pla was intiated by Australia in 1949 and had Australia paying for
the University education of Indians, Sri Lankans, Pakistanis, Malaysians,
Indonesians etc. in ecenomics, science, agriculture etc. which resulted in
improving the lives of the people in these nations.

Call us racist if you wish, but understand history when using it to prove your point.

Unlike India, we still sponsor people from all over the world to study here. Maybe
that should be your Australian story.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
09:05 AM
The White Australia Policy, not the actual name of the policy, was designed to
create a utopian and egalitarian society at the time of Federation.

The view was that if all people held similar beliefs, read: religious, cultural, ethical
(and as the Australians were Anglo-Saxon-Celt this is what they saw as similar),
then there would be no need for war or division. As Europe, Africa, Asia and the
432
Americas had been undergoing decades and centuries of external and civil wars
and class division this policy would prevent Australia going down this path.

That is what the ideals of the policy were. In todays world that is seen as a racist
policy. The WAP was in many ways disbanded directly after WW2, proven by the
influx of southern and western Europe.

Now, before anyone mentions, "What about the Aboriginals?", this you also need
to put into context in the history of the times.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
09:13 AM
433
I suggest we ask a Tasmanian aborigine to comment on that. Whoops, we
f@#ckin killed them all. That's right, the whole population of Aborigines in
Tasmania, gone.
No, Australians don't have a racist history, not that much, it's just the people who
migrate here.
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
09:28 AM
434
@ ELAN
...what exactly is your problem with Australians?

After your blissfully punctuation-free rant, you have then decided to copy and
paste well-known facts about Australia's history in an attempt to make your point
that apparently we are all a bunch of racist pigs.

Yes, Australia was colonized in a rather brutal fashion by the British. As was
America. How's your Native population doing these days? Not so well, I hear. So,
kindly refrain from advising us that "you aussies are getting your racist asses
kicked by everyone". The American population is hardly one to make a fuss
considering their treatment of their African-American, Mexican (and virtually every
other) minority groups.

Yes, there are Australians who are racist. Just like there are Americans,
Canadians, Russians, Indians, Chinese, Sudanese, Lebanese, Japanese etc etc
etc (shall I go on?) who are also racist. This does not in any way represent the
majority view. What you have also failed to realise, is that the majority of
Australians are not white these days. There is such an immense mix of races that
it's very difficult to even say who's a migrant and who is not.

I myself migrated from Russia around 17 years ago. In the first few years, yes,
there was an occasional remark made towards me that could be termed as racist.
These comments however, were generally brought about by me not knowing the
language, customs and social niceties of the country I had just moved to. In other
words, when I began to respect Australia's customs, they began to respect me
too, in turn.

In general, with the obvious exclusion of the inevitably dim-witted portion that
exists in ANY population, I have never had any displays of even mild racism
towards me, that were not provoked by me in the first instance (when you rather
ignorantly ask an Aussie why they eat pies and that their beloved national food
tastes like dog's bollocks, you are likely to get told to get f***d and do go eat , in
my case, stroganoff [insert applicable national food here] back in one's home
country). And fair enough I say.

Conversely, I have actually had a number of instances of being inappropriately
spoken to, harassed, touched and called terrible names, by Indian cab drivers
who feel that it is their right to do so, because I wear Western-style clothing
(jeans and T-shirts)and happen to be traveling home late at night from work. One
charming driver referred to me as an "Aussie slut" while watching porn on a
laptop at the same time as driving his cab. This doesn't make me assume
however, that all Indians are represented by that particular pig of a man.

So please, Jose, until you know what's actually happening here, as my Aussie
girlfriends say, "pull your head in, mate".
DARIA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
09:33 AM
435
Actually, indigenous tasmanian culture is alive and well. Many in that community
would be surprised that you have declared them dead.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
09:40 AM
436
LOL sorry, I meant @ ELAN FROM SAN JOSE (apologies to anyone named
Jose that my have thought i was directing that at them)
DARIA
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
09:47 AM
ELAN'S "paradise on earth".........San Jose, completely free of racism tension
accodring to him.....others may noit be so sure(from San Jose Mercury 17
Jan2010)
437

For the first time in its 26-year history, the Freedom Train from San Jose to San
Francisco that honors the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. will embark Monday without
the blessing of a local chapter of the NAACP.

The president of the San Jose branch of the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People is upset that train organizers accepted a $5,000
donation from the San Jose Police Officers Association at a time when news
reports of police misconduct toward minorities have ignited a contentious
discussion about race and law enforcement in that city.

"My feeling is you can't buy civil rights; it's something you fight for," said Pastor
Jethroe Moore II. "You don't honor someone just because they give you money."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-
bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/16/BAPK1BHN4T.DTL#ixzz0eXIs1wN2
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
11:01 AM
438
Until a few weeks ago, the race of victim and guilty parties was not mentioned in
Australia in the media or by the police. That was until the Indian media got
involved. At first only crime where the victim was Indian was reported in Australia.
Now all crime relating to Indians gets reported. So something interesting is
happening:

So far this year, 5 weeks in, we have 3 Indian murderers, we have one who is on
suspicion of murdering his wife, we have 2 rapists, another who who sexually
assaulted minors (repeat offender), we have a fraudulent arsonist and now a taxi
driver who along with a gang of other Indian drivers beats up a passenger.

I would suggest that this year the number of crimes committed by Indians is way
ahead of crimes where Indians are the victim.

If anyone should be upset here, it is ordinary Australians who are being accused
of being racist whilst Indians inport the criminal activities to our cities.

What is the real story here?
PETE MC
FEB 04,
I have expressed my opinion on this matter (Blog 291) and time has come to cool
2010
11:15 AM
439
down on both sides-Indian and Australian bloggers. Name calling from both sides
is not helping.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 04,
2010
11:18 AM
440
The Permanent Residency visa offer for course completion issue needs to be
looked at. We've ended-up with a whole lot of spurious education colleges that
charge Indians large fees to provide qualifications that allow application for
Permanent Residency (whether the qualifications are completed or not). This
results in great financial pressure on 'students' that encourages them to break the
visa work laws. It also results in disreputable characters who have no real interest
in studying in Australia. Basically we're saying, 'if you're prepared to break our
laws, give us enough money and we'll let you in'.

We need to encourage highly qualified professional Indians and serious
university-level students to migrate, not people who intend to break our laws
before they step off the plane. Cracking-down on these dodgy characters would
hopefully help ease the friction between India and Australia, and encourage
serious students and professionals to migrate.

It seems to me that the Australian govt has been negligent in selling Permanent
Residence visas for money, with spurious education courses being the
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
11:46 AM
441
To say that indigenous Tasmanian culture is alive and well is a lie. The last full
blooded Aboriginal Tasmanian died in 1876. The current population who call
themselves Aboriginal are a mixture from rape and government policy which was
to breed out or exterminate the race. My point is that Australia has a racist past,
possibly a racist foundation. But I guess genocide can be explained away. How
about those damn cab drivers!
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
12:42 PM
Australia is a very racist country. We once had a Labor Party leader who said "no
red blooded Australian wants a chocolate Australia by the 80s." Our educational
policy is to get as many seats filled as possible and not care about the students
who have filled them. I recently read a book by a so called leading intellectual in
this country who proudly proclaimed that the White Australia Policy finished with
442
Whitlam. The silly suggestion being that all he had to do was to say it was over
and that was the end of it. My parents came here from Europe and I was
subjected to abuse because of the strange food we ate and the also strange food
at our store. However, I was a good sportsman and eventually all was 'forgiven'.
Students travelling to this country should give Victoria a fairly wide berth. That is
not to say the rest of the country is better, just that the Victorians have a history
of racism. Particularly toward the Chinese. The Labor Party and the Unions live in
a state of fear of large numbers of foreigners taking Australian jobs. It is almost a
National trait to think that we should plan for the circumstance of large numbers
of foreigners arriving. If you look at our boat person policy you get some
ridiculous Labor policy where it was a matter of rescuing these people then it
became turning the boats back. Meanwhile the numbers continue to grow and
people are accepted in. It is the ultimate double standard. In this country there
used to be a call to "Populate or Perish" these days the call is more "Populism or
Perish" as both political parties have no other real concern than re-election. It
should always be remembered that racism is one of the primary tools of fascism
and feeds the constant call for security. We are about to spend $70 billion on
arms and a security fear was needed. Guess who filled the gap you can read it in
the Defence Paper. Of course it is the Indians and the Chinese. Our Prime
minister who would attend the opening of an envelope if he could be
photographed standing alongside Obama or some other powerful person will
speak to the Chinese in their own dialect and from the other side of his mouth call
the Chinese a security threat. He and his party must think you in India and China
have no memory or are going to be so dependent on us tearing our land apart to
provide resources, that you will overlook our two faced attitudes.

Regards,

George Ikners
GEORGE IKNERS
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
01:05 PM
443
Totally agree with Alan (comment 440) with regard to PR courses, the federal
government in 2004/05 not only diluted the then stringent university student visa
category but also included vocational training students to be eligible for
permanent visas. These changes were a deliberate attempt by the Howard
government to increase unskilled/semi skilled workforce which can be then help
keep overall wages down within the economy.

Most intelligent/educated Indians have a social stigma attached to these kinds of
qualifications and would rather die than enroll in classes teaching
hospitality/cooking etc.

So to call these people students would be a disgrace, it is just a guise to enter
into this country, and get residency.

While it is true that many Indians have positively contributed to the
American/British/Canadian society over 30-40 years, those Indians were greatly
educated highly skilled, well behaved & came from socially conservative (back
home) families. However the current group of students who have arrived here in
Australia to learn cookery/hospitality etc are from a different crop. They are
definitely going to work hard as unskilled/semi skilled workers however do not
expect them to integrate into the mainstream of this community & become
international citizens because they have neither the social capacity/ family belief
systems nor the attitude to do so.

Therefore I dont see this problem going away UNLESS the federal government
changes the current lax immigration rules around VOCATIONAL student visa &
decline permanent visas application from all such student.

It would be unfortunate to lose good unskilled/semi skilled people however thats
the price we should be prepared to pay.
RK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 04,
2010
01:20 PM
444
David Morgan re Tasmanian Aboriginals. Your comments are a disgrace...and
racist. Apparently you believe in racial purity....one nation voter? Take a closer,
less blinkered view of how indigenous Tasmanians view themselves rather focus
on your own uniformed bias
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
01:35 PM
445
another Indian student charged....this one for assault in Acland St, St Kilda.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
01:48 PM
446
Thursday.

The 25-year-old passenger was involved in a heated argument with the cab
driver around 10 pm on Wednesday, as they pulled over in Acland Street in St
Kilda, Australian news agency AAP reported.

A witness said the passenger tried to walk away but the cab driver chased him
down and had to be restrained by security staff working at a nearby business.

The passenger kept walking away as the cab driver then grabbed a baton from
the boot of his cab, drove up next to the passenger and allegedly started striking
the man repeatedly with the weapon, according to the witness.

"Within a few minutes, many other cab drivers, all of them Indian, all turned up,"
witness Karen told Fairfax Radio Thursday. "And I could just see how out of hand
this is all getting."

Paramedics say they treated the passenger for bruising and swelling to his upper
body and took him to The Alfred hospital in a stable condition.

The 32-year-old cab driver was arrested and later charged with intentionally
causing injury and two counts of unlawful assault.

Police say they cannot discuss the case further because the cab driver is facing
charges before the courts.

He is expected to make a court appearance in Melbourne Magistrates' Court at a
later date.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
01:52 PM
447
RK - yes. However, semiskilled/unskilled labour could be got by giving entry for
humanitarian reasons to young famillies from Iraq, Afghanistan, India and
elsewhere. People who have been properly assessed as deserving migration,
rather than fake students who have shown they have no respect for the laws and
customs of the country they're entering.
ALAN
FEB 04,
2010
03:13 PM
448
Oh, dear.......they just seem to keep coming.....

Neurosurgeon on drug death charges From: AAP February 04,

A SYDNEY neurosurgeon has been charged over the drug-related deaths of two
women.
Suresh Surendranath Nair, 41, has previously faced court charged with supplying
a prohibited drug at his Elizabeth Bay apartment, in Sydney's east, on November
19.

The charge related to the death of a 22-year-old woman, whose body was found
at the apartment three days later.

Without naming him, police said Dr Nair would appear in court tomorrow charged
with one count of murder and one count of manslaughter.

Police said the manslaughter charge relates to a 23-year-old woman who died on
February 15 last year after being taken to St Vincent's Hospital from an address
in Elizabeth Bay.

The murder charge relates to the death of the 22-year-old woman in November.

"Post-mortem examination results indicate both women died of cocaine toxicity,''
police said in a statement today.

Nair was granted bail on the original drug supply charge but it was revoked after
he allegedly breached his bail conditions, which required him not to engage in the
services of female escorts or consume illegal drugs.

He is due to appear in Central Local Court today.
PAUL
FEB 04,
2010
07:55 PM
449
hey guys, there was absolutely no news about the taxi driver who hit a passenger
and also about the doctor. what a crap indian media is!!! believe me guys they
showed the blast occurred in darwin CBD.

By the way Mr. Gautam gupta has said to one journalist that he is feeling very
uncomfortable about the news coming against indians and he is feeling red and
cant say anything now.
ANAND SAMY
FEB 04,
2010
08:05 PM
450
Daria, Matt, Paul et al, what in your view would be an appropriate response from
the Indian media or government about the recent spate of attacks. A country's
nationals are attacked over and over, so of course there's going to be concern.
Later, you can sift through the events, and say one or two of the incidents had to
do with inter-Indian violence or insurance fraud. It still doesn't change the main
theme: that many Australians feel threatened by the new immigrants who are
'visible', insufficiently Australian, accented, and perceived as competitors for low
paying jobs. Incidentally, to those Indo-Australians denouncing the recent
arrivals, many of them have to work to support themselves, which is why they are
taking jobs like driving taxis or late night cashiers etc. The older, more
professional Indian immigrants were fortunate in that respect, that there was no
need to do these kind of jobs. Hence, they were not seen as competitors by the
element that is now attacking them.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
08:12 PM
451
////////////////////...////////////////////
HARIKUMAR
COVENTRY, UK
FEB 04,
2010
08:14 PM
452
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////...(-))))))))))))))))))
HARIKUMAR
COVENTRY, UK
FEB 04,
2010
08:15 PM
453
Actually, the Indian media, if not the Indian government, has taken a very
balanced view of the incidents in Australia. If they were a bunch of demagogues
and propagandists, they would be ranting something like "The unjust brutal
Australian state and society must be condemned for these unforgivable attacks,
and all just people and nations everywhere must condemn the racist, murderous
attacks on innocent Indians, and force the racist Australian state and society to
stop their unjust acts" Or something to that effect. If India were communist or
Islamist, that's the kind of statement you would be hearing. Instead, this series of
Outlook articles are highly balanced, nuanced, reflective and fair-minded. While
keeping focused on the primary theme of violence against new Indian
immigrants.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 04,
2010
08:19 PM
454
Mr varun, you have to understand the visa rules that once you are coming in on a
student visa you HAVE to prove that you have enough funds to live and study in
Australia. Then how can the student wont have money to pay the fees. Two
things one, he has cheated the visa office to get the visa saying he has enough
money, secondly he is trying to work illegally more than 20hrs to earn and send
the money home or pay the fees. No way and not accepted. so wrong people
coming on wrong visa and that is why the visa rejection now in australian high
commission in delhi is 67% and all the applications from punjab is called for
personal interview and rejected. so no point in complaining about the finance and
these are about attitude. newly arrived indian student should know how to be
humble i suppose
ANAND SAMY
FEB 04,
2010
09:17 PM
455
So in effect, Anand, you are saying the new Indian immigrants brought all this
violence on themselves. They deserve what they got, every last one of them.
Thanks.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 05,
2010
03:52 AM
456
It seems like this is mostly a media manufactured controversy. A similar thing
happened in the 80's in New Jersey when gangs of youth were attacking people
of Indian origin wearing tilaks (dots) on their foreheads. The gangs called
themselves the dot-busters. When a minority population becomes visible, people
at the fringes of society are the ones to feel the most threatened, since it is their
livelihood that hey perceive to be under attack. The phenomenon in New Jersey
died down pretty fast and Indians have continued to be the largest immigrant
population in New Jersey, in all strata of society ranging from Wall Street fat cats
to restaurant workers. I suspect, that over time Victoria will witness a similar
evolution.
- Sriram
SRIRAM
ACTON, UNITED STATES
FEB 05,
2010
04:27 AM
457
This article has made one point worth considering - the 'vocational' students
coming to Australia are ill-suited to fitting into our society. The Permanent
Residency option for vocational students should be removed.

For now, to weed-out the fake students:
- audits of vocational colleges to be increased in frequency and intensity.
Colleges found to be providing fake qualifications to be shut down and their
students have their visas cancelled.
- assessment of students once they've finished their courses to be undertaken
independant of the colleges that run the courses
- increased ID scrutiny to ensure the people taking the assessments are the
same people who are enrolled in the courses
- increased scrutiny of vocational students finances
- failure to pass an end-of course assessment to result in cancellation of visa
- 6 months employment in the area of study to be required before a Permanent
Residency application is permitted.
- Vocational student visas to be only valid for long enough for completion of the
course and 6 months of employment in the field of study.

Any resulting shortfall in migration to be replaced with humanitarian migration
offers.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
04:32 AM
458
The surgeon in question seems to have been operating under the influence of
drugs as well.

http://www.smh.com.au/national/discharged-after-spinal-surgery-in-pain-
20100128-n1s4.html
IAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
06:02 AM
459
Varun @comment 453

You point out this Outlook article and the others in this magazine as
representative of the balanced viewpoint of the entire Indian media? I was in
India a few months back, and at last count there were scores of news channels
most of which had sensational, name-calling, headlines along the lines of "The
unjust brutal Australian state and society must be condemned for these
unforgivable attacks, and all just people and nations everywhere must condemn
the racist, murderous attacks on innocent Indians, and force the racist Australian
state and society to stop their unjust acts"
They have TV 'debates' that consists of several shrieking pannelists and a clearly
biased host who has already made up his\her mind about what is behind every
student attack.
If there is a reasonable pannelist or someone who has actually spent time in
australia to give an informed opinion, his voice is general drowned out.

Besides Outlook have you taken a look at other online indian newspapers in the
last 6 months?? You probably would change your opinion on the "balanced"
indian media.

Please note, I do not think the indian media is the only one given to
sensationalist, rabble-rousing reporting. But to call them balanced is a joke.
SUMERA
FEB 05,
2010
06:21 AM
460
@ INDIAN MEDIA & ALL THOSE WHO BELIEVE EVERY INDIAN BEATEN IN
AUSSIE WAS A VICTIM OF RACISM:

I live in sydney and have not faced any racism (direclty). I agree with the fact that
this country has a prob with voilence and Indian students serve as a soft target
for some cowards on the streets. Media in India is not doing any good by
reporting everything as Racism.

@ AUSSIE PEOPLE

PEOPLE IN AUS, WHO TELL INDIANS TO LOOK BACK AT INDIA FIRST OR
GO BACK IF DON'T LIKE IT HERE - UNDERSTAND TWO THINGS FOR EVER
-

1. THIS COUNTRY NEVER BELONGED TO YOU EITHER
(you came here and killed the original aussies and made them confined to their
rural areas acquired their beautiful landscapes and made them your cities......no
fault of yours since it is in your ROOTS to LOOT)

2. WHEN YOU CRITICISE INDIA TELLING INDIANS TO LOOK AT
THEMSELVES FIRST.
Why do you forget that India was the most wealthy, peace loving and prosperous
nation. Then came the british and it is what we see it today no more a happy
nation. DOES THIS RAISE ANY QUESTIONS IN YOUR DUMB MIND????

ONE LESSON FOR EVERYONE - IF YOU ARE BEING ACCUSED OF
SOMETHING THEN ACCEPT IT OR DENY IT BUT BY POINTING OUT FLAWS
IN THE COMPLAINANTS (YOU SHOW YOUR INSECURITY IN YOURSELVES)

So India
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
06:54 AM
461
Hi Ian, Alan and Paul

Please read my previous blog 291 about what I have said on this matter.

My heart bleeds for your self-righteous gibberish here. It is time for you all to
come down from the self-righteous high moral grounds that you have perched on.

There are sleaze- balls and undesirables everywhere and people are engaged in
criminal activities on a quotidian basis world over, irrespective of colour or creed.
A SYDNEY neurosurgeon, Dr.Nair is charged with malpractice and likewise other
white Australian doctors have involved in malpractices in the past. An infamous
white English doctor in England, with the sobriquet of doctor death, was on a
killing spree-killed so many of patients. An Indian sleaze ball at Essendon
claimed that he was torched by some Australian youths and police arrested him
for making false accusations for a fraudulent Insurance scam. Another Australian
disgruntled nitwit bombed a Darwin insurance office and his criminality has some
innocent victims. Do you want me to go on?

Immigration of students with the proviso of permanent residency is acting as a
magnet for students to come to Australia for permanent residency in the pretext
to study-any frivolous courses like hairdressings and so on. Australian
governments motive is to perpetuate its 15 billion dollar educational industry.
One thing most bloggers here didnt shed light on is policing. In New York the
NYPD has a zero tolerance for criminals and the undesirables who posses
weapons of any kinds. Is it time the Victorian police ape the NYPD and declare a
zero tolerance for criminals and the undesirables who possess weapons of any
kinds? Why does a law abiding citizen to possess weapons of any kinds to go
about doing his/her business, whatever they may be? Victorian police is arm
strung by lack of police numbers. Its efficiency is second to none, exemplified by
the speed with which it arrested the Melbourne millionaire Herman Rockefellers
killers-within a week.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 05,
2010
07:21 AM
462
So you don't think these 'students' should actually have to study and pass their
courses before getting residency Scaria?

Other skilled migrants have to demonstrate trade experience before they're
allowed to migrate. Why shouldn't the vocational students have to demonstrate
experience prior to getting a PR?
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
07:42 AM
463
Scaria
The Indian component of Australian 'export' of education to India is largely Indian-
driven and owned ( as well as partly Nepalese and Australia). Have a look at the
latest BRW rich list...you will see on it a name realted to the ownership of one of
these colleges.
Students studying at Australian Universities seem to have very few problems. I
concede that the Govt made a huge blunder in changing the visa regulations to
allow this proliferation of vocational enrolments. But the nexus there is to PR. and
individual students have taken that path.
No-one wants to see Indian students suffering or bashed, let alone murdered. At
issue is the rapid-dog mentality of jouranlists such as those responsible for the
one-sided, fear-inducing, xenophobic, disingenuous hysteria contained in this
series of articles. Fortunately the fraudulent self-immolation story has been
picked up by every news agency in the world, making Mr Krishna look like the
moron he may very well be
PAUL
FEB 05,
2010
07:48 AM
464
and if you want a comparison with NYC, why is the homicide rate in the USA , per
capita, about 20 times higher than Australia. India ranks #1
PAUL
FEB 05,
2010
07:54 AM
465
Hi, my name is Jenny, I live in Melbourne. All I can say is that I'm sorry that all of
this is happening. I am just sorry its happening and I hope the government will
finally step up and take care of this once and for all for everyone. I am sorry that
Indian students feel (and are) so scared in my hometown. I wish it was not like
this. I'm sorry.
JENNY
FEB 05,
2010
08:15 AM
466
No doubt some are scared Jenny. But it's an interesting coincidence that this
issue gained momentum just when the federal government started a review of the
Overseas Student Act that controls the issue of permanent residency visas to
overseas students is it not? A cynical person might think that this is a way of
putting pressure on the Australian government not to crack down too hard on the
visa scam.

In which case, at least some of the fear felt by Indian students may be blamed on
whoever chose to exagerate the issue of general racism for political gain.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
Rakesh, why so angry?

08:43 AM
467
You are from the Indus Valley in Pakistan. You took lands from the natives all
over South Asia. You have all but wiped out the natives of the Andaman Islands,
and the sub-continent.

You kill the natives in AP. The Goans hate you. In Darjelling they refer to you as
the monkey people. In Sihkkim they despise you.

Return to your lands in Pakistan and give back all the wealth to the natives.

The typical Indain response is to tell Australians to go home. I am my friend. And
I am loved, free, safe, happy and rich.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
09:38 AM
468
Today watching TV channels in india they are hunting for a news. I think the
reporters are working overtime to find a news and interestingly they found out
about the finance report given by macquarie bank where the guy sitting at the
back was browsing the porn pics. what a joke. hey there are so many important
news here in india and they want to pick this out of Australia. you morons....in
particular times now. what a junk? yesterday one Indian minister gave a mouth
full to mr. goswami the main anchor about his twisting tactics. what a shame
India?? and the scroll at the bottom is mentioning about this article and
requesting people to buy them as shelf life is only till this
sunday...then....Ashamed to be an Indian...all i feel is i dont want to go to some
other country and try to change them...if we like live there if not then get into the
next plane and back home...
ANAND SAMY
FEB 05,
2010
09:43 AM
469
To whom it may concerned

By and large, media-print and electronic-have a tendency to sensationalise and
exaggerate to their advantage, that is the nature of the beast; it happens in
democratic countries like India and Australia. It is tolerable to an extent than
compared to the Big Brother is controlling the media. At least we are living in
democratic countries where we enjoy lots of fundamental rights which are denied
in totalitarian countries like China.

I am not suggesting that the NYPD has completely obliterated violence on the
streets of New York. Its zero tolerance policy coupled with the cops on beats has
helped to reduce crimes dramatically.

This will be my last post on this matter and lots of bloggers have expressed their
varying views. I feel the less said the better on this matter.
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 05,
2010
10:13 AM
470
I notice a large number of Indians, on this site and others, have experessed the
shame they feel that has been brought upon them due to the behaviour of the
Indian media and a handful of Indian ploticians on this, and the action of a few
Indian criminals in Australia.

You are amongst the ones who should not to be ashamed, and you should hold
your heads high for the fact you have faith in Australia and its people.
CRAIG
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
10:15 AM
471
"You kill the natives in AP. The Goans hate you. In Darjelling they refer to you as
the monkey people. In Sihkkim they despise you."

What rubbish. India is a highly diverse, democratic country that accommodates
all the various languages and ethnicities within its borders, as far as possible. If
there are idiots in those states who say the things you claim, they are a tiny
minority. There are many more articulate folk in those places. Incidentally, why
didn't Australia support India's independence movement? It's that racist mentality
and culture again. It's probably much less now, but one can imagine how
horrendous it was in the 30's, 40's and 50's.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 05,
2010
10:42 AM
472
@ Craig

I am not angry on all australians my friend but the ones who when confronted
with something give arguments that check yourself first and justify the attacks.

And for your knowledge, India never invaded any country in the last 1000 years.

Talking about Pakistan, it was indus valley as you said and pakistan was made
out of that and was a result of british rule - they left that partition as scar of their
departure.

And all the hate you talk in Goa, Sikkim or be it any part of India itself is all fueled
by few countries & politicians which do want India to live a peaceful & prosperous
life and make money out of it.

I have friends in North East part of India - sikkim is one them and they tell us how
chinese army people invade into India, dress up in Indian army uniform and do
atrocities on locals then go back and then they fuel all those anger that Indian
armed forces treat them badly and that's why all the anger.

AGAIN MY POINT - IF SOMEONE IS ACCUSED OF SOMETHING DENYING IT
WITH THE ARGUMENT LIKE YOURS SHOWS THE INSECURITY WITHIN.

I am not calling all aussies but a handful (may be) are the ones who cause all
these problems and then everyone has to bear the heat.

Things are not shaping up in the way they should.

Indian students come here for a better life and as you said its a beautiful country
so we don't expect ourselves to get bashed by some cowards in parks / street /
taxis and then told by others to shut up since it is even worse back home.
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
10:43 AM
473
"What rubbish. India is a highly diverse, democratic country that accommodates
all the various languages and ethnicities within its borders, as far as possible"

Why should we believe that when you refuse to believe what we (and Indian
Australians) say about Australia?

"Incidentally, why didn't Australia support India's independence movement?"

Who knows - as you say, it was a long time ago. Maybe we stupidly believed the
Poms when they said there'd be a godawful massacre among all those peace-
loving Indians.

More likely we thought it was a matter better left between you and them.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
10:50 AM
474
@ Anand Samy

Just curious to know what does Samy means in your Indian Name?
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 05,
2010
11:01 AM
475
Oh, Australia did support India's independence movement, just as the post-war
Labor govt supported decolonisation in many countries. India and Australia were
co-sponsors of te newly-independent Indonesia's membership of the UN in 1949
PAUL
FEB 05,
2010
11:23 AM
476

Oops, so we did. Me bad. Thanks Paul.
ALAN
FEB 05,
2010
07:09 PM
477

Oops, so we did. Me bad. Thanks Paul."

Hmmmm, you could show that by citing Australian media commentary back in the
20's, 30's and 40's. And the pronouncements of the Australian government in that
period. As for the allusion to the partition massacre, the British themselves are
not innocent by a long shot. Their policy of constantly compartmentalising people
into religions, and using the excuse of Hindu-Moslem discord to delay or deny
independence, contributed in a big way to the tragedy of 1947.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 05,
2010
07:43 PM
478
Sumera in Melbourne, what do you think the Indian government or media should
say? That there's no problem at all?

A major point posters are missing is this: if indeed the Indian government and
media are 'exaggerating' or 'sensationalising' the recent attacks, then one major
way of refuting these comments, is to interview and sample the concerned or
target group: the recent crop of Indian students in Australia. Don't interview or
cite 2nd or 3rd generation Indo-Australians who are well settled, pretty secure
and more or less accepted. Ask a large section of the new arrivals. If the vast
majority of them say that everything is going well, they don't feel threatened, and
they've never had a bad experience worth mentioning, then Australians would be
correct to accuse the Indian government and sections of the media of
exaggeration.
VARUN SHEKHAR
TORONTO, CANADA
FEB 06,
2010
01:31 AM
479
Varun Shekhar says:
> Sumera in Melbourne, what do you think the Indian government or media
should say? That there's no problem at all?

No Varun, you're engaging in some clever sleight of hand here. The behaviour
that has enraged so many Australians (including myself, an Australian citizen of
Indian birth) is accusation without proof.

It is absolutely right for the Indian media and government to highlight a problem
or raise awareness of an issue, i.e., that Indian citizens seem to be targeted
victims of violent attacks in some Australian cities. It is certainly true that the
initial reaction of Australian officialdom was lethargic. They needed to be spurred
into action.

However, it is *not* right to assume (without proof) that the reason for the attacks
was racism. It is even worse to assume that an entire country is racist (again,
without proof). Technically, it's called libel and many Indian journalists (including
the reviled Arnab Goswami of TimesNow) should be in court facing libel charges
and the prospect of a heavy fine.

i.e., it wouldn't be so much of an issue if mere 'exaggeration' or
'sensationalisation' (as you put it) was the problem. The real issue that enrages
us is *unfounded* accusations of racism. Even today, the sections of the Indian
community that have levelled these accusations are not willing to back down,
apologise or otherwise admit that there is no evidence that the attacks are racist
in nature and that Australia is a racist country.

You do raise an important point, though:
> If indeed the Indian government and media are 'exaggerating' or
'sensationalising' the recent attacks, then one major way of refuting these
comments, is to interview and sample the concerned or target group: the recent
crop of Indian students in Australia.

Yes, by all means, do interview them. And make sure you ask them a simple
question: What was the ethnicity of their attackers? The lot back home may be
surprised to learn that the Australian criminal class is as thoroughly multicultural
(heh) as the rest of Australian society. Would you still believe Australia is a racist
country (implying white supremacism) if it emerged that Indians were being
targeted by criminal gangs made up of Lebanese, Pacific Islanders, Aboriginals
and Sudanese in addition to white people?

I would blame Australia's culture of political correctness for not allowing vital
(although sensitive) information like this to be made public. The police and press
both suppress race-related information about criminals and suspected criminals
because it could lead to racial prejudice (heh).

As Mr. Andrew Bolt writes (http://bit.ly/cKybuP),

"The racial identity of those thieving attackers, officer? Can't say, couldn't see.
The ethnicity of the boys who bashed Singh, Mr Reporter? Didn't notice, won't
write."

I don't always agree with Andrew Bolt, but this article of his is right on the money
and I found its stinging irony deliciously entertaining.

No Varun, the real racism is elsewhere. The willingness to believe the worst of
someone based not on their actual behaviour but on their ethnicity alone, is
called racism. By accusing white Australians of inherent racism (with utter
disregard to something called evidence), sections of the Indian community have
been guilty of racism themselves. Can you see this? I don't think so. As another
poster here said, Indians don't seem to do irony.

I'm not holding my breath expecting an apology, though. Although I'm proud of
many aspects of my Indian culture, I know from 30 years of living there that the
words "sorry" (and "excuse me", "please" and "thank you") are rarely used in
public discourse.

If you're proven wrong, you just brazen it out and shout louder.

My piece of psychoanalysis:
It's well-known that dishonest people can't trust other people. They project their
own deceitful thoughts onto other people and then assume ulterior motives on
their part. I suspect Indians are so willingness to believe in white racism because
Indians as a group are so damn conscious of skin colour. I think an Indian
meeting a white person projects his own thoughts onto that person regarding
himself, "Man, what a dark-skinned guy this is. He's inferior to me!" Then if the
white person in question is anything but perfectly polite, the Indian goes, "Aha! I
knew the guy was a racist! They're all racists, I tell you!"

Look in the mirror, my dear fellow Indians. The racist is standing right there.

Don't believe me? Conduct another interview of Indians living in Australia. Make
sure you talk to:
1. People of dark skin
2. People belonging to Dalit or OBC (Other Backward Castes) groups
3. Women

Ask them in which country they are treated with dignity - India or Australia. The
answer wouldn't surprise me, but it sure as hell may surprise a lot of people back
home.

But as I said, I'm not expecting an apology anytime soon. India needs to grow up
and mature a lot more before that will happen. As for me, I've been in Australia
for 12 years, have grown considerably as a person since coming here and I
absolutely love it here. I'm a proud Australian citizen and if you think I'm a "traitor"
to India for speaking some unpleasant truths, I'm happy to wear that label.

Have a nice day.
GANESH C PRASAD
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
06:23 AM
480
Things are out of control over here in racist Australia.
Dr. Nair (Indian national) Sydney -The murder charge relates to the death of the
22-year-old woman in November.
Likely outcome: Going to Jail cost to tax payers for the next 12 years around
500,000
Thursday.
Likely outcome: conviction, fine, ticket back to the Punjab if we had any sense.
Cost to the community, police time, court time, victim counselling and more than
likely crime compensation.
NSW police had arrested three persons in connection with the murder of
Rannoch Singh, a 25-year-old Indian man, whose burnt body, was found in the
NSW town of Griffith on December, 29, 2009. Third man was arrested on the
same day and will also be charged with Mr Singh's murder
All Indian Nationals
Likely outcome: Going to Jail if found guilty, probably get 20 years and out in 15.
Cost to taxpayers: 3 x 700,000 or 2.1 million over the journey
Cost to victims family cant be quantified will more than likely get crime
compensation
Singh, a 29-year-old Indian "student", turned up last month burned to a crisp, with
a tale of having been attacked in Essendon by four racists with a can of petrol.
Singh, 29, of Grice Crescent, Essendon, in the city's north, faced an out-of-
sessions hearing early this morning ... charged with making a false report to
police and criminal damage with a view to gaining a financial advantage."
Likely outcome: will more than likely get a massive fine and conviction. Again if
we had any sense, straight onto a plane. No charge
Cost to community: Police time and Court time, and fire brigade time
Other Matters
In 2008, when Sukhraj Singh was almost bashed to death in a Sunshine shop.
Singh had been belted by an ethnic gang of whom the only one since publicly
identified in court is Zakarie Hussein, a 21-year-old from Somalia.
Likely outcome: jail time will cost us plenty, especially when the charged
Hussein sings like a tweedy bird and dobs in the rest of his mates who will then
spent time in jail with him.
Take the notorious bashing on the Werribee, of an Indian national last year
Check the CCTV vision and you could see what the police and journalists would
not say - that the attackers seemed to include youths who weren't "white", and at
least one who looked very Indian.
Dont worry these dudes will be caught and will be jailed. Allow at least a couple
of 100 thousand for investigation court time etc.
Most of the reported robberies on Indian taxi drivers in the inner west in one six-
month period were likewise by African gangs
Will catch those lads eventually more court time and taxpayer money.
Recommend removal from county when caught and charged. Likely outcome,
community based order and wrap across the knuckles.
And here is the latest update: February 6, 2010
TWO Victorian men gave alcohol to a 14-year-old girl one of them met on an
internet chat service before they both raped her, a court has heard.
Ravinder Singh, 30, of Lalor, and Steven Handros, 18, of Thomas town, are
charged with raping the girl at a house owned by Singh in Melbourne's north in
September.
Should be an interesting trial if proven guilty expect long jail term 15 years x 2
say 1.4 million
So here is the deal regarding the racist attitudes of Australians:
Feel free to falsely label this country as racists but take back your nationals and
jail them in your own country at your cost. As we know this isnt going to happen,
sent cheque for upkeep
As a peace gesture for falsely accusing this country as being racist, take the
Africans also. We will pay your daily rate of keeping them in one of your jails as
this is far cheaper than jailing them here, where they have swimming pools, three
square meals a day, television and internet and conjugal visiting rights for the
occasional bonk. This is a good deal for both sides.
In the event that you have spare space in your Jails, we can also throw in Arab
gang bangers, Viet drug dealers, and Indonesian people smugglers, Russian
gangsters and Chinese Triad members As a special we will throw in some white
boys so the deal doesnt smell of racism.
And above all, make it Indian law that you are not allowed to get educated in
Australia due to the nature of white Australian racism.
Save the taxpayers here a fortune and would put relationship back on even keel.
And above all, get a decent cricket side. The current one is pretty ordinary
COLONEL
FEB 06,
2010
07:19 AM
481
Michael Edwards (Australia) ABC correspondent in Delhi. Blog about India.
They have to worry about water and electricity shortages, putting food on the
table, poverty, pollution, inequity just surviving. So the fear of terrorism is
almost exotic compared to the concerns of everyday living."
My comment on India:
India is a fascinating ancient civilisation with Social systems in places, unknown
anywhere else in the World. The Caste System in particular.
If China had introduced such a system in 1945 it would have been condemned by
the whole World!
Looking at India in the news and internet, it is lauded as the Biggest Democracy
in the World.
It has the greatest gap between the rich and the poor of any Country, Democratic
or otherwise, in the World.
Its people cannot and do not have the same Ethics or Morals of most Western or
Australia citizens.
Example: It is believed most Indians who study Medicine abroad do not take their
skills back to help their fellow Indians; they stay to earn fat wages in the country
where they studied.
I have, over the years read horrendous articles about the Indian Health Service.
Below is taken from a letter to my friends in England.
Start-22-11-2005. I Wrote:
Another documentary about hospitals in India showed a father carrying a boy of 6
yrs with his intestine hanging out. They had been in a queue at a Hospital
emergency department for 3 days! I do hope the film crew were able to help
them. India is disgusting!! The only Charity I give to is Medicines Sans Frontieres.
If only it could become totally HUGE and Global with money to build Hospitals
and medical centres worldwide. All to be done with their own Architects, Staff
etc, to cut out filthy corruption.

Are there any Indian Nationals working for Medicine Sans Frontieres, for more
than 12 months?

WE DO NOT HATE INDIANS. Your Country is so far removed from our own
EGALITARIAN Society as can possibly be imagined.
The RAJ did not help! Indeed at that time most people in Britain were no better
off but they have evolved, you have not.
Therefore WE DO NOT RESPECT your Country.
That is not Racism.
We have no trouble at all with older Indians who have settled here. We are very
concerned about a possible influx causing an imbalance with the 144
Nationalities here already.
NAME ME AN INDIAN CITY with more than 50 differing Nationalities living there.
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
07:47 AM
482
The possibility of an Indian influx of student/migrants to Australia.
WAKE UP AUSTRALIA. Never mind Global Warming!
More than a third of species assessed in a major international biodiversity study
are threatened with extinction, scientists have warned.
These included 21% of all known mammals, 30% of amphibians, 70% of plants
and 35% of invertebrates.
At what point will society truly respond to this growing crisis?
Professor Jonathan Baillie,
Zoological Society of London.
This is caused entirely by the increase in Human Population!
It cannot go on. Spreading people around the world is NOT the answer.
Therefore: Increasing Australian population with migrants from INDIA is not to be
allowed.
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
07:55 AM
483
Violence against Indians in Australia: Mr Rudd is wrong! So are all the Politicians
and Newspapers stifling the debate.
We do not want 10 million Indian migrants coming to unbalance our population.
Last year the Office for National Statistics UK said, if current trends continued,
the UK population would rise by 10 million to more than 71.6 million by 2033 - the
fastest rise in a century.
Spreading people around the World is NOT the solution.
GDP; Gross Domestic Produce is the mantra of most Politicians and all
Businessmen.
It is pursued at any cost while they live. It must be stopped.
It increases World Population which is a CATCH-22 situation.
In 50 years the Tripling of World Population along with GDP, Factory Production,
Infrastructure requirements, Loss of Forests, Increase in Physical and Mental
Stress of all Fauna and Flora, is of no benefit to anything on Earth.
Why is it wrong to control World Population?
In a World with a 1950s Population, there would be a World with one third of our
present problems.
Imagine it: Fish for all, Jobs for all, Health for all, and No Global Warming.
Take the plunge: Two children per married couples maximum, then sterilisation of
both partners.
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
08:38 AM
484
It is so silly to blame the Indian Media as even an Australian Politician has, of
being volatile. Or to say it is alarmist.
Some British newspapers, eg: the SUN are equally so and it is owned by "A once
upon a time" Australian Right Winger named, Rupert Murdoch!
The press lives on "alarmist."
I am so glad that the Indian press has opened up the debate.
No Australian has got the guts or they've been Knobbled by our MR RUDD. Such
is OUR Democracy. Perhaps we could learn a thing or two from India?
PETER WIGNALL
BISBANE, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
09:29 AM
485
Hi Peter Wignall

The possibility of an Indian influx of student/migrants to Australia. WAKE UP
AUSTRALIA- it is your clarion call, PETER WIGNALL.

Just imagine, hypothetically speaking of course, the sea level is rising at an
alarming rate now and an exodus of asylum seekers from low-lying Pacific
nations are coming in their rickety boats to Australia. Where else could they go?
What would Australia do? When a trickle of Afghanistan asylum seekers came to
Australia, xenophobic former Prime Minister Howard sent them to Pacific nations
for processing. Where would Australia send the exodus of asylum seekers from
Pacific nations? Wouldnt it be food for thought?
SCARIA VARGHESE
FEB 06,
2010
09:52 AM
486
I think we could have done without that rant Peter. I was hoping these posts
would finish with Ganesh's post #479, the best I've read. But since it's going on,
I'd just like to say, did anyone watch the Pakistan/India 20/20? Firstly, after the
game, there was obviously a good relationship between the teams.

Secondly, did others notice the Indians in the crowd waving both the Indian and
Australian flags? That's what modern Australia is all about. People who migrate
here and commit to the country, don't forget their heritage, but leave their
prejudices and squabbles behind. That way Australians of all backgrounds get to
share the the good parts of cultures from all over the world (including India's rich
heritage).

This spat with India has unfortunately given oxygen to the minority of people (like
Pauline Hanson) who don't believe in multicultural Australia. They can point at
the nonsense coming out of India and say - look, we don't want those liars here.
Send all ungrateful Indians home. And there will be just a few more people who
agree with them.
ALAN
FEB 06,
2010
10:00 AM
Oops - of course I meant Pakistan/Australia 20/20.

Also to Peter - the Indian Dr I mentioned way down below somewhere as
someone I respect immensely is Natteri Chandra, who founded The East West
487
Foundation of India (TEWFI), a charitable and educational organization
committed to helping those in need in India. He also set up The East West Centre
(TEWC), dedicated to helping the mentally unwell among the poor and
disadvantaged in Australia, and The East West Overseas Aid Foundation
(TEWOAF) in Australia. (http://www.charinda...tter%20v2%20i6.html)

I think your stereotype of Indian health care professionals is plain wrong.
ALAN
FEB 06,
2010
10:12 AM
488
Not having a good day - Dr Natteri Chandran, not Chandra. And the link didn't
work. Hope this does -

http://www.tewfi.org/documents/Internation_Indian_article.pdf
ALAN
FEB 06,
2010
11:23 AM
489
Australians shouldn't be too surprised by this series of articles, even though they
plumb new depths of jouralistic duplicity even by the usual Indian-media
standards of hysteria and xenophobia. This has happened before: a few years
ago 2 Singaporean Chinese were murdered in their apartment close to the
University of New South Wales. The Singaporean and Indian papers screamed
about racist Aussie murder for weeks until the police charged the(Indian origin
Singaporean) flat-mate with the murders. After a long-trial and appeal, he( Ram
Tiwari) was recently sentenced to 48 years.......one of the longest sentences in
NSW history ( the judge described one of the killings as an exceution). It was a
disagreement about money. Needless to say, the coverage in India of te trial was
zero. Prematurely screaming racism about every crime is unwise, as has been
shown in the recent events in Australia. Some cases may be racist, others are
certainly not. This magazine chose their interviewees very selectively. They could
have used an example from Tasmania...where electors voted into Parliament an
Australian of Indian origin , ie preferring to be represented by someone whose
name is Singh rather than the loony-right fanatics chosen for interview by these
'journalists' ( the loony party got less than 1% of the vote. Ms Singh is now a
minister in the govt. Of course, a focus on that would not suit the editor's agenda
PAUL
FEB 06,
2010
11:39 AM
I remember a meeting with the VP of one of the best known Australian
MNC's,way back in 1983/84, in his Sydney highrise office. Official matters having
been disposed off, the conversation turned to socil matters of Australia - he called
490
it a big expanse of land endowed with immense wealth loaded with opportunities,
with comparativeley negligible population; they are too wealthy, why should they
work, was the attitude. Even he was an American, not a 'local'..

Into such a society, expatriates hungry for higher education, career/business
building, etc. are drawn in droves, instilling fear of reduction in the priveleges
enjoyed by locals. It is said researchers have connected Michaele Obama's
lineage from a genuine African slave of the past ; the lesson is, no Australian
street goonda can block evolution.
KSC NAIR
INDIANAPOLIS, UNITED STATES
FEB 06,
2010
11:47 AM
491
To Ganesh C Prasad/ Sydney, Australia (comment 479).

Thank you Ganesh for your comment 479, though reading it makes me a bit
sad... sad for my birth country, to see such a cogent, prudent & intelligent Indian
living & contributing so far away.

Regards.
RK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 06,
2010
12:21 PM
492
K Nair
Australians don't want to work? Australian unemployment 5% cf USA 11%. USA
budget deficit 1.5 TRILLION, owes China 800 BILLION. I don;t think Australia
needs a lesson in financial managemnet from the USA or on equity from India (
the country with the largest gap between the wealthy and the poor. We are doing
okay without gratuitous advice, thanks all the same
PAUL
FEB 06,
2010
01:14 PM
493
Varun @478 "Sumera in Melbourne, what do you think the Indian government or
media should say? That there's no problem at all? "

No Varun, where in any of my posts have I implied that? The point made was of
the lack of balanced (non-accusatory, self righteous) reporting.

It is like Ganesh says - If you're proven wrong, you just brazen it out and shout
louder
SUMERA
FEB 06,
2010
02:49 PM
494
Where was Mr Krishna and Outlook India during this spate of killngs in the US?
Not a word. It was left to the state govt. It went on for months. Mr Krishna would
not be interested......too busy brown-nosing the Bush administation
Software engineer from AP found dead in US

Lalit K Jha in Washington | January 22, 2009 11:47 IST

Related Articles
Another Andhra woman found dead in the US

Indian student from Andhra Pradesh shot dead in US

Another Andhra student killed in US

2 Indian students murdered in US

An Indian software engineer from Andhra Pradesh was found dead in his
apartment in Indianapolis in the United States on Tuesday evening.

Muthyala Purushottam, 27, was found dead in his apartment in a south eastern
neighbourhood of Indianapolis City on Tuesday evening, police said.

This is the latest in the series of deaths involving students and professionals from
the south Indian state in the US over the past few months.

A resident of Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh, Purushottam worked with Triton
Infotech in Indianapolis.

Purushottam, son of police sub-inspector M Nagalingam, went to the US two
years ago and was living with his wife Praveena, who also hails from Anantapur.

An Indianapolis police official, requesting anonymity as she is not authorised to
speak to the media, told PTI that the police received an emergency call at about
6.15 pm.

The body was first found by his wife, also a software techie, who then alerted the
neighbours, who in turn called the police, the official said.

Upon reaching the apartment, the police found the deceased lying on the floor
and there appeared to be some marks on his neck. He was immediately taken to
the hospital. The autopsy report is awaited, she said.

The official said that while initial investigation has indicated that it is a case of
suicide, the police is continuing with its investigation to confirm the reasons and
cause of his death and also the circumstances under which it happened.
PAUL
FEB 06,
2010
05:30 PM
495
@Paul -

Timelines on changes to the overseas students regulations are interesting in
regard to your question.

From January 2009, in response to findings that the job outcomes for former
overseas students trained in Australia were poor, largely on account of English
language deficiencies, the government began changing its skill selection priorities
and procedures:

January 2009 - a new critical skills list was introduced that excluded hairdressing
and cooking, 2 previous staples for vocational students seeking permanent
residency qualifications.

March 2009 - other trades were removed from the critical skills list

May 2009 - the English language minimum requirement for trade occupations
was increased and a skills test was be instituted.

Coincidentally(?) -

Despite Indians being attacked throughout 2008, in late May and June 2009
Indian student groups in Melbourne and Sydney held protest rallies against
violence. The Indian media also started highlighting the issue at that time.

Why did the attacks suddenly become so much more unacceptable and
frightening to Indian students just as the crackdown on vocational students
began, one wonders?
ALAN
FEB 08,
2010
04:25 AM
496
[an open letter from the Australian government to Indian vocational students]

Dear Indian vocational student.

The Australian government unfortunately admits that it is unable to keep you safe
in this country. This is due to the racist, blood thirsty, bad genes of the Australian
people inherited from convicts. Nothing can be done about this.

The Australian government therefore has decided to send you all back to the
safety of India. Because we care so much for your safety, we have also decided
to give the opportunity for Mr Gautam Gupta to accompany you. Through his role
as spokesperson of the Federation of Indian Students in Australia, Mr Gupta has
shown he is deeply concerned for your welfare, and we are sure he will jump at
this opportunity to continue in this role.

We wish you all the best in your lifelong dreams to become hairdressers and
cooks, and hope you continue these pursuits for the benefit of all Indians.

Yours sincerely,

Kevin Rudd

PM Australia
ALAN
FEB 08,
2010
05:15 AM
497
@ Paul, Don't feel so disgusted mate. I understand this Debate has no end but its
good to read various views on an issue from people who had different
experience.

I have been living here for 3 years (and mind it I didn't come here as a student). I
really like this country, it is indeed better than India on many counts and I also
accept the unbalanced reporting from Indian Media but what I am not happy
about is the way some of the Aussies have reacted to it.

If Indian Media acted immaturely then people here who tell Indians to go back if
they don't feel safe here or who start talking about problems in India is equally
immature.

Would they say the same stuff to a student from swtizerland or Germany ? NO.

Attacks are wrong anywhere in the world, be it India or Ausstralia we should all
condemn them. Labelling them as Racist is another thing and I also DON'T agree
with the kind of reporting that is happening in India but your last post sounds a bit
disappointing.

Regards
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 08,
2010
05:44 AM
498
"Would they say the same stuff to a student from swtizerland or Germany ? NO."

Actually Rakesh, I think that's exactly what would happen. There'd be references
to nazis and Germany's tretment of Turks. I think you've fallen into the trap
described by Ganesh.

Australians may have over-reacted, and perhaps I have as well. But perhaps
you'd like to think about it from our perspective? This story has made headlines
around the world, and enough mud has been slung to have stuck, damaging our
reputation. I wonder what this has cost our economy, apart from the students who
won't come? What about the skilled and professional Indian (and other) migrants
who have been scared-off? Even typing this now makes be extremely angry.

And remember it wasn't just the media, but senior Indian government ministers
who perpetrated this.

If Australians have reacted strongly, do you really wonder why?

Anyway, the students attempt to deflect the government from reforms of the
overseas student system started last year has failed completed - see below. I
hope they're happy with the damage they've done to the Indian/Australian
relationship - and the boost they've given to the marginal racist groups in
Australia.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/crackdown-on-skilled-migrants-20100207-
nksr.html
ALAN
FEB 08,
2010
07:30 AM
499
A common thread here from Australians is that it's not really the fault of the
Australian people that Indian are people being bashed in our poorer suburbs,
because it is claimed we're not really racist. It seems the fault lies instead with
our government for letting Indians come here in the first place...
DAVID MORGAN
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 08,
2010
08:32 AM
500
@ David Morgan

To me the fault was with the Howard government for setting-up a system open to
corruption and abuse. Once in place, it gathered a momentum that led to the
current situation.

In 2000, the Howard government put into place legislation that enabled back
door migration. People who claimed to be studying/have completed a course in
one of a number of required trades could apply for Permanent Residency. As a
result dodgy colleges were set-up (often owned by Indians offshore) to provide
evidence of this study to enable migrants access to Permanent Residency. Not
only did these colleges flout the legislation, they illegally pressured the students
for additional funding.

The legislation resulted in a flood of migrants (mainly from India) who used the
system to gain access to Australian residency. Because the legislation was
poorly controlled, the requirements to complete courses were often ignored or
given lip-service. The so-called students, under financial pressure, took all sorts
of low-end jobs such as convenience store work and taxi driving, and lived in
poor neighbourhoods, resulting in high risk of robbery and assault. Also, because
in many cases the limited work allowances for Indian students were being flouted,
they tended to carry their money with them, making them worthwhile targets. The
sudden influx of Indians into poorer areas was noted and resented by others in
those areas.

In 2009, the Rudd government acknowledged that rather than producing the
semi-skilled workers it was intended to, the student legislation was resulting in
poorly skilled migrants with limited English entering Australia. In January, March,
and May, successively stronger measures were put in place to address this
failure. The May changes required greater English abilities and tests for the skills
the students were supposedly learning. The Federation of Indian Students in
Australia resented this threat to the back-door migration program. Because they
could hardly protest at requirements that they do the training they had agreed to
do, the Federation instead used the assaults and robberies to attack the
government for not protecting them, and added the racism link as added spice.
This was picked-up by the Indian media and politicians and run with without
question, particularly the racist angle. Given the notorious corruption in India, it
would hardly be surprising if some of the money from the Indian-owned colleges
didnt lubricate this outcry.

The Rudd governments review of the legislation conducted last year is
apparently finished, with a result in shutting-down the overseas vocational
training/immigration system.

The response of the Indian student federation will be interesting.
ALAN
FEB 08,
2010
08:35 AM
501
@ Alan

I absolutely agree with you. That is what is bothering people like me & Ganesh,
who are settled here and are aware of the situation both in Australia and India.

Last week itself I was discussing this with a few fellow Indians and I made a
guess that behind the scenes of all this is something which no one is talking
about - may be uranium sale issue to India. It might be the spark that ignited all
this.

And I can't agree more with the way things have taken shape it has done great
damage to the bialateral relationship and both the economies.

I think the issue wasn't attacks but the frustration the indian students (& other
International students) were having due to restrictions on their work / dodgy
colleges / residency applications and concessions in travel etc. If a few of those
concerns were taken care of then the frustration among that group of students
would have been lesser. That's my point of view - imagine an Indian student (with
working rights of 20 Hrs / week) is returning home at midnight after working at a
restraunt / driving taxi and has earned around 100 bucks now he is stopped and
asked for all the money he's got by some hooligans at the station he would resist
for sure and will be beaten up - that's not racist that opportunistic but then these
students have no where to go and complain - even police turned a closed ear
towards them - all this happened for a while and was picked up the politicians
and media.

Now the question is how do you stop it, revive the harmony and move on. Action
needs to be taken from both the sides and with a positive attitude of rebuilding
the image - current spat of events is doing the reverse.
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 08,
David Morgan, I don't think any Australian has denied that some of these attacks
2010
10:18 AM
502
are racially motivated.

It is a disgrace that Indians are being attacks (having said that, I would like to
some some more evidence to support India's claims that their citizens are being
singled out).

However, to simply assume all these attacks are racist, as the is the Indian
medias want, is to create a smokescreen and will mean we miss the real
underlying issues - rising street crime, dodgy learning institutions, immigration
scams, new immigrant orientation, and yes, racism (although rabid jingoism in
our youth brought about by the commercialisation of ANZAC day and Australia
Day seems more likely).
BRIAN
FEB 09,
2010
04:25 AM
503
@ Rakesh.

I suspect the 20 hour work restriction was in place to help ensure that only
genuine students were entering the country.

Whatever the reason, 'students' are required to demonstrate they have enough
money prior to coming to Australia for study. The 20 hours work is just a 'top-up'.

The 'students' knew this restriction before they came because they would have
had to demonstrate their financial status. Why the complaint afterwards then? It
can only be because they are flouting the immigration act in just the way it was
intended to prevent. And then they complain about it! The arrogance is breath-
taking.

I have no sympathy on that account whatsoever. Particularly if that gripe is one of
the reasons they're sabotaging Australia's overseas reputation.

And by the way - you've been here 3 years and haven't heard Englishmen
referred to as pommie-whingers, or them told "well if you don't like it, go home"?
ALAN
FEB 09,
2010
10:05 AM
@ Alan

There is no arrogance in stating the facts and the fact is that the 20 hour work
permit is not a top up but a part of the Visa granted.

The financial status shown back home by these students is to ensure that
504
students have funds for contigencies and meeting their course fees. (btw they are
allowed to show properties as financial backing) now they wouldn't use that for
living here or eating here.....ofcourse. That's why that 20 hour permit was given -
I am not complaining but trying to give you the picture why Indian students get
trapped when they face such people at lonely places......

You might have an insured car with no access to claims but you would still get
pissed off if someone scratches it at a parking lot.....wouldn't you? even though
you can get it repainted through your insurance - it works the same way.
RAKESH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 09,
2010
04:17 PM
505
@Rakesh
I certanly wasn't calling you arrogant.

I was refering to the 'students' who use the students visas as a step to permanent
residency with no intention to study.

The 20 hour work limitation is there to ensure that the students are studying full
time to get the qualifications that are the price of gettng Permanent Residency.
It's there to stop the students using the visa as a migration scam. Yet the same
people who are using the visa as a scam are complaining that the work limitation
is getting in the way of their scam. That's who I'm calling arrogant.

I'm not sure you're entirely right about the financial guarrantee. It's there to
ensure the 'student' doesn't become a financial burden on Australia in the context
of their visa requirement - which is not working more than 20 hours. If a student
can't support themself within the 20 hours work, they should be using the
financial guarrantee. Remembering as well students are allowed to work
unlimited hours during holidays.
ALAN
FEB 11,
2010
10:55 AM
506
The more I read, the more I think of New Zealand and its sheep. The sheep in
New Zealand are let to slaughter after being fattened and fed. The same seems
to apply to some people who leave India for greener pastures, get fed and treated
like the New Zealand sheep and are treated like sub humans and slaughtered.
Difference? I find none. They just play into racist hands instead of Kiwi farmers!
Everyone know that there is a problem, and it has to be resolved by non-sheep
raising their voices and being heard in order that injustices are put to an end and
people from all walks of life have the equality and fairness that they deserve.
However, it appears that the sheep outnumber the non-sheep who stand up for
what they believe in and there lies the problem of why such matters drag on for
longer than they should. Just a lack of guts and moral fortitude while they fatten
in a world they have just come to and where they get more than they can at
home. But remember, fattened cows are always the first ones to go to the
slaughterhouse. Being placid and ignoring issues only creates worse situations at
a later date whereby acting at the start shortens the misery. You do not wait until
you are death's door to see a doctor and cure the problem and the symptoms.
You go for the cure at the start if you want to survive. Having said that I reiterate:
"It is fair to say that Indians should not boycott Australia because of current
events but should ensure they are heard and racism against Indians from all
walks of life, Students, Business and Visitors, should cease and the Government
finally take into account the Indian voices and amend legislation accordingly."
JACK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 11,
2010
11:18 AM
507
And in response to Allan's statement about proof of racism! Yesterday the
Current Affairs shows ran a story about the illegal activities of 16 companies with
respect to Home Insulation and showed most of their names. The names varied
and a majority were caucasian names. However, only one contractor was singled
out and guess what nationality he was? Indian, of course! Now I read the Current
Affair show's listings and only two out of sixteen companies were non caucasian
and the only one showed on television was, naturally, an Indian! Considering the
problems at the moment with Indians, I am sure the news media could have been
more sensible and used another nationality. However, they chose not to. So what
does that tell us? It blatantly shows that irrespective of who or what commits an
erroneous act, even criminal, the Indian will always be the one to be shown. Such
acts by the most watched media does not augur well and leads to people
affirming their beliefs that Indians are a target in Australia. A balanced show with
one from a couple of nationalities could have laid such notions to rest. But, se la
vie! Racism will remain until such time as the sheep ensure they are counted and
raise their voices and be heard - not by Governmental lip service but in action.
Let me finish it off with an excerpt from the Australian Race Relations
Commissioner's media release six months ago where he warned where we were
heading and urgent action was required: "Attacks against international students
in Australia are disturbing and should sound alarm bells for the Australian
community about the life threatening extremes to which racial prejudice can
extend, Race Discrimination Commissioner Tom Calma said today.

Commissioner Calma said he was appalled by reports of the cowardly and violent
acts that have been perpetrated, most recently, on international students from
India."

Whu not check out what students in India have to say at url:

http://www.indiaeducation.net/RaiseyourVoice/index.aspx

for broader horizons.
JACK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 12,
2010
04:16 AM
508
'Jack' is a funny name for an Indian. And it's c'est, from ce-est.

This problem will be sorted when the fake students are packed-off home as the
federal government is doing now. Hopefully we've learnt our lesson and minimise
our engagement with India from now on - including selling uranium. We should
never encourage nuclear weapons in the hands of such a populist-prone polity.

India's democracy is often given as a positive for it's relationship with the West.
But in fact, with its ignorant over-excitable masses and it's corruption, it's the last
place that should be a democracy. We're better off dealing with China.
ALAN
FEB 13,
2010
11:30 AM
509
Rakesh
I find any form of racism abhorrent, whether it takes the form of verbal abuse or
violence ( or more subtle forms of discrimination). Australia made a terrible
mistake in changing India to a category 4 country which led to a dramatic
increase in the number of students coming for short courses in vocational
disciplines rather than higher education. Every university in Australia knew that
this change would be a disaster and yet the govt persisted with it. Mr Gupta, the
self-styled, unelected spokesperson for FISA, has now become something of a
celebrity with some sectors of the Australian media ( in particular, The Australian)
and yet many Indian students are very doubtful about his motives. For example,
his website, in it's guide to Australian universities lists only 7 ( of 38), all of them
in Melbourne. For some reason his motivation appears to be sometnjing to do
with a power-base in Melbourne ( as as been alluded to by other posters). Now
we have the NSW premier announcing that Sydney is a safer destination and is
sending a Minister to India to promote that. I would prefer to see a delegation of
Indian police come to Australia to look at the issue first-hand. Not
journalists....with, in the case of this magazine, an establised agenda. The Indian
High Commission is hopless, perhaps as a consequence of resourcing, in looking
after the intersts of Indian students ( in stark contrast to the Chinese) but to have
Mr Gupta become the smi-official voice of India is potentially disatrous ( The
same Mr Gupta who was quooted as saying " now they're burning us alive" in
respect of the self-immolation in Melbourne)
PAUL
FEB 13,
2010
07:10 PM
510
PAUL, ALAN:

Lee Kuan Yew, the very distinguished and respected elder statesman of South-
East Asia and Prime Minister of Singapore, called Australians (I quote him), "The
white trash of Asia."

The native population of Australia - what is left of it after centuries of genocide -
will no doubt agree.

As for Indians, there are two simple, easy steps the Indian Government can take
to make Australians totally respectful:

1) detain Australians in India until violence against Indians in Australia ends

2) take military steps to discipline Australia.

No other way with the kind of people Lee Kuan Yew spoke of.

Scaria Verghese no doubt agrees with me.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 13,
2010
07:56 PM
511
PAUL brays:

"Australia made a terrible mistake in changing India to a category 4 country which
led to a dramatic increase in the number of students coming..."

Britain made a terrible mistake when it decided to dump its convicted criminals on
Australia's hapless native Aborigines. "They keep coming, these criminals!", the
poor Aborigines must have said.

The British Empire or Vampire also built up Australia by ruthlessly plundering
India. So the Indians coming to Australia today are merely collecting a small part
of the compensation Australia owes India.

Indian troops died in wars to defend the British Vampire and it junior Vampires
like Australia.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
03:45 AM
In #508 I referred to India's ignorant and over-excitable masses. In support of that
statement we have Mr Jahaz contribution:

512
"2) take military steps to discipline Australia.
ALAN
FEB 14,
2010
06:45 AM
513
ALAN:

I referred to the ugly beer swilling and swearing culture of low class Australians.
Touche?

Canada is being Indianised, and that makes Canadians feel happy.

I think the same is on its way for Australia. These attacks are just Australia's
teething troubles in its process of eventually happy Indianisation.

Indian troops died to defend Australia, which belongs to Aborigines, not to
redneck invaders like you.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
01:20 PM
514
Jahaz mate, before there's a touche, you have to actually make sense, not just
ramble away.

If you want to dispel some of that cloud of ignorance of yours, read my post #423
about what's going on in Melbourne (what you want to go to war over, you silly
goose).

If you want to understand why unsophisticated Indians such as yourself are
exaggerating this issue, read post #479 by Ganesh Prasad.

Before I consign you to my 'too silly to post to file', here's a few things for your
education. Firstly, the few Australians who have convict ancestry are proud of it.
The convicts were Irishmen rebelling against British rule, and impoverished
people who broke the law to stay alive during the Industrial Revolution. The
convicts therefore were the people in Ireland and Britain who had the spirit to
rebel against the unfair system set-up by the English upper class. The gutless
dregs were left behind, and form the lower class English of today. Perhaps you
should think about that in the context of the help so many Indians provided to the
English in enslaving India.

If you've read those posts, you may be ready for a bit more enlightenment. I
believe the unsophisticated Indians such as yourself are conflicted. The
nationalist in you is deeply ashamed of your enslavement by England, yet your
social fabric worships 'whiteness'. Australia gives you the perfect opportunity to
resolve this conflict. You convince yourself all Australians are white people. You
also convince yourself that all these Australians are convict descendants. Then
you can satisfy your nationalism by raving against Australians as the enslaving
race, but you're less troubled by 'our' whiteness because we 'are all' just
descendants of convicts. BTW you knew the US was a dumping ground of
convicts as well didn't you?

End of lesson, you silly man.
ALAN
FEB 14,
2010
04:23 PM
515
There was a recent study of job discrimination in major Australian cities. A
professor sent thousands of fake resumes with Anglo-Saxon, Middle Eastern,
Chinese, and Italian surnames. The extent of discrimination in lower end jobs
such as waiting and data entrying was shocking. Keep in mind the resumes
showed that the applicant graduated high school in Australia. So these fictional
applicants knew English.

"Anglo-Saxon names more likely to get interviews Chinese jobseekers need to
send out twice as many applications to get interview Sydney bosses most biased
EMPLOYERS are far less likely to interview a person with a Chinese, Middle
Eastern or Aboriginal name for a job even if their CV is identical to someone with
an Anglo-Saxon name.

And Sydney bosses discriminate more than those in Melbourne or Brisbane, a
new study using 4000 fake CVs shows, reports The Australian."

http://www.news.com.au/bosses-prefer-to-interview-jobseekers-with-anglo-...

What was most shocking was that the study showed ITALIANS were even
discriminated against. I think Australia has a much more difficult time absorbing
immigrants than the US.

"To get the same number of interviews as an applicant with an Anglo-Saxon
name, a Chinese applicant must submit 68per cent more applications, a Middle
Eastern applicant must submit 64 per cent more, an indigenous applicant 35 per
cent more and an Italian applicant 12per cent more," Professor Leigh said.

Chinese jobseekers needed to send 92 per cent more job applications than those
with an Anglo-Saxon background to secure an interview in Sydney, while Middle
Eastern applicants needed to post 80 per cent more resumes."
CHOICE
CITY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 14,
2010
04:59 PM
516
Well said Alan. And do not forget Mr Iqram, since your heart seems to bleed so
much for the Aborigines, that India was also invaded by Muslims so that by your
logic you and your ilk have no right to be living in India.
ALI
PANCHKULA, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
06:13 PM
517
ALAN:

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)has reported that new genetic
findings show Australian Aborigines are of Indian origin.

The ABC report can be accessed on this link:

http://www.abc.net.a...09/07/24/2635149.htm

Indians have a far better right to Australia than beer froth spitting rednecks.

It is the whites who are invaders of Australia, not the Indians. The Indians are
merely brothers of the Aborigines.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
06:16 PM
518
ALAN:

I didn't need to be told rednecks are proud of being of convicted stock. i could tell
by their behaviour.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
07:31 PM
519
ALAN:

I found your long reply interesting from several angles.

How ironic that when it comes to your own lot you are quick to find whingeing
excuses: thus you whine that the redneck criminals dumped on the Aborigines
(people of Indian descent, note) by the British had broken the law to survive
during the Industrial Revolution.

So it's OK for rednecks to do what they have to do to survive....What about
Indians in Australia, then? They at least nearly all are admitted to be working
hard to earn their crust of bread. Is that your complaint? That they have not had
the "guts" to resort to criminality unlike the forebears of the white invaders of
Australia?

How ironic that you boast white invaders of Australia are proud of their criminal
origins and coinvicted status. Is that why you are now failing to convict the
criminals who are murdering defenceless Indian lads? Because you are reluctant
to have too many new members of your elite fraternity of convicts?

And how ironic again that if an Indian (blood brother of the Aborigine)ever
commits a crime in Australia, you will not invite him to join the national elite
because of that gutsy feat, but deport him !
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 14,
2010
07:40 PM
520
ALAN:

Is it in you even to notice the sheer contemptible GUTLESSNESS, arrant
cowardice of those rednecks who are murdering Indians in Australia today?

They know very well, these miserable thugs, that the Indians are unlikely to
defend themselves strongly for fear of being deported after racist police accuse
them of overreacting or aggression. They know these immigrants living in fear of
deportation are easy meat.

Is that white "gutsiness"?
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 15,
2010
03:41 AM
521
Seriously Iqram, you're raving. Take a chill pill.

Try reading the responses below, including the many from Indian Australians. If
they don't help you understand the issues and you still want to start a war, well,
there's nothing more I or anyone else can do for you.
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
04:40 AM
To people convinced that all Australians are white supremisists baying for non-
white blood, have a look at the readers comments on the story below.

These are in response to the news that Pauline Hanson is migrating to England.
Hanson was the politician who was kicked-out of mainstream politics in the 1990s
522
and founded the One Nation party referred to in the Outlook article.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/pauline-hanson-plans-to-emigrate-20100214-
nzgr.html
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
04:56 AM
523
If you do read the readers comments in the link below, perhaps you'd also like to
consider that this Outlook article claims that One Nation has gained ground.
Really? What else about Australia has the Outlook article distorted?
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
05:53 AM
524
Alan

Cheer up, mate!

You can't take a joke, can you

I was pulling your leg about Indians having a right to Australia because
Aborigines are Indian by origin. i just meant to open your eyes a bit. Whites have
no more right to Australia than anyone else.

Cheer up about Indians. they are a decent lot, given the chance. They are a
democratic country; they like cricket and hockey. Just see the second
generations of
Indo-Australians - they are just Aussies like everybody else.

Don't make a mountain out of a molehill. Let Aussies leave these Indian lads
alone to earn a few pennies. that's all I am saying.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 15,
2010
06:54 AM
525
Iqam - you still haven't read my post #423 have you(particularly the last
paragraph)?, you complete dill.
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
01:05 PM
526
ALAN:

I have read your post 423 and found it interesting.

I am not claiming every Indian in Australia is a saint. Some do ill-advised things,
no doubt. It would help if they were warned not to.

I live in Vancouver, Canada, and what I find here is that while there are some
Indian gangsters and reckless drivers and other louts, no-one takes it out on the
peaceful Indian population or blames it.

Every community will have its fools and louts. I doubt if White Australians always
behave "appropriately" with women. Ask the Aborigines.

Thanks for the hilarious link about Pauline Hanson thinking of moving to Britain!
That gave me a good laugh. From sunny Queensland to cold and grey Britain!
She will soon discover what a fool she has made of herself. In Australia she is
somebody. In the UK she will be a nobody in a miserable clammy climate. It will
be baco to Oz in a flash!
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 15,
2010
04:39 PM
527
Iqram - if you think I took what you said at all seriously, you've another thing
coming. As I said repeatedly, you've just come across as a raving dill -
unfortunately not too disimilar to many Indians.

Now, instead of coming across as silly and ignorant, you're coming across as
arrogant and ignorant. Thinking you can teach me anything at all about the
Ausralian Aboriginal situation, Australian history and land ownership is laughable.
At a base level, these are issues taught in our schools and continually being
discussed in the media. It really only highlights your prejudices about Australians
that you think otherwise.

The situation in Canada regarding Indians and migrants generally sounds very
similar to Australia. I wonder why you think it's so very different?
ALAN
FEB 15,
2010
08:04 PM
Ikram
Lee Kwan Yew has said no such thing about autralians. I think you might be
thinking of a near neighbour who failed to get into med school in australia and
has held a grudge for 50 years. Anyway, Harry Lee is hardly a role model for
anyone. An authoritarian regime, totally crushing and dissent, a one-party state,
528
deals with the drug barons of Burma, a judiciary influenced by politicians, a lick-
spittle for China which abandoned Taiwan in na flash.......Lee Kwan Yew's
opinion.....no thanks, whatever in might be
PAUL
FEB 16,
2010
03:47 AM
529
ALAN, PAUL:

On a point of fact, Lee Kuan Yew did call Australians the white trash of Asia.
Please see this Sydney Morning Herald link if you doubt it:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/hostile-welcome-for-lee-kuan-
yew/2007/03/28/1174761533651.html

I do not endorse his remark.

I am pretty sure Australian behaviour in places like Thailand and Bali often has
displeased the locals, including messing with women; as far as I know except for
the terrible Islamic bombing in Bali aimed at all and sundry there have been no
hooligan attacks on white Aussies as is faced by the luckless Indian boys in
Australia these days.

This is nothing to be proud of and I hope decent Australians will call a halt to it.

ALAN raised the issue of how Indians are treated in Canada.

As an Indo-Canadian I call tell him proudly we are in a very fine situation in
Canada. In British Columbia there has been an Indian Prime Minister and
Attorney-General. There are prominent Indians in politics, participating without a
trace of selfconsciousness. The level of integration of the Indian and Asian
communities in Canadian life astonished me when I first encountered it and led
me to move to Canada.

There are the occasional racial incidents as will happen in any country, but noone
is in state of fear from rampaging thugs as in Australia.

I have several neighbours who came to Canada from Australia and the reason
they give is that they disliked the impoliteness of Australian life, the lack of civility.
One of them said to me Vancouver is ten times better that Melbourne. Canadian
good manners continue to astonish and delight me. Everyone can learn from it.
Maybe the Aussies especially.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
04:15 AM
530
ALAN, PAUL, RK:

I am geting the unpleasant and disappointing impression that, ceratainly
compared to Canadians, Aussies are a small-minded people.

The issue here is simple: can some Indian lads, nearly all hard-working guys, go
about their lives in peace and safety or can't they. Do they have to be subject to
the attacks of mindless hoodlums?

That's all.

If anything like this happened in Canada the reaction of the majority community
would be so different. They would not try to make excuses for the hooligans by
saying the Indians smell or talk too loud or some of them hang around girls, etc.
They would say: This kind of inhuman behaviour has no business happening in
Canada, period.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
04:21 AM
531
The most ridiculous complaint I have seen in these postings in regard to what is
happening is that the poor Indian chaps take "frivolous courses" like cooking and
hairdressing. Their English is not that good either. Is Australian English good? Do
they not say "myle" for "mail"?

Is that a reason for beating a guy to death? What heartlessness !
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
04:46 AM
532
Iqram
You are in serious and urgent need of medication...you are delusional
PAUL
FEB 16,
2010
05:54 AM
533
PAUL:

I am beginning to see what my neighbours from Australia in Vancouver meant
when they spoke of a lack of civility.

It's sad to see these attacks on Indians in what I and every other Indian I know
took to be a friendly, decent country. What happened?
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 16,
2010
07:12 AM
534
IQRAM
Re-read your own posts....civility is not your strong suit. Why , if Vancouver is
paradise ( and it is indeed a lovely city) are about half the Canadian students in
Australia actually of Indian origin?
Australia has very similar policies to Canada in respect of Multiculturalism (
except of course in respect of Quebec). Levels of crime are low in both countries.
Both countries have issues with street crime. The rate of violent crime is about
1/20th that of India or the USA, per capita.
Read the posts here by well-educated long-term Indian residents of
Australia....they contradict your delusional assessment of te country to which you
have not even been
PAUL
FEB 16,
2010
07:37 AM
535
Iqram - you're still missing the point entirely. Either you've swallowed the spin put
out by the likes of Gautam Gupta and propagated by the Indian media, or you're
being deliberately obtuse. I'm not sure which.

So, once again, this is a law and order issue with minor racist overtones being
spun into a racial issue for political means. It's not about the number of hours
students are able to work, it's about participants in a Permanent Residency scam
attempting to hold the Australian Government hostage by playing the race card.

At the moment, you're just another long-distance Indian refusing to accept the
views of Indian Australian citzens in favour of the views put out by those trying to
pressurise the government (that happen to fit your own prejudices).

Now before you get all excited again, take some time to read ALL the posts
below by Indian Australians. I know, I know, it'll take a while, and it would be
much more comfortable to wallow in self-righteousness, but if you want to be
taken seriously, I suggest you make the sacrifice. Some posts will be negative,
but there will be plenty from Australian Indians quite happy in Australia.

I don't want to get into a 'whose got the most non-Anglo Saxons (or French) in
politics' debate, because it would be simply childish. However, we did have a
long-standing state leader of Lebanese origin, and currently have a state
governor who was born in Sri Lanka. So let's not get too smugly superior about
Canada eh?

Finally, Australian abrupt manners may not suit many Indians (or even
Canadians). Fair enough. However, it shows a clash of sensibilities rather than
racism.
ALAN
FEB 16,
2010
08:10 AM
536
... and another thing Iqram.
- you came onto the board as a troll.
- you got no real bites
- when confronted with a few home truths (including that you weren't taken
particularly seriously, despite your own self-congratulatory statements), you've
chucked a hissy fit.

Grow up.
ALAN
FEB 16,
2010
09:52 AM
537
You'll find this funny Iqram. When I dashed off the premier and governor as
examples of non-anglo political achievements, I completely forgot the last Lord
Mayor of Melbourne. John So migrated to Australia from Hong Kong at 17. He
was the first popularly elected mayor, and the longest serving mayor from 2001-
08.

Don't you find it amusing that my narrow, racist Australian mind completely failed
to register him as an example?
ALAN
FEB 17,
2010
02:52 AM
538
ALAN, PAUL:

I am trying to be amiable. I do not speak Strine and so don't even know the
meanings of some of the words you use.

Strine is a separate language in itself. It seems to be marked by the substitution
of y for i and a. Thus you guys tend to say "Yin the boondocks aye cut off the tyle
of aye kangaroo. Thys wys becayese aye bydely nydyed food." No wonder the
currently beaten-up Indians can't speak your lingo. Give em time, Cobber !!!
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
03:05 AM
539
ALAN:

Maybe John So didn't even know English when he came to Oz? In any case it is
to the credit of Aussies that they elected him. Way to go !

PAUL:

It does amaze me to hear half the students of Indian origin in Oz are from
Canada. Can't account for that. Do you have any ideas on this?
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
03:14 AM
540
PAUL:

Sorry to have misread your post: you said half the CANADIAN students in Oz are
of Indian origin. Very different thing.....Still, it does surprise me. I would have
expected a lot of Chinese. In any case, I can assure you this is not due to any
lack of educational opportunities for Indo-Canadians. Their enrollment levels in
higher education by my observation are very high.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
07:35 AM
541
"In any case it is to the credit of Aussies that they elected him."

I suppose it is Iqram, in the same way it's a credit to the Canadians who elected
the blokes you mentioned. No-one went around patting each other on the back
that I was aware of. It was just a fact of our society. Perhaps the likes of John So
and David de Kretzer should be publicised more overseas to help combat some
stereotypes.

How're you enjoying the Olympics?
ALAN
FEB 17,
2010
12:25 PM
542
ALAN:

People are tremendously proud and happy about the Olympics, despite the
weather refusing to help with enough snow.

A bit ironic, that, as we had a surfeit of snow last year - I spent most of the Xmas
holidays shovelling the stuff.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
FEB 17,
2010
12:42 PM
543
Yeah, heard about snow being trucked in. At least you had contingency plans.
You getting to any events?
ALAN
FEB 17,
2010
05:28 PM
544
All of a sudden this slanging match has degenerated into cameraderie ;-). Do we
come back after the commercial break?
GANESH C PRASAD
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
FEB 17,
2010
07:23 PM
545
Aussies should take some consolation from all this. Although they may be struck
down in the future by a huge epidemic of Delhi belly from the thousands of Indian
restaurants that are going to mushroom everywhere when all these characters
graduate, at least because of all the new beauty parlours they will be looking
good as they rush towards the snakes house.
ALI
PANCHKULA, INDIA
FEB 18,
2010
04:29 AM
546
Can never have too many Indian restaurants Ali. Not so sure about Bollywood
style hairdressers.
ALAN
FEB 18,
2010
10:32 PM
547
ALAN:

I always find it easier to follow sports on TV at home.

The irony of holding the Winter OLympics in Van is that it is the only large city in
Canada with anything like a mild climate.

You guys have it good weatherwise, but I understand a shortage of water is
feared.
IQRAM JAHAZ
JAIPUR, INDIA
MAY 07,
2010
04:28 AM
548
Australia has a problem with racism however most countries do. I have been the
subject of racist slurs from white Australians while in Australia, and since I'm
white Australia this confused me exceptionally.
I lived in India an d studied Hindi there and found it very difficult, as I was
constantly harassed and was robbed twice of very large sums of money, simply
because I was seen as an easy target. I even had a waiter ask me if I would go
out at night with him while I ate at a five star restaurant.
Australia isn't perfect, but no country is. Look at India and you will see how an
imperfect country can still be beautiful. Indians accept India the way it is, and
when they come to Australia to study and live, they must understand that they are
in a different environment and adjust to it.
Racism is wrong, it is an evil of society that should not exist, but it does. Australia
is still full of beautiful people and great opportunities for immigrants!
I love Indians. I love seeing women in their beautiful salwar-kameez or saris,
practicing my Hindi and eating yummy India food. I hope Indians continue to
come to Australia.
CASSI
COLLAPSE COMMENTS
Oldest First

COLLAPSE COMMENTS : Oldest First

HAVE YOUR SAY

MAR 08,
2010
5
Covering All Bases
The letters to the cover story Why the Aussies Hate Us were much better than
the original story itself (Feb 22). They reflected a wide range of views
encompassing the Australians themselves, Indians in Australia and Indians,
something your cover story sorely lacked. Unlike the Marathi manoos campaign
of Mumbai, the Australian hate-attacks are not backed by any political outfit for
the sake of votebanks. The attacks are not really a specifically targeted outburst
against Indians but more sporadic and a bad case of media hype and biased
reporting.

Subhashish Chattopadhyay, Mumbai
I dont blame the Aussies for raising a stink over the sweat of our northern
brethren. Here in our Bangalore apartment, whenever our Punjabi/Haryanvi
friends come to the gym to build their biceps, we want to run away from their
sweat. And we stopped getting into our apartment swimming pool because they
just jump into the pool with all that sweat without even going through the basic
etiquette of taking a shower before jumping in.

Bhaskar, Bangalore
The most ridiculous complaint Ive seen in the responses to this issue is that the
poor Indian chaps take frivolous courses like cooking and hairdressing. Their
English is not that good either. Does it mean you beat a guy to death?

Iqram Jahaz, Jaipur
Was the one-page ad on LaTrobe University, Australia, with Come study with
us in bold a result of the hue and cry raised by the Aussies in response to your
article?

Ann Maria, on e-mail
MAR 01,
2010
4
Perspectivepolis
Thank you for your balanced and objective report on the attack on Indian
students in Australia, a welcome change from the strident and biased anti-
Australian propaganda which has become a feature of some sections of the
Indian media (Do You Speak Australian?, Feb 8). Theres indeed another side to
this storythe anti-social behaviour of certain elements of the Indian student
population who have taken with them to Australia some of our worst features:
rudeness, fraud, cultural insensitivity, sexual harassment, and recently rape and
murder too.

Alastair Murray, Panchkula
The more I read about attacks on Indians in Australia, the more I think of New
Zealand and its sheep. How they are led to slaughter after being fattened and
fed. The same seems to apply to people who leave India for greener pastures,
get fed and feted here and then treated like sub-humans.

Jack, Sydney
I cant believe you gave a voice to that idiot Rudd. I sincerely hope you know
what kind of a person he is; its a disgrace to allow him to speak on behalf of this
country. The next time friends, family, co-workers and even the Indian students
next door get down to discussing the worth of the Indian media with me, Ill tell
them about the standards of Outlook.

Ashley Bligh, Footscray
FEB 22,
2010
3
Is It About Indians And Their Cab Mentality?
Taxi-driving in Melbourne is a risky job. A 96 survey by WorkCover shows that
40 per cent of them have been assaulted at least once on their jobs.

Flavian Hardcastle, Adelaide

Thugs in Australia dont discriminate. Theyll beat the crap out of cabbies of any
race. Sadly, 70 per cent are Indians.

Pete Mc, Melbourne
FEB 22,
2010
2
Whats On The Stove, Really?
cookery, the obvious intent is to get PR.

Rajan, Austin, US
People with the best food on earth coming to learn how to cook to a nation
whose national food is a meat pie! Funny...

Kingsley, Cairns
FEB 22,
2010
1
Australia Speaking

Net work Outlook echoes on the Sydney Morning Herald site
Dear Mr Mehta, youre reported this morning in the Sydney Morning Herald as
saying that you like Australia a great deal, but that we have to see there is a
problem and by denying it we wont get anywhere (Do You Speak Australian?,
Feb 8). I agree. Why then are you loose with facts? The truth is the three people
charged with Ranjodh Singhs murder are Indians. Your selective handling of
facts will add to the problem most of us agree exists. Or do you think pouring fuel
on the flames of bigots in both countries is the solution? People like me think you
owe your Indian readers a more accurate report and Australians like me an
apology.

Tony Andrews, Warrawee, New South Wales
Australias long been accused of racism, like back when laws were passed not to
let aboriginal housemaids leave premises even to go home. Then there was
Pauline Hanson, the politician who ran on anti-immigrant and anti-immigration
policies. The then premier John Howard refused to censure her, saying instead
that the pall had been lifted over political correctness. Hansons policies led to
the tragic manner in which Afghan refugees were dealt with. Then there were the
Lebanese who were attacked. That Indians would be next comes as no surprise.

Elan, San Jose, US
As an ethnic Indian who migrated here 10 years ago, I keep hearing about
Australia being racistthe notion advanced being that all of it is. Can anybody
point to a single piece of legislation or policy that is even remotely racist in
modern Australia? Sure, there are a few misguided souls around here, but
nothing even close to, say, Maharashtras legislation on the son-of-the-soil
policy.

Skyfish, Melbourne
The Australian people are generally polite. However, institutional and inherent
racism run deep. I consider myself reasonably well integrated in the society. But I
recall, as we arrived at the Sydney airport, the customs person snatched the bag
from my hand and stared at me angrily. On other occasions, salespeople ignore
you when you ask for assistance.

Viren Aggarwal, Sydney
No, mate. Only a few idiots in Oz are racist. Dont let them spoil it for the rest of
us. One day Ill tell you the story of how my daughter was seriously ill in
Adelaide, and the only doctor I could get to make a house call on a Sunday night
was Indian.

Peter Hindmarsh, Sydney
Im a building tradesman and travel through suburban Melbourne each day
installing showers and mirrors. There are always many other traders on site, and
when we break for lunch, there is never any racial talk, mainly because there are
so many different nationalities in trades these days. I would expect that racism
would have its roots in the under-educated (like myself). Im as Anglo as you can
get, but I cant see why people behave like this towards others. Dont give up on
Australia; most of us welcome your people and value their contribution to our
society.

Antony J. Dennis, on e-mail
The vast majority of Australians have never heard of the Australia First party,
they certainly dont have any members of parliament, local council or anything
else. It may be no more than the one guy quoted here. Its slightly dubious
journalistic standards to quote this guy extensively without even a mention from
one of the major Australian political parties.

Huw, Melbourne
Van Than Rudd is an idiot, with more time on his hands than common sense. By
dressing up in a kkk outfit, he has tried to dramatise a minority position with a
cheap, low-brow stunt. No one here pays any attention to that twit. Having lived
in two Asian countries and travelled in five, it is my belief that Australia is
generally an open and welcoming society. We are far different in make-up today
than even 20 years ago, with large numbers of European, African and Asian
peoples now calling Australia home.

Cyrus Allen, Melbourne
Australians dont hate Indians. If there is any anger towards them, its to do with
the 90 per cent of foreign students who are here not to learn and take their skills
home but to get a rubber stamp on their permanent residency (PR). Ive seen
first-hand people go to exams with cheat sheets. Ive had students who say
theyve come for tutoring but who only want you to write their essays. Ive seen
students get credit for supposed qualifications when theyre actually quite
incompetent. Ive worked with incompetent Indian graduates who should never
have been passed.

Anonymous, Melbourne
Melbourne has never really been a safe city. You refer to Prahran as being safe
but it is full of poorer people from the northern suburbs out to create trouble from
Friday to Sunday; going there at night is dangerous, regardless of who you are
or where you are from! Sunshine, on the other hand, is a working-class suburb
which Prahran used to be. It is, however, full of desperate heroin-addicted
junkies; you should know better than to walk around here at night. A safer suburb
than Prahran or Sunshine would be Burwood which also has Deakin University.

Anthony, Melbourne
What an absolute beat-up and complete misrepresentation of a story. As an
immigrant myself, living with an Asian lodger in a very mixed-racial suburb in
Sydney, life here is pretty darn good and the majority of people are not racist at
all. Of course, there is racism in every societyIndia has its fair shareand it
probably exists here too, although in 30 years Ive never experienced it.

D. Jarrett, Sydney
Racism is born in the minds of people, and is not nation-specific. Persisting with
a culture of blame and hate does not cure it. Generosity of spirit, a genuine
interest in others and finding things that bind us rather than seeking out and
amplifying our differences is the best way to approach this debate.

Tamasin Ramsay, Melbourne
Nowhere is perfect, and every nation is cursed with racist idiots. Your article,
though, was uncalled-for and extremely biased. Australia is a wonderful place to
live in, and its inhabitants (whore from or descended from countries from all
over) are as fair-minded a people you could hope to meet.

G, Melbourne
As a white Anglo-Saxon Australian, Im actually quite offended by the allegations
that all of us are racists. I have neighbours, friends and work colleagues whore
of Indian background and they, like me, cant see the racism the Indian media is
reporting.

Geoff Martin, Sydney
Racism/xenophobia is innate human behaviour under conditions of social and
resource stress, regardless of ethnicity. Indians are as racist as Australians are
as racist as Asians....

Aquaman, Melbourne
This is the most fair and balanced piece on racism in Australia. Unfortunately, it
does not touch on the less obvious forms of racism and abuse non-white
nationalities suffer when they enter our land. Australia IS racist, one need only
review our governments past AND current treatment of our aboriginal
populations to know that racism is so well ingrained in the Australian psyche that
we ourselves rarely recognise whats obvious to others!

Rea, Brisbane
The attacks on Indians here are partly resentment and envy at Indian students
who have a purpose and future. But a more obvious factor is triumphalism in
sport. While Indians certainly rival us in fanaticism for cricket, there is an
underlying sense here that our success in the field is to do with Anglo values:
that we keep a steady head and play rationally, rather than the more emotional
players as might seem in the Indian side. My hope is that Australia loses a
series, particularly against India, so that we can question our Anglocentric
worldview.

Kevin Murray, Brunswick
I moved to Australia with my parents in 1982, and have lived here all this time.
Ive never been racially abused or attacked in any way. I love India, the country
of my birth, but I am ashamed of the way the Indian media, politicians and
people are accusing Australia of racism. There are Indians who come here to run
insurance scams, sexually assault Australian women, murder their own and then
claim Australians are racist. Why doesnt the Indian media investigate those
coming here on fake visas to get PR status? Why doesnt it investigate the
rapes, scams, murders Indians commit here in Australia? All the media has done
is to make life hard for the rest of us living in Australia in peace.

Roshan, Melbourne
What is the need for skilled Indians to go to Australia? There is no dearth of
opportunities here. What is the use if you drive a fancy car and lead a high life in
an alien country and have no one to be proud of you?

Sudhir Saligrama, Bangalore
Yes, the Aussie government made the biggest mistake by allowing these so-
called PR factory colleges to set up shop. The Indian students come here with
fraudulent documents, have little manners, talk too loud everywhere, refuse to
learn Aussie culture or mingle with the locals, have no interest in studying, want
to get PR asap and perpetuate the fraud. The Aussie government calls them
skilled migrants? They would not get a job in India, let alone Australia.

Karthik, Melbourne
I notice some Indians have expressed shame due to the behaviour of the Indian
media and a handful of Indian politicians on this, and the action of a few Indian
criminals in Australia. You should not be ashamed but hold your heads high for
the fact you have faith in Australia and its people.

Craig, Adelaide
Until recently, my perceptions of Indians and India have been shaped by
positives, its democratic values, Buddhism, Gandhi etc. Im also a bit of a military
history buff, and in the Indian/Pakistan conflicts Ive always seen the Indian side
as being more balanced and less chauvinistically driven. These positive views
were somewhat dented by the racism directed at Andrew Symonds by Indian
crowds but the latest campaign of misinformation against Australia by Indian
media has made me realise my overall positive views were unrealistic.

Alan, Melbourne
Although there is certainly an element of racism in Australia, it cant be said to be
our dominant culture. We do, as do most countries, have a small but very noisy
contingent of belligerent, venom-filled hate-mongers, but please, do not tar all of
Australia with one brush!

Sarah Kinder, Ballarat
Articles like this will only make the problem of racism in Australia worse. Ive
grown up with Indian students in all levels of my education, and have many
Indian families living in the same street as me. Australia isnt known for having a
multicultural past, but it is learning to overthrow thatshown by how most of our
racist right-wing parties are fringe groups. To combat attacks on Indians, the
Victorian government needs to police crime-prone areas more and educate the
public on multi-culturalism.

J. Jerome, Melbourne
Australia is a very racist country. We once had a Labor Party leader who said no
red-blooded Australian wants a chocolate Australia by the 80s. I recently read a
book by a leading intellectual in this country who proudly proclaimed that the
White Australia policy finished with Gough Whitlam. The silly suggestion being
that all he had to do was to say it was over and that was the end of it. Students
travelling to this country should give Victoria a fairly wide berth. That is not to say
the rest of the country is better, just that the Victorians have a history of racism.
Particularly toward the Chinese. Our prime minister would attend the opening of
an envelope if he could be photographed alongside Obama. He will speak to the
Chinese in their own dialect and on the other end call the Chinese a security
threat. It is the ultimate double standard.

George Ikners, Sydney
Australia First, One Nation and the Radical Socialist Party are marginalised
groups, which in the eyes of most Australians are complete jokes. I have been in
India twice on business during the past six months. I love your country and your
people.

Mark Balla, Melbourne
I do not believe that Indians are hated, its only because there are too many
criminals in the state of Victoria. How do I know that? My only daughter was
murdered on May 17, 2007. By whom? By the Victorian police force, and up to
this date the Victorian government with the police is trying to stop me from
exposing them!

Vagelis, Melbourne
Until recently, my view of Indians in Australia was that they made a wonderful
contribution to our country, with their colourful culture and gentle nature. That
view has hardened of late however, and a turning point was seeing Indian
students blocking intersections in Melbourne as a protest against perceived
racism. Your magazines extreme headline has hardened my position even
further. Im tempted to say, If you dont like it here, go home. And it disturbs me
that I can be thinking like this.

David Anderson, Perth
What sensationalist rubbish youve printed! Why dont you expose the real
reason behind Australians resentment of Indians, namely that tens of thousands
are gaming Australias immigration system by enrolling in dodgy courses like
hospitality purely to access PR. If these so-called students really wanted an
education, they wouldnt be studying cookery.

Grant, Sydney
If there is racist intent, Id expect Indians from all socio-economic backgrounds to
be affected. It isnt so. Im sure there are quite a few suburbs in Mumbai, Delhi or
other large Indian cities that are no-go zones for those who look more affluent
and are prone to opportunistic robbery or violence.

David, Melbourne
Thanks to the constant anti-Aussie reporting in the Indian media, Australians
now see Indians as being ungrateful, hypocritical whingers. The fact that these
attacks are occurring is bad; no doubt some of them are racially motivated. But
the behaviour of the new Indian community in Australia and the Indian media in
general have contributed to make it worse than it should be.

Brian, Melbourne
Australia is one of the most culturally accepting nations in the world; most
Eastern cultures are either religiously intolerant, class-intolerant or racially
intolerant. One of my best friends is Indian and Ive also had an Indian girlfriend.
Do Indians ever think how insulting it is to the millions of Australians who have
foreign friends or who accept and work with foreigners every day?

Matt Frost, Australia
Having lived in Australia and now in the US, I find some fundamental differences
in the life experiences in the two countries. Australia is a monoculture of the
Anglo-Saxon heritage, and they traditionally see themselves as the only rightful
Australians and everyone else as Chinese or Greeks or Arabs. There is a high
tolerance of violence in Australia; the judges are liberal, appointed for life, and
have more sympathy for the criminal than the victim. Punishments are mild and
there is thus no deterrence. The police are an all-white force, few in number, and
generally ineffective. The result is that the streets in many parts of Melbournes
suburbs are a no-go zone at night. Having said that, there is definitely a glass
ceiling for non-Anglos in Australia. The White Australia policy was removed by
executive order and there never was a referendum or public discussion on it and
a section of the Australian white population never accepted its removal.

Ram, Minneapolis
Irish immigrants. During the Gold Rush, it was the Chinese. Post-World War-II, it
was the Greeks and Italians; after the Vietnam war, the Vietnamese. More
recently, it has been the Lebanese and now its Indians. Each one of these
backlashes was ultimately defeated by the tolerance and goodwill of the majority.
It will be so again this time.

Rupert, Melbourne
A similar thing happened in New Jersey in the 80s when gangs of youth calling
themselves dot-busters attacked people of Indian origin wearing bindis on their
foreheads. When a minority population becomes visible, people at societys
fringes feel threatened, since it is their livelihood they perceive to be under
attack. The NJ phenomenon died down and Indians have continued to be its
largest immigrant population. I suspect Victoria too will see a similar evolution.

Sriram, Acton, US
Are Indians really the focus? Or are they targets of convenience for offenders
with many other problems on their minds? I read Outlook whenever I am in India
and rarely see anything about Australia. It grieves me that we appear in your
pages this way. There is a more positive side to the place. When these tragic
attacks stop, you may want to do another story on the Indians who are quietly
making their way in so many places in Australia and who are, just as previous
waves of immigrants have done, redefining this country for the better.

R.F.I. Smith, Melbourne
Quoting people like Van Rudd, who is a lovely guy, but who also wants to make
a singular point (that Australia is racist, whether the facts support it or not), or
the ill-informed, out-of-touch, extreme dimwits and who never get a public voice
because of their ridiculousness is not good journalism. I wish you could all come
to Sunshine and see everyday life here, the friendliness, the community, the
smiles that everyone shares, and not just read about the violence.

Daniel, Footscray
The White Australia policy officially ended only in the late 60s. There is a strong
element of racism in a significant minority of the Oz population and for the
Aussies to deny it is to bury their collective heads in the sand. How can you
expect them to solve the issue when they do not even acknowledge it? The
response so far is merely spin from all politicians and the media. Also, some of
the bashings on Indians were carried out by Lebanese Muslims but the media
here is trying to be politically correct by not stating this fact, lest they offend the
Muslim population.

Rama, Sydney
The associated problem with these assaults is the spineless politicians. Labour
politicians dare not speak up and identify the perpetrators because the latter are
constituents, by and large, of Labour electorates. And the politicians dont want
to upset their constituents by labelling them as violent racist thugs. They dare not
disturb the present rotten social order in this country by prosecuting and
punishing the white trash, whore given everything in terms of education,
healthcare and social security payments, yet feel threatened by others.

Mustafa Ahmet, Melbourne
Mainstream media likes to portray racism as white extremism, but the truth is the
perpetrators of these crimes are other ethnic minorities. Most street violence in
Melbourne is committed by Asians, mostly Thai and Vietnamese organised crime
gangs and to a lesser degree West Asian street gangs.

Neil, Melbourne
Your cover story is informative but does not analyse why almost all the attacks
are happening in Victoria, and almost none in the other five states.

Amit Raha, on e-mail
Im concerned that crime in Melbourne is higher than Id like. The best thing our
government could do is to ensure that Indian students who come here have
adequate financial resources so that they dont take risky night jobs and live in
rough suburbs away from the campus and can afford a car instead of catching
public transport late at night.

Tony, Melbourne
Ive lived in Melbourne for many years, and on most days it is not unusual to
read of several murders, and attacks on people, most of them not Indians. Like
most large cities around the world, there are areas which are safer than others. I
personally feel that in most cases, Indians have been seen by some of our low
life as easy targets to rob.

Chris Dollman, Victoria
Perhaps the Indian consulates in Australia should look at the example of the
government of the Peoples Republic of China. After a couple of attacks on
mainland Chinese students in inner-city Sydney, the Chinese consulate and the
New South Wales Police quietly joined forces to educate the Chinese students
about personal safety in these poor suburbs. The crimes were solved (not
carried out by Anglo-Celtics by the way) and the number of attacks dropped
immediately.

Ian, Sydney
I have a confession, I am Australian. Something Ill find it hard to admit next time
Im in India, not because Im ashamed to be one, but because I fear the reprisal I
might be met with for such a disclosure. I have another confession to make:
Australia does have a history of institutionalised racism. However, this has
gradually been broken down and some of our past policies still shame many of
us. There is still an element of racism in Australia today; there is increasing
violence on the streets of Melbourne, and some of that violence is racially
motivated. However, publishing a magazine with Why Aussies Hate Us across
the cover is irresponsible. It is akin to an Australian magazine carrying a cover
declaring Why Indian Men Make Indecent Advances Towards Women. To
publish such a statement would be extremely over-generalised as the
perpetrators of such acts are in a minority. I wouldnt normally notice the
difference in appearances of different individuals, but when you label me as
racist, perhaps Ill begin to notice the difference between myself and my
accusers. I might not alter my behaviour towards them, but the disaffected youth
just might. Also, a little inward reflection on all sides would not be too amiss.
Frankly, the most confronting racism Ive seen in Australia is between the north
and the south Indians, each suggesting the other as less civilised and poorer
educated. All this apart, in India I have many friends who act as my support
network there, warning me about places and the sort of behaviour to avoid. It
saddens me that new arrivals in Australia stick with people from their own town
or village and dont reach out to locals to build a support network. Were efforts
on both sides to be made, you might find a decrease in attacks.

Rebecca Reeves, Melbourne
Im 61, retired and would like to comment on your story. Australians do not hate
any Indian people. As you may recall, India has fought alongside Australian and
British troops in various wars. Ive found Indian students to be very polite,
respectful of our laws, environment and, of course, our citizens. This is
reciprocated by all us, with the exception of a very, very small minority. Those
people who have offended Indians are criminals and will be punished. We are
not a racist country as you portray, we do have issues with aboriginals but many
government agencies work daily and tirelessly to improve their conditions and
many, many millions of dollars are provided each year to these agencies to do
their vital work. This is to convey a message of goodwill towards the people of
India from an old Australian.

Steve Squires, Perth
If the Indian media has to blame someone, it shouldnt be the ordinary
Australian, whos basically a good and decent person just like the ordinary
Indian. It should blame the federal governments ill-conceived and smart-arsed
scheme under which it thought it could fill the countrys skill gap at no cost
through a migration and skill-training programme effectively financed by India.
They have been aware of the problem this wrought but did not do enough. Now
that the Indian medias blown the lid, they dont know what to do. They see the
problem and the damage to a bilateral relationship that Canberra sees as
becoming as important as the ones with the US and China. What is the solution
now? The federal government needs to accept that it dropped the ball three
decades ago and focus on repairing the damage to Australian society wrought by
three decades of neo-liberalism and in particular provide opportunities for the
underclass in rural and urban Australia. That done, the country will be better able
to absorb immigration.

E.A. MacIntyre, Sydney
Why Aussies Hate Us, screams your headline. Well, 99.9% of Australians are
too busy going about their daily lives to have time for such negative pastimes. I
deplore any attacks on students studying here but the more hysterical the
reaction from India and the more publicity it generates, the more itll encourage
copycat crimes.

Ray, Sydney
Ive worked with Indians in Melbourne and found them to be racist against
Australia and Australians in general. They give the impression that they are
better and as a race far superior. Racism goes both ways. Indians need to look
at the way they act too.

Vincent, Brisbane
Now that weve had such a strong campaign against Australia, lets see the case
against Indians here. One guy pulls an insurance scam, lights his own car and
blames white people. Figures show that one-third of the people applying for
student visas are presenting fake documents. Indian students everyday in every
city are breaching their 20-hour-a-week work visa conditions. Theyre not paying
on public transport and harassing women.

Will, Sydney
Australia is mainly a non-racist country. My only clue to some racism towards
Indians is since the telco companies moved the call centres offshore to India.
Were bombarded with calls and obvious Indian accents. Stop the call centres
and you may halt some of the ill will.

Linda Dom, Kiata
When my wife and I were in India, we feared for our safety MANY times but we
dont tell all and sundry that Indians are racist. This is sloppy, muck-raking
journalism....

Andy Scobie, Melbourne
I wonder if the Indian media considers the irony of this type of reporting. Just see
some of the bigoted, prejudiced, ill-informed comments from both Australians
and Indians. I suspect at least some of the attacks on Indians here have
stemmed, at least in part, from the sensationalist media coverage.

Stephen Alexander, Melbourne
My mother, who migrated from Malta with her siblings just after the World War-II,
spoke and understood English, but would sometimes converse in Maltese in
public. English-speaking Australians would often comment, Why dont they learn
to speak English or go back to where they came from? My mother and her
siblings would shock them with a response in English. Migrants from
Mediterranean Europe were labelled derogatorily as Wogs or Dagos. When
European migration eased and was surpassed with migration from Southeast
Asia, they were given labels I believe are too offensive to repeat in print. Now,
sadly, it is not only Indian students who are victims of violence in Melbourne.
This is a problem the Victorian government has to grapple with and overcome.

Greg, Melbourne
Modern-day political correctness dictates that what you should think is more
important than what you actually DO think. People actually like living around
people of the same ethnicity as themselves. A Harvard study recently concluded
that racially diverse areas are actually less civically active and prone to people
distrusting each other. Sure, the vast majority of Australians would never
violently attack immigrants, however pretty much everyone I know has said
something derogatory about other ethnicities which they wouldnt dare say in
public. But labelling Australia as racist is pretty stupid, as pretty much every
country which has experienced an influx of foreigners who find it difficult to adapt
finds itself laden with tension.

Rob, Melbourne
I came to Australia not as a student but a skilled migrant and have been here for
about eight years now. Since about 2005 I have noticed an increase in the
racism and xenophobia in Sydney. I dont know what happened (Howards
children came of age?). It used to be subtle, but just in the last year Ive had a
beer bottle thrown at me and told to go f***ing home; have been shouted at
while driving, been called a black c**t as I was crossing the street. Then theres
all the subtle racismthe condescension and the poor service, the bag check.
Im moving to the US now. I feel sad leaving; I own a beautiful house that Ill
miss, and I cant imagine what my weekends will be like without my friends. But I
just dont feel safe living here anymore.

Rahul, Sydney
Its pretty hard to reverse attitudes spawned by more than half-a-century of a
White Australia policy in just two generations. White Australia was the most
overtly racist policy in the world after apartheid; the Australian government
overturned it just in time to escape the kind of censure South Africa had to
endure. One of my HR managers once went to Australia and was told at a pub
that his type were not allowed in. When he asked what his type meant, the guy
pointed to his skin and said this type.

Shubhang, New Delhi
I am a 55-year-old Australian teacher who for 31 years has worked hard to
counter historical racism. I found the previous Howard government seemingly
wanting to dumb down Australia, but not so with our current Mr Rudd and Ms
Gillard. Neither I nor any of my friends have an ounce of anti-Indian feeling.
Attacking true friends is no way to go.

Kerry Wright, on e-mail
Im Australian born and bred, had a private education, am in a professional job,
and live in a good part of town. Im connected to India by my grandmom. I
believe Indians have been targeted. Like in any country anywhere, with any
easily identifiable minority, like Indians here, there are bad elements in society
namely racists, extremists, crazy right-wing politicos, people whore angry they
are out of work and looking for someone to blame. But not me... And not millions
of other Australians.

Andrew, Melbourne
Do people in India actually read this magazine? Or are we talking to just
ourselves and a bunch of Indians living outside of the country?

David, Melbourne
Next Ill go and interview a leader of a right-wing Hindu party and proclaim his
views as those of mainstream India. How accommodating would you be of that?

Jason, Sydney
Why do Indians want to go to Australia? Because they know even idiotic,
unskilled, beer-swilling labourers can afford a two-storey house and a Land
Cruiser.

Pratyush, Melbourne
Though there are more chances of being hit by Haleys comet, Id like to see
what would happen if 1,00,000 Australians landed up in Mumbai and started
taking the local jobs.

Colonel, Brighton Beach, Australia
Im offended that Outlook groups Indians in Australia as either poor students or
rich migrants. What about hard-working professional Indians who do not
necessarily live in a posh suburb in Melbourne?

Sumera, Melbourne
FEB 22,
2010
1
Australia Speaking

Net work Outlook echoes on the Sydney Morning Herald site
Dear Mr Mehta, youre reported this morning in the Sydney Morning Herald as
saying that you like Australia a great deal, but that we have to see there is a
problem and by denying it we wont get anywhere (Do You Speak Australian?,
Feb 8). I agree. Why then are you loose with facts? The truth is the three people
charged with Ranjodh Singhs murder are Indians. Your selective handling of
facts will add to the problem most of us agree exists. Or do you think pouring fuel
on the flames of bigots in both countries is the solution? People like me think you
owe your Indian readers a more accurate report and Australians like me an
apology.

Tony Andrews, Warrawee, New South Wales
Australias long been accused of racism, like back when laws were passed not to
let aboriginal housemaids leave premises even to go home. Then there was
Pauline Hanson, the politician who ran on anti-immigrant and anti-immigration
policies. The then premier John Howard refused to censure her, saying instead
that the pall had been lifted over political correctness. Hansons policies led to
the tragic manner in which Afghan refugees were dealt with. Then there were the
Lebanese who were attacked. That Indians would be next comes as no surprise.

Elan, San Jose, US
As an ethnic Indian who migrated here 10 years ago, I keep hearing about
Australia being racistthe notion advanced being that all of it is. Can anybody
point to a single piece of legislation or policy that is even remotely racist in
modern Australia? Sure, there are a few misguided souls around here, but
nothing even close to, say, Maharashtras legislation on the son-of-the-soil
policy.

Skyfish, Melbourne
The Australian people are generally polite. However, institutional and inherent
racism run deep. I consider myself reasonably well integrated in the society. But I
recall, as we arrived at the Sydney airport, the customs person snatched the bag
from my hand and stared at me angrily. On other occasions, salespeople ignore
you when you ask for assistance.

Viren Aggarwal, Sydney
No, mate. Only a few idiots in Oz are racist. Dont let them spoil it for the rest of
us. One day Ill tell you the story of how my daughter was seriously ill in
Adelaide, and the only doctor I could get to make a house call on a Sunday night
was Indian.

Peter Hindmarsh, Sydney
Im a building tradesman and travel through suburban Melbourne each day
installing showers and mirrors. There are always many other traders on site, and
when we break for lunch, there is never any racial talk, mainly because there are
so many different nationalities in trades these days. I would expect that racism
would have its roots in the under-educated (like myself). Im as Anglo as you can
get, but I cant see why people behave like this towards others. Dont give up on
Australia; most of us welcome your people and value their contribution to our
society.

Antony J. Dennis, on e-mail
The vast majority of Australians have never heard of the Australia First party,
they certainly dont have any members of parliament, local council or anything
else. It may be no more than the one guy quoted here. Its slightly dubious
journalistic standards to quote this guy extensively without even a mention from
one of the major Australian political parties.

Huw, Melbourne
Van Than Rudd is an idiot, with more time on his hands than common sense. By
dressing up in a kkk outfit, he has tried to dramatise a minority position with a
cheap, low-brow stunt. No one here pays any attention to that twit. Having lived
in two Asian countries and travelled in five, it is my belief that Australia is
generally an open and welcoming society. We are far different in make-up today
than even 20 years ago, with large numbers of European, African and Asian
peoples now calling Australia home.

Cyrus Allen, Melbourne
Australians dont hate Indians. If there is any anger towards them, its to do with
the 90 per cent of foreign students who are here not to learn and take their skills
home but to get a rubber stamp on their permanent residency (PR). Ive seen
first-hand people go to exams with cheat sheets. Ive had students who say
theyve come for tutoring but who only want you to write their essays. Ive seen
students get credit for supposed qualifications when theyre actually quite
incompetent. Ive worked with incompetent Indian graduates who should never
have been passed.

Anonymous, Melbourne
Melbourne has never really been a safe city. You refer to Prahran as being safe
but it is full of poorer people from the northern suburbs out to create trouble from
Friday to Sunday; going there at night is dangerous, regardless of who you are
or where you are from! Sunshine, on the other hand, is a working-class suburb
which Prahran used to be. It is, however, full of desperate heroin-addicted
junkies; you should know better than to walk around here at night. A safer suburb
than Prahran or Sunshine would be Burwood which also has Deakin University.

Anthony, Melbourne
What an absolute beat-up and complete misrepresentation of a story. As an
immigrant myself, living with an Asian lodger in a very mixed-racial suburb in
Sydney, life here is pretty darn good and the majority of people are not racist at
all. Of course, there is racism in every societyIndia has its fair shareand it
probably exists here too, although in 30 years Ive never experienced it.

D. Jarrett, Sydney
Racism is born in the minds of people, and is not nation-specific. Persisting with
a culture of blame and hate does not cure it. Generosity of spirit, a genuine
interest in others and finding things that bind us rather than seeking out and
amplifying our differences is the best way to approach this debate.

Tamasin Ramsay, Melbourne
Nowhere is perfect, and every nation is cursed with racist idiots. Your article,
though, was uncalled-for and extremely biased. Australia is a wonderful place to
live in, and its inhabitants (whore from or descended from countries from all
over) are as fair-minded a people you could hope to meet.

G, Melbourne
As a white Anglo-Saxon Australian, Im actually quite offended by the allegations
that all of us are racists. I have neighbours, friends and work colleagues whore
of Indian background and they, like me, cant see the racism the Indian media is
reporting.

Geoff Martin, Sydney
Racism/xenophobia is innate human behaviour under conditions of social and
resource stress, regardless of ethnicity. Indians are as racist as Australians are
as racist as Asians....

Aquaman, Melbourne
This is the most fair and balanced piece on racism in Australia. Unfortunately, it
does not touch on the less obvious forms of racism and abuse non-white
nationalities suffer when they enter our land. Australia IS racist, one need only
review our governments past AND current treatment of our aboriginal
populations to know that racism is so well ingrained in the Australian psyche that
we ourselves rarely recognise whats obvious to others!

Rea, Brisbane
The attacks on Indians here are partly resentment and envy at Indian students
who have a purpose and future. But a more obvious factor is triumphalism in
sport. While Indians certainly rival us in fanaticism for cricket, there is an
underlying sense here that our success in the field is to do with Anglo values:
that we keep a steady head and play rationally, rather than the more emotional
players as might seem in the Indian side. My hope is that Australia loses a
series, particularly against India, so that we can question our Anglocentric
worldview.

Kevin Murray, Brunswick
I moved to Australia with my parents in 1982, and have lived here all this time.
Ive never been racially abused or attacked in any way. I love India, the country
of my birth, but I am ashamed of the way the Indian media, politicians and
people are accusing Australia of racism. There are Indians who come here to run
insurance scams, sexually assault Australian women, murder their own and then
claim Australians are racist. Why doesnt the Indian media investigate those
coming here on fake visas to get PR status? Why doesnt it investigate the
rapes, scams, murders Indians commit here in Australia? All the media has done
is to make life hard for the rest of us living in Australia in peace.

Roshan, Melbourne
What is the need for skilled Indians to go to Australia? There is no dearth of
opportunities here. What is the use if you drive a fancy car and lead a high life in
an alien country and have no one to be proud of you?

Sudhir Saligrama, Bangalore
Yes, the Aussie government made the biggest mistake by allowing these so-
called PR factory colleges to set up shop. The Indian students come here with
fraudulent documents, have little manners, talk too loud everywhere, refuse to
learn Aussie culture or mingle with the locals, have no interest in studying, want
to get PR asap and perpetuate the fraud. The Aussie government calls them
skilled migrants? They would not get a job in India, let alone Australia.

Karthik, Melbourne
I notice some Indians have expressed shame due to the behaviour of the Indian
media and a handful of Indian politicians on this, and the action of a few Indian
criminals in Australia. You should not be ashamed but hold your heads high for
the fact you have faith in Australia and its people.

Craig, Adelaide
Until recently, my perceptions of Indians and India have been shaped by
positives, its democratic values, Buddhism, Gandhi etc. Im also a bit of a military
history buff, and in the Indian/Pakistan conflicts Ive always seen the Indian side
as being more balanced and less chauvinistically driven. These positive views
were somewhat dented by the racism directed at Andrew Symonds by Indian
crowds but the latest campaign of misinformation against Australia by Indian
media has made me realise my overall positive views were unrealistic.

Alan, Melbourne
Although there is certainly an element of racism in Australia, it cant be said to be
our dominant culture. We do, as do most countries, have a small but very noisy
contingent of belligerent, venom-filled hate-mongers, but please, do not tar all of
Australia with one brush!

Sarah Kinder, Ballarat
Articles like this will only make the problem of racism in Australia worse. Ive
grown up with Indian students in all levels of my education, and have many
Indian families living in the same street as me. Australia isnt known for having a
multicultural past, but it is learning to overthrow thatshown by how most of our
racist right-wing parties are fringe groups. To combat attacks on Indians, the
Victorian government needs to police crime-prone areas more and educate the
public on multi-culturalism.

J. Jerome, Melbourne
Australia is a very racist country. We once had a Labor Party leader who said no
red-blooded Australian wants a chocolate Australia by the 80s. I recently read a
book by a leading intellectual in this country who proudly proclaimed that the
White Australia policy finished with Gough Whitlam. The silly suggestion being
that all he had to do was to say it was over and that was the end of it. Students
travelling to this country should give Victoria a fairly wide berth. That is not to say
the rest of the country is better, just that the Victorians have a history of racism.
Particularly toward the Chinese. Our prime minister would attend the opening of
an envelope if he could be photographed alongside Obama. He will speak to the
Chinese in their own dialect and on the other end call the Chinese a security
threat. It is the ultimate double standard.

George Ikners, Sydney
Australia First, One Nation and the Radical Socialist Party are marginalised
groups, which in the eyes of most Australians are complete jokes. I have been in
India twice on business during the past six months. I love your country and your
people.

Mark Balla, Melbourne
I do not believe that Indians are hated, its only because there are too many
criminals in the state of Victoria. How do I know that? My only daughter was
murdered on May 17, 2007. By whom? By the Victorian police force, and up to
this date the Victorian government with the police is trying to stop me from
exposing them!

Vagelis, Melbourne
Until recently, my view of Indians in Australia was that they made a wonderful
contribution to our country, with their colourful culture and gentle nature. That
view has hardened of late however, and a turning point was seeing Indian
students blocking intersections in Melbourne as a protest against perceived
racism. Your magazines extreme headline has hardened my position even
further. Im tempted to say, If you dont like it here, go home. And it disturbs me
that I can be thinking like this.

David Anderson, Perth
What sensationalist rubbish youve printed! Why dont you expose the real
reason behind Australians resentment of Indians, namely that tens of thousands
are gaming Australias immigration system by enrolling in dodgy courses like
hospitality purely to access PR. If these so-called students really wanted an
education, they wouldnt be studying cookery.

Grant, Sydney
If there is racist intent, Id expect Indians from all socio-economic backgrounds to
be affected. It isnt so. Im sure there are quite a few suburbs in Mumbai, Delhi or
other large Indian cities that are no-go zones for those who look more affluent
and are prone to opportunistic robbery or violence.

David, Melbourne
Thanks to the constant anti-Aussie reporting in the Indian media, Australians
now see Indians as being ungrateful, hypocritical whingers. The fact that these
attacks are occurring is bad; no doubt some of them are racially motivated. But
the behaviour of the new Indian community in Australia and the Indian media in
general have contributed to make it worse than it should be.

Brian, Melbourne
Australia is one of the most culturally accepting nations in the world; most
Eastern cultures are either religiously intolerant, class-intolerant or racially
intolerant. One of my best friends is Indian and Ive also had an Indian girlfriend.
Do Indians ever think how insulting it is to the millions of Australians who have
foreign friends or who accept and work with foreigners every day?

Matt Frost, Australia
Having lived in Australia and now in the US, I find some fundamental differences
in the life experiences in the two countries. Australia is a monoculture of the
Anglo-Saxon heritage, and they traditionally see themselves as the only rightful
Australians and everyone else as Chinese or Greeks or Arabs. There is a high
tolerance of violence in Australia; the judges are liberal, appointed for life, and
have more sympathy for the criminal than the victim. Punishments are mild and
there is thus no deterrence. The police are an all-white force, few in number, and
generally ineffective. The result is that the streets in many parts of Melbournes
suburbs are a no-go zone at night. Having said that, there is definitely a glass
ceiling for non-Anglos in Australia. The White Australia policy was removed by
executive order and there never was a referendum or public discussion on it and
a section of the Australian white population never accepted its removal.

Ram, Minneapolis
Irish immigrants. During the Gold Rush, it was the Chinese. Post-World War-II, it
was the Greeks and Italians; after the Vietnam war, the Vietnamese. More
recently, it has been the Lebanese and now its Indians. Each one of these
backlashes was ultimately defeated by the tolerance and goodwill of the majority.
It will be so again this time.

Rupert, Melbourne
A similar thing happened in New Jersey in the 80s when gangs of youth calling
themselves dot-busters attacked people of Indian origin wearing bindis on their
foreheads. When a minority population becomes visible, people at societys
fringes feel threatened, since it is their livelihood they perceive to be under
attack. The NJ phenomenon died down and Indians have continued to be its
largest immigrant population. I suspect Victoria too will see a similar evolution.

Sriram, Acton, US
Are Indians really the focus? Or are they targets of convenience for offenders
with many other problems on their minds? I read Outlook whenever I am in India
and rarely see anything about Australia. It grieves me that we appear in your
pages this way. There is a more positive side to the place. When these tragic
attacks stop, you may want to do another story on the Indians who are quietly
making their way in so many places in Australia and who are, just as previous
waves of immigrants have done, redefining this country for the better.

R.F.I. Smith, Melbourne
Quoting people like Van Rudd, who is a lovely guy, but who also wants to make
a singular point (that Australia is racist, whether the facts support it or not), or
the ill-informed, out-of-touch, extreme dimwits and who never get a public voice
because of their ridiculousness is not good journalism. I wish you could all come
to Sunshine and see everyday life here, the friendliness, the community, the
smiles that everyone shares, and not just read about the violence.

Daniel, Footscray
The White Australia policy officially ended only in the late 60s. There is a strong
element of racism in a significant minority of the Oz population and for the
Aussies to deny it is to bury their collective heads in the sand. How can you
expect them to solve the issue when they do not even acknowledge it? The
response so far is merely spin from all politicians and the media. Also, some of
the bashings on Indians were carried out by Lebanese Muslims but the media
here is trying to be politically correct by not stating this fact, lest they offend the
Muslim population.

Rama, Sydney
The associated problem with these assaults is the spineless politicians. Labour
politicians dare not speak up and identify the perpetrators because the latter are
constituents, by and large, of Labour electorates. And the politicians dont want
to upset their constituents by labelling them as violent racist thugs. They dare not
disturb the present rotten social order in this country by prosecuting and
punishing the white trash, whore given everything in terms of education,
healthcare and social security payments, yet feel threatened by others.

Mustafa Ahmet, Melbourne
Mainstream media likes to portray racism as white extremism, but the truth is the
perpetrators of these crimes are other ethnic minorities. Most street violence in
Melbourne is committed by Asians, mostly Thai and Vietnamese organised crime
gangs and to a lesser degree West Asian street gangs.

Neil, Melbourne
Your cover story is informative but does not analyse why almost all the attacks
are happening in Victoria, and almost none in the other five states.

Amit Raha, on e-mail
Im concerned that crime in Melbourne is higher than Id like. The best thing our
government could do is to ensure that Indian students who come here have
adequate financial resources so that they dont take risky night jobs and live in
rough suburbs away from the campus and can afford a car instead of catching
public transport late at night.

Tony, Melbourne
Ive lived in Melbourne for many years, and on most days it is not unusual to
read of several murders, and attacks on people, most of them not Indians. Like
most large cities around the world, there are areas which are safer than others. I
personally feel that in most cases, Indians have been seen by some of our low
life as easy targets to rob.

Chris Dollman, Victoria
Perhaps the Indian consulates in Australia should look at the example of the
government of the Peoples Republic of China. After a couple of attacks on
mainland Chinese students in inner-city Sydney, the Chinese consulate and the
New South Wales Police quietly joined forces to educate the Chinese students
about personal safety in these poor suburbs. The crimes were solved (not
carried out by Anglo-Celtics by the way) and the number of attacks dropped
immediately.

Ian, Sydney
I have a confession, I am Australian. Something Ill find it hard to admit next time
Im in India, not because Im ashamed to be one, but because I fear the reprisal I
might be met with for such a disclosure. I have another confession to make:
Australia does have a history of institutionalised racism. However, this has
gradually been broken down and some of our past policies still shame many of
us. There is still an element of racism in Australia today; there is increasing
violence on the streets of Melbourne, and some of that violence is racially
motivated. However, publishing a magazine with Why Aussies Hate Us across
the cover is irresponsible. It is akin to an Australian magazine carrying a cover
declaring Why Indian Men Make Indecent Advances Towards Women. To
publish such a statement would be extremely over-generalised as the
perpetrators of such acts are in a minority. I wouldnt normally notice the
difference in appearances of different individuals, but when you label me as
racist, perhaps Ill begin to notice the difference between myself and my
accusers. I might not alter my behaviour towards them, but the disaffected youth
just might. Also, a little inward reflection on all sides would not be too amiss.
Frankly, the most confronting racism Ive seen in Australia is between the north
and the south Indians, each suggesting the other as less civilised and poorer
educated. All this apart, in India I have many friends who act as my support
network there, warning me about places and the sort of behaviour to avoid. It
saddens me that new arrivals in Australia stick with people from their own town
or village and dont reach out to locals to build a support network. Were efforts
on both sides to be made, you might find a decrease in attacks.

Rebecca Reeves, Melbourne
Im 61, retired and would like to comment on your story. Australians do not hate
any Indian people. As you may recall, India has fought alongside Australian and
British troops in various wars. Ive found Indian students to be very polite,
respectful of our laws, environment and, of course, our citizens. This is
reciprocated by all us, with the exception of a very, very small minority. Those
people who have offended Indians are criminals and will be punished. We are
not a racist country as you portray, we do have issues with aboriginals but many
government agencies work daily and tirelessly to improve their conditions and
many, many millions of dollars are provided each year to these agencies to do
their vital work. This is to convey a message of goodwill towards the people of
India from an old Australian.

Steve Squires, Perth
If the Indian media has to blame someone, it shouldnt be the ordinary
Australian, whos basically a good and decent person just like the ordinary
Indian. It should blame the federal governments ill-conceived and smart-arsed
scheme under which it thought it could fill the countrys skill gap at no cost
through a migration and skill-training programme effectively financed by India.
They have been aware of the problem this wrought but did not do enough. Now
that the Indian medias blown the lid, they dont know what to do. They see the
problem and the damage to a bilateral relationship that Canberra sees as
becoming as important as the ones with the US and China. What is the solution
now? The federal government needs to accept that it dropped the ball three
decades ago and focus on repairing the damage to Australian society wrought by
three decades of neo-liberalism and in particular provide opportunities for the
underclass in rural and urban Australia. That done, the country will be better able
to absorb immigration.

E.A. MacIntyre, Sydney
Why Aussies Hate Us, screams your headline. Well, 99.9% of Australians are
too busy going about their daily lives to have time for such negative pastimes. I
deplore any attacks on students studying here but the more hysterical the
reaction from India and the more publicity it generates, the more itll encourage
copycat crimes.

Ray, Sydney
Ive worked with Indians in Melbourne and found them to be racist against
Australia and Australians in general. They give the impression that they are
better and as a race far superior. Racism goes both ways. Indians need to look
at the way they act too.

Vincent, Brisbane
Now that weve had such a strong campaign against Australia, lets see the case
against Indians here. One guy pulls an insurance scam, lights his own car and
blames white people. Figures show that one-third of the people applying for
student visas are presenting fake documents. Indian students everyday in every
city are breaching their 20-hour-a-week work visa conditions. Theyre not paying
on public transport and harassing women.

Will, Sydney
Australia is mainly a non-racist country. My only clue to some racism towards
Indians is since the telco companies moved the call centres offshore to India.
Were bombarded with calls and obvious Indian accents. Stop the call centres
and you may halt some of the ill will.

Linda Dom, Kiata
When my wife and I were in India, we feared for our safety MANY times but we
dont tell all and sundry that Indians are racist. This is sloppy, muck-raking
journalism....

Andy Scobie, Melbourne
I wonder if the Indian media considers the irony of this type of reporting. Just see
some of the bigoted, prejudiced, ill-informed comments from both Australians
and Indians. I suspect at least some of the attacks on Indians here have
stemmed, at least in part, from the sensationalist media coverage.

Stephen Alexander, Melbourne
My mother, who migrated from Malta with her siblings just after the World War-II,
spoke and understood English, but would sometimes converse in Maltese in
public. English-speaking Australians would often comment, Why dont they learn
to speak English or go back to where they came from? My mother and her
siblings would shock them with a response in English. Migrants from
Mediterranean Europe were labelled derogatorily as Wogs or Dagos. When
European migration eased and was surpassed with migration from Southeast
Asia, they were given labels I believe are too offensive to repeat in print. Now,
sadly, it is not only Indian students who are victims of violence in Melbourne.
This is a problem the Victorian government has to grapple with and overcome.

Greg, Melbourne
Modern-day political correctness dictates that what you should think is more
important than what you actually DO think. People actually like living around
people of the same ethnicity as themselves. A Harvard study recently concluded
that racially diverse areas are actually less civically active and prone to people
distrusting each other. Sure, the vast majority of Australians would never
violently attack immigrants, however pretty much everyone I know has said
something derogatory about other ethnicities which they wouldnt dare say in
public. But labelling Australia as racist is pretty stupid, as pretty much every
country which has experienced an influx of foreigners who find it difficult to adapt
finds itself laden with tension.

Rob, Melbourne
I came to Australia not as a student but a skilled migrant and have been here for
about eight years now. Since about 2005 I have noticed an increase in the
racism and xenophobia in Sydney. I dont know what happened (Howards
children came of age?). It used to be subtle, but just in the last year Ive had a
beer bottle thrown at me and told to go f***ing home; have been shouted at
while driving, been called a black c**t as I was crossing the street. Then theres
all the subtle racismthe condescension and the poor service, the bag check.
Im moving to the US now. I feel sad leaving; I own a beautiful house that Ill
miss, and I cant imagine what my weekends will be like without my friends. But I
just dont feel safe living here anymore.

Rahul, Sydney
Its pretty hard to reverse attitudes spawned by more than half-a-century of a
White Australia policy in just two generations. White Australia was the most
overtly racist policy in the world after apartheid; the Australian government
overturned it just in time to escape the kind of censure South Africa had to
endure. One of my HR managers once went to Australia and was told at a pub
that his type were not allowed in. When he asked what his type meant, the guy
pointed to his skin and said this type.

Shubhang, New Delhi
I am a 55-year-old Australian teacher who for 31 years has worked hard to
counter historical racism. I found the previous Howard government seemingly
wanting to dumb down Australia, but not so with our current Mr Rudd and Ms
Gillard. Neither I nor any of my friends have an ounce of anti-Indian feeling.
Attacking true friends is no way to go.

Kerry Wright, on e-mail
Im Australian born and bred, had a private education, am in a professional job,
and live in a good part of town. Im connected to India by my grandmom. I
believe Indians have been targeted. Like in any country anywhere, with any
easily identifiable minority, like Indians here, there are bad elements in society
namely racists, extremists, crazy right-wing politicos, people whore angry they
are out of work and looking for someone to blame. But not me... And not millions
of other Australians.

Andrew, Melbourne
Do people in India actually read this magazine? Or are we talking to just
ourselves and a bunch of Indians living outside of the country?

David, Melbourne
Next Ill go and interview a leader of a right-wing Hindu party and proclaim his
views as those of mainstream India. How accommodating would you be of that?

Jason, Sydney
Why do Indians want to go to Australia? Because they know even idiotic,
unskilled, beer-swilling labourers can afford a two-storey house and a Land
Cruiser.

Pratyush, Melbourne
Though there are more chances of being hit by Haleys comet, Id like to see
what would happen if 1,00,000 Australians landed up in Mumbai and started
taking the local jobs.

Colonel, Brighton Beach, Australia
Im offended that Outlook groups Indians in Australia as either poor students or
rich migrants. What about hard-working professional Indians who do not
necessarily live in a posh suburb in Melbourne?

Sumera, Melbourne
FEB 22,
2010
2
Whats On The Stove, Really?
cookery, the obvious intent is to get PR.

Rajan, Austin, US
People with the best food on earth coming to learn how to cook to a nation
whose national food is a meat pie! Funny...

Kingsley, Cairns
FEB 22,
2010
3
Is It About Indians And Their Cab Mentality?
Taxi-driving in Melbourne is a risky job. A 96 survey by WorkCover shows that
40 per cent of them have been assaulted at least once on their jobs.

Flavian Hardcastle, Adelaide

Thugs in Australia dont discriminate. Theyll beat the crap out of cabbies of any
race. Sadly, 70 per cent are Indians.

Pete Mc, Melbourne
MAR 01,
2010
4
Perspectivepolis
Thank you for your balanced and objective report on the attack on Indian
students in Australia, a welcome change from the strident and biased anti-
Australian propaganda which has become a feature of some sections of the
Indian media (Do You Speak Australian?, Feb 8). Theres indeed another side to
this storythe anti-social behaviour of certain elements of the Indian student
population who have taken with them to Australia some of our worst features:
rudeness, fraud, cultural insensitivity, sexual harassment, and recently rape and
murder too.

Alastair Murray, Panchkula
The more I read about attacks on Indians in Australia, the more I think of New
Zealand and its sheep. How they are led to slaughter after being fattened and
fed. The same seems to apply to people who leave India for greener pastures,
get fed and feted here and then treated like sub-humans.

Jack, Sydney
I cant believe you gave a voice to that idiot Rudd. I sincerely hope you know
what kind of a person he is; its a disgrace to allow him to speak on behalf of this
country. The next time friends, family, co-workers and even the Indian students
next door get down to discussing the worth of the Indian media with me, Ill tell
them about the standards of Outlook.

Ashley Bligh, Footscray
MAR 08,
2010
Covering All Bases
The letters to the cover story Why the Aussies Hate Us were much better than
the original story itself (Feb 22). They reflected a wide range of views
5
encompassing the Australians themselves, Indians in Australia and Indians,
something your cover story sorely lacked. Unlike the Marathi manoos campaign
of Mumbai, the Australian hate-attacks are not backed by any political outfit for
the sake of votebanks. The attacks are not really a specifically targeted outburst
against Indians but more sporadic and a bad case of media hype and biased
reporting.

Subhashish Chattopadhyay, Mumbai
I dont blame the Aussies for raising a stink over the sweat of our northern
brethren. Here in our Bangalore apartment, whenever our Punjabi/Haryanvi
friends come to the gym to build their biceps, we want to run away from their
sweat. And we stopped getting into our apartment swimming pool because they
just jump into the pool with all that sweat without even going through the basic
etiquette of taking a shower before jumping in.

Bhaskar, Bangalore
The most ridiculous complaint Ive seen in the responses to this issue is that the
poor Indian chaps take frivolous courses like cooking and hairdressing. Their
English is not that good either. Does it mean you beat a guy to death?

Iqram Jahaz, Jaipur
Was the one-page ad on LaTrobe University, Australia, with Come study with
us in bold a result of the hue and cry raised by the Aussies in response to your
article?

Ann Maria, on e-mail
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Socialist Alternative
Written by Allyson Hose 29 January 2010
recent manifestations of the racism that always fuels Australian capitalism. Escalating violence has
had terrible consequences for many Indian students whove been targeted, then beaten and
maimed. Recently one young man, Jaspreet Singh, was set on fire. The most vicious attack so far
left Nitin Garg, a university graduate and young worker, dead murdered on his way to work on 2
January this year.
The government and the authorities have known about the rise in attacks on Indian students for a
long time. Long enough to have taken some action in support of international students and,
perhaps, avoided Nitin Gargs tragic death. Victorian Police figures reveal that 1082 people of
Indian descent were victims of a crime in the twelve months to June 2007. This figure rose to 1447
people in the twelve months to July 2008. Looking at the numbers, the Sydney Morning Herald
noted that Victorian Indians are 2 times more likely than non-Indians to be beaten up or knifed.
But the police and the government unconcerned about the fate of a few foreign students but very
concerned about preserving Australias $A15 billion international student market have kept
insisting that Australia has no problem with racism. In July last year, Immigration Minister Chris
Evans described the Indian medias reports of racist attacks in Australia as hysterical and insisted
that were a multicultural society and we dont have racist attitudes to people.
Such lies have been parroted again and again by politicians, even in circumstances that youd
think deserve just a dash of compassion. Four days after Nitin Garg was murdered, Julia Gillard
was blithely downplaying the attack in the media, saying, In big cities around the world we do see
acts of violence from time to time
At the end of January Kevin Rudd was still refusing to respond to questions about Australias racism,
saying at a press conference Regrettably, there have been some incidents recently, lets accept
that, but lets put it into context
The message, and the context, is clear. Injured or murdered Indian students dont rate highly
enough to be acknowledged or mourned they will be painted as random casualties, deserving only
grudging recognition in a ten-second sound bite.
The Australian media has begun to demonstrate its own capacity for hysteria as the failure of the
governments strategy of downplaying the racist attacks becomes clearer each day. Their hysteria
is not about the waste of human life however, its about the potential loss of profits in the education
sector if international students, scared off by racism, stop buying their education in Australia.
Australias billion-dollar international student market, the countrys third-biggest export earner,
has already taken a hit. From July to October 2009, there was a 46 per cent drop in Indians applying
for student visas for Australia compared to the same period in 2008. Student visa applications to
Australia from all countries (including India) fell by 26 per cent from July to October 2009.
Australias Tourism Forecasting Committee says that the number of Indian students studying here is
projected to fall by about 20 per cent this year. The committee has blamed the rise in attacks for
the drop in student numbers, with chairperson Bernard Salt saying the downturn is expected in
response to concerns that the Indian community have had about safety.
The great irony is that its the same people who rely upon racism to run society who are now
worried about its impact on the profits flowing into Australia from international students. Rudd and
Gillard are happy to play the race card to justify their war on terror, their refugee policy or their
Intervention into Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory. Racism in itself isnt an issue for
them they simply want to be able to scapegoat various groups when it suits them, then move on
smoothly to the next target.
Thugs on the street are targeting Indian students on a day-to-day basis, but the message coming
from the top of society is that its fine to scapegoat and engage in racist violence. The Australian
Copyright Socialist Alternative
www.sa.org.au Phoca PDF

www.Breaking News
English.com
Ready-to-use ESL/EFL Lessons by Sean Banville
1,000 IDEAS & ACTIVITIES FOR LANGUAGE TEACHERS
The Breaking News English.com Resource Book
http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/book.html
Australias curry protest against racism
http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1002/100225-racism.html
Contents
The Article 2
Warm-ups 3
Before Reading / Listening 4
While Reading / Listening 5
Listening Gap Fill 6
After Reading / Listening 7
Student Survey 8
Discussion 9
Language Work 10
Writing 11
Homework 12
Answers 13
25th February, 2010
Australias curry protest against racism 25th February, 2010
More free lessons at www.BreakingNewsEnglish.com - Copyright Sean Banville 2010 2
THE ARTICLE
From http://www.BreakingNewsEnglish.com/1002/100225-racism.html
Australians took part in an eating-fest on February 23rd to protest
against recent racist attacks on Indians. Thousands went to Indian
restaurants to show support for the countrys Indians. Diners included
leading politicians and celebrities. The Vindaloo Against Violence
campaign attracted 10,000 diners to restaurants across Australias
Victoria state. Victorian leader John Brumby said: "The Vindaloo against
Violence initiative is a unique opportunity for us to unite and send a
message that the actions of a few will not be allowed to hurt the
reputation of Melbourne as a peaceful and friendly city." Restaurant
owners reported they were all fully booked. Australian expatriates all
around the world also showed their support by having an Indian meal for
lunch.
A number of racist attacks against Indians in Melbourne has damaged the
reputation of Australia's second most populous city. These include the
murder of a graduate student Nitin Garg at the beginning of this year.
The violence has caused great anger among the Indian community. This
has affected political relations between the two countries. Australia was
angered earlier this year when an Indian newspaper printed a cartoon
showing an Australian police officer as a member of the Ku Klux Klan.
There has also been a reduction in the number of students wishing to
study in Australia. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said he hoped
the event would help mend relations. He added his support by visiting a
curry house.
WARM-UPS
1. INDIAN FOOD: Walk around the class and talk to other students about Indian
food. Change partners often. Sit with your first partner(s) and share your findings.
2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are
most interesting and which are most boring.
eating / protest / Indian restaurants / support / violence / reputation / friendly city /
racist attacks / graduate students / political relations / cartoons / study / curry
Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.
3. PROTESTS: Whats the best way to protest against these things? Complete this
table with your partner(s). Change partners and share what you wrote. Change again
and
share what you heard.
Ideas
Racism
Sexism
Ageism
Religious intolerance
Weightism
Class / Caste
4. EQUALITY: Students A strongly believe the world will be more equal in the
future; Students B strongly believe discrimination will increase in the future. Change
partners again and talk about your conversations.
5. MENDING RELATIONS: How could these things mend relations between
countries? Rank them put the best at the top. Change partners and share your
rankings.
food
cartoons
sport
marriage
children
English
business
art
6. RACIST: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate
with the word racist. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them.
Together, put the words into different categories.
BEFORE READING / LISTENING
1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).
a. Australians are protesting in the streets because of high curry prices. T / F
b. Many Australians went to Indian restaurants to support Indians. T / F
c. An Australian leader said Melbourne was a hurt and friendless city. T / F
d. Australians living in other countries also had Indian food for lunch. T / F
e. More people live in Melbourne than in any other Australian city. T / F
f. The violence against Indians has affected Indo-Australian relations. T / F
g. Indian students have stopped studying in Australia. T / F
h. Australias Prime Minister visited an Indian restaurant. T / F
2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.
1. took part a. created
2 support b. one of a kind
3. initiative c. several
4. unique d. backing
5. fully e. cut
6. A number of f. plan
7. reputation g. participated
8. caused h. repair
9. reduction i. totally
10. mend j. image
3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)
1. protest against recent a. to study in Australia
2 show support b. and celebrities
3. leading politicians c. for us to unite
4. a unique opportunity d. help mend relations
5. fully e. most populous city
6. A number f. racist attacks
7. Australia's second g. relations
8. This has affected political h. for the countrys Indians
9. students wishing i. booked
10. he hoped the event would j. of racist attacks
WHILE READING / LISTENING
GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.
Australians took part in an ____________-fest on February 23rd
to protest against ____________-racist attacks on Indians.
Thousands went to Indian restaurants to show ____________-for
the countrys Indians. Diners included leading politicians and
celebrities. The Vindaloo Against Violence campaign
____________-10,000 diners to restaurants across Australias
Victoria state. Victorian leader John Brumby said: "The Vindaloo
against Violence ____________-is a unique opportunity for us to
unite and send a message that the actions of a ____________-will
not be allowed to hurt the reputation of Melbourne as a peaceful
and friendly city." Restaurant owners reported they were all
____________-booked. Australian expatriates all around the
world also showed their ____________-by having an Indian meal
for lunch.
support
fully
attracted
eating
support
few
recent
initiative
A ____________-of racist attacks against Indians in Melbourne
has damaged the ____________-of Australia's second most
populous city. These include the murder of a graduate student
Nitin Garg at the beginning of this year. The violence has
____________-great anger among the Indian community. This
has affected political relations ____________-the two countries.
Australia was angered earlier this year when an Indian newspaper
____________-a cartoon showing an Australian police officer as a
member of the Ku Klux Klan. There has also been a
____________-in the number of students wishing to study in
Australia. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said he
____________-the event would help mend relations. He added his
support by ____________-a curry house.
printed
caused
hoped
between
number
visiting
reputation
reduction
LISTENING Listen and fill in the gaps
Australians ____________________-fest on February 23rd to protest
against recent racist attacks on Indians. Thousands went to Indian
restaurants ____________________ the countrys Indians. Diners
included
leading politicians and celebrities. The Vindaloo Against Violence
campaign
attracted 10,000 diners to restaurants across Australias Victoria state.
Victorian leader John Brumby said: "The Vindaloo against Violence
initiative
is a unique opportunity ____________________ a message that the
actions
of a few will ____________________ the reputation of Melbourne as a
peaceful and friendly city." Restaurant owners reported they
____________________. Australian expatriates all around the world also
____________________ having an Indian meal for lunch.
A number ____________________ Indians in Melbourne has damaged
the
reputation of Australia's second most populous city. These
____________________ graduate student Nitin Garg at the beginning of
this year. The violence has ____________________ among the Indian
community. This has affected political relations between the two
countries.
Australia ____________________ year when an Indian newspaper
printed a
cartoon showing an Australian police officer as a member of the Ku Klux
Klan. There has also been ____________________ number of students
wishing to study in Australia. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said he
hoped the event would help mend relations. He ____________________
visiting a curry house.
AFTER READING / LISTENING
1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find
collocates,
other meanings, information, synonyms for the words curry and
protest.
curry protest
Share your findings with your partners.
Make questions using the words you found.
Ask your partner / group your questions.
2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down
some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.
Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
Ask your partner / group your questions.
3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise.
Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they
new,
interesting, worth learning?
4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups,
pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.
5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try
to recall how they were used in the text:
part
included
unique
hurt
fully
lunch
number
most
anger
printed
wishing
added
STUDENT RACISM SURVEY
Write five GOOD questions about racism in the table. Do this in pairs. Each
student
must write the questions on his / her own paper.
When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.
STUDENT 1
_____________
STUDENT 2
_____________
STUDENT 3
_____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.
Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found
out. Change partners often.
Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.
RACISM DISCUSSION
STUDENT As QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
a) What did you think when you read the headline?
b) What springs to mind when you hear the word racism?
c) How much racism exists where you live?
d) Do you think everyone in the world is racist (even a tiny bit)?
e) What do you think of the Vindaloo Against Violence initiative?
f) Do you think it will change anything?
g) What other things could Melbourne do to promote better race
relations?
h) How much do you think racism damages a citys reputation?
i) How would you feel if you were the victim of a racist attack?
j) What do you think of Indian food?
More free lessons at www.BreakingNewsEnglish.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
RACISM DISCUSSION
STUDENT Bs QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
a) Did you like reading this article?
b) What do you know about the Australian city Melbourne?
c) Are you worried about violence in your city?
d) Would you worry about your safety if you went to study in another
country?
e) How can Australia and India mend their relations over this?
f) Why do you think Indian newspapers printed a cartoon showing an
Australian policeman to be a member of the Ku Klux Klan?
g) Do you think racism is increasing or decreasing in the world?
h) Is there anyone you need to mend relations with?
i) Whats your image of Australia?
j) What questions would you like to ask Australian Prime Minister Kevin
Rudd?
LANGUAGE MULTIPLE CHOICE
Australians took (1) ____ in an eating-fest on February 23rd to protest against
recent racist attacks on Indians. Thousands went to Indian restaurants to show
support (2) ____ the countrys Indians. Diners included leading politicians and
celebrities. The Vindaloo Against Violence campaign attracted 10,000 (3) ____
to
restaurants across Australias Victoria state. Victorian leader John Brumby said:
"The Vindaloo against Violence initiative is a unique opportunity for us to (4)
____
and send a message that the actions of (5) ____ few will not be allowed to hurt
the reputation of Melbourne as a peaceful and friendly city." Restaurant owners
reported they were all (6) ____ booked. Australian expatriates all around the
world
also showed their support by having an Indian meal for lunch.
A (7) ____ of racist attacks against Indians in Melbourne has damaged the
reputation of Australia's second most populous city. These include the murder of
a
(8) ____ student Nitin Garg at the beginning of this year. The violence has
caused
great anger among the Indian community. This has affected political relations
between the two countries. Australia was (9) ____ earlier this year when an
Indian
newspaper printed a cartoon showing an Australian police officer (10) ____ a
member of the Ku Klux Klan. There has also been a reduction in the number of
students (11) ____ to study in Australia. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
said
he hoped the event would help (12) ____ relations. He added his support by
visiting a curry house.
Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.
1. (a) party (b) parted (c) parts (d) part
2. (a) for (b) at (c) to (d) from
3. (a) dinners (b) diners (c) dining (d) dined
4. (a) untie (b) auntie (c) unite (d) unit
5. (a) some (b) two (c) a (d) one
6. (a) full (b) fully (c) filling (d) filled
7. (a) numeral (b) numbers (c) numerical (d) number
8. (a) graduate (b) grading (c) graduation (d) gradual
9. (a) anger (b) angered (c) angers (d) angering
10. (a) has (b) was (c) is (d) as
11. (a) wished (b) wishes (c) wishing (d) wish
12. (a) mend (b) send (c) bend (d) lend
WRITING
Write about racism for 10 minutes. Correct your partners paper.
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
___________________________________________________________________
__________
HOMEWORK
1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the
text. Use a dictionary or Googles search field (or another search engine)
to
build up more associations / collocations of each word.
2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about the Vindaloo
Against Violence campaign. Share what you discover with your partner(s)
in
the next lesson.
3. RACISM: Make a poster about racism. Show your work to your
classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?
4. VIOLENCE: Write a magazine article about a racist attack. Include
imaginary interviews with the racist and the victim.
Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down
any
new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).
5. LETTER: Write a letter to the creator of Vindaloo Against Violence. Ask
him/her three questions about racism. Give him/her three of your
opinions
on how to stamp out racism. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your
next
lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.
ANSWERS
TRUE / FALSE:
a. F b. T c. T d. T e. T f. F g. F h. F
SYNONYM MATCH:
1. representative a. spokesperson
2 support b. backing
3. feast c. banquet
4. rich in d. full of
5. praised e. applauded
6. deeply f. greatly
7. vital g. essential
8. allows h. permits
9. cruel i. bloodthirsty
10. issue j. topic
PHRASE MATCH:
1. caused a scandal by a. eating the heart of a seal
2 show support b. for seal hunters
3. She joined hundreds of Inuit for c. a community feast
4. it was absolutely d. delicious
5. Canadas Inuit leaders praised e. Ms Jeans gesture
6. deeply f. upset animal rights groups
7. seal hunting is a vital part g. of their culture
8. they say hunting h. methods are cruel
9. a controversial i. issue
10. We don't really care about how the j. outside world thinks
GAP FILL:
Australias curry protest against racism
Australians took part in an eating-fest on February 23rd to protest against recent racist attacks on
Indians.
Thousands went to Indian restaurants to show support for the countrys Indians. Diners included leading
politicians and celebrities. The Vindaloo Against Violence campaign attracted 10,000 diners to
restaurants
across Australias Victoria state. Victorian leader John Brumby said: "The Vindaloo against Violence
initiative is a unique opportunity for us to unite and send a message that the actions of a few will not be
allowed to hurt the reputation of Melbourne as a peaceful and friendly city." Restaurant owners reported
they were all fully booked. Australian expatriates all around the world also showed their support by
having
an Indian meal for lunch.
A number of racist attacks against Indians in Melbourne has damaged the reputation of Australia's second
most populous city. These include the murder of a graduate student Nitin Garg at the beginning of this
year.
The violence has caused great anger among the Indian community. This has affected political relations
between the two countries. Australia was angered earlier this year when an Indian newspaper printed a
cartoon showing an Australian police officer as a member of the Ku Klux Klan. There has also been a
reduction in the number of students wishing to study in Australia. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
said he hoped the event would help mend relations. He added his support by visiting a curry house.
LANGUAGE WORK
1 - d 2 - a 3 - b 4 - c 5 - c 6 - b 7 - d 8 - a 9 - b 10 - d 11 - c 12 a

Another Attack on Indian Student in
Melbourne.
By IndianLocal Editor on Oct 02, 2009 in Latest News
Another attack on an Indian student reported in Melbourne after a brief lull in attacks on Indians in Australia.
An Indian student was attacked with a plank of wood or a baseball bat by two men which left him with 20
stitches in his head according to news sources.
The 28-year-old student, whose name is not known immediately, was attacked by the men after he got down
from a bus at Keilor Plains train station on Tuesday leaving with 20 stitches in his head after an unprovoked
attack in Melbournes north-west, the Age newspaper reported.
The victim got off a bus at Keilor Plains train station at 12.15am on September 29 and was walking down Power
Street when he was approached by two men, police said.
They asked him for a cigarette and he gave one to both of them. As he turned to walk away, the man was hit over
the head at least six times with what he believes was a plank of wood or a baseball bat, they said.
He was knocked unconscious and the offenders made off with his backpack, police were quoted as saying by the
newspaper.
Around 30 Indian students were attacked in various cities from June to August according to Times Of India
report.
Its not even a month before three Indians were brutally bashed by a group of around 70 youth while playing
here.
Source: The Age, TOI

Blogbharti
Voices from the Indian Blogosphere

..sensitivity of the local populace
Kamala Das, RIP
Attacks on Indian students in Australia
Some bloggers seem to think theyre racially motivated.
Sanjeev Sabhlok, in a long detailed post, disagrees:
I agree that more can be done to ensure the safety of Indian students. But I am personally outraged
at the unsolicited allegation being made about Australian racism by the Indian Foreign Minister (and
Indias High Commissioner as well). This amounts to the pot calling the kettle black. Look into the
skeletons in your own cupboard, SMK, I would ask!

India is currently the worlds most racist country (or close to being the most racist of all). A
fair skin not only gets you a better spouse (higher status husband, higher dowry from the
wife, etc.) but a better job. Even in elections the fairer candidate generally receives higher
votes; hence posters of candidates paint them almost pink no matter what their real
complexion! Fair and Lovely creams do brisk business. But that is only the cosmetic element,
no matter how deep rooted.
Shree Venkatram is convinced the attacks are racist:
It was only when the Indian television channels started airing photographs and clips of the
Indians being bashed up, and the resentment and anger started building up in India, that the
Australian authorities were forced to take note. Even then, the effort has been to down play
the attacks. In Australia, the attacks are referred to as curry bashing. To curry bash, is to
go out find an Indian and target him. It completely downplays the attack, giving it a fun
connotation, which it is not. It is pure racist terrrorism.
Kochuthresiamma says India needs to strengthen infrastructure at home:
The solution to the resentment towards Indian students who can afford education abroad does
not lie in diplomatic efforts. CONCLUSION Thats a stop gap and contingent solution. But
the real long term solution lies in India improving the educational infrastructure in the
country.
Youth Ki Awaaz posts the reactions of a few Indians who have worked or studied in
Australia.
Linked by kuffir. Join Blogbharti facebook group.
This entry was posted on Saturday, May 30th, 2009 at 4:50 pm and is filed under Caste, Education, Indiaspora,
Prejudice, Racism, Violence, World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You
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176 Responses to Attacks on Indian students in Australia
Older Comments
1. n says:
August 29, 2009 at 6:59 am
dude (Rohan 11) that was the most racist comment ever and i think its comment like
those what getting those indians beat up! i am an indian too and some times i am
ashamed to even talk to another because of their behavior.. indian guys mostly
teenagers are crazy freaks and to tell you the truth they are creeps.. have you even
seen the crime rate in india well study that first and then talk about other countries..
and first and the most important rule you dont point fingers or insult the country you
are CURRENTLY LIVING in.. even if you are not a citizen you still have to respect
other cultures.. and if you dont like something stay out of the way. If you dont have
anything good to say keep your mouth shut! best advice to people who cant take
different cultures.
2. ROHAN 11 says:
August 30, 2009 at 11:40 pm
Bro (n) I DONT live in Australia,and never ever thought of diliking it,but as u know
most of the comments made by the australians gets deleted,so u might not be knowing
wat kind of thinking they harbour for Indians.Would u believe it if i tell u that most of
them are justifying death and killings with lack of hygiene and ba manners.Can u
believe that that their reason to support terrorism.Even i hate each and every person in
our country who are on a role to terrorise people,cause it BBBAAADD dont u
think?And too bad some mean minded australians and pakistanis are enjoying the
drama and pointing finger on our country as to why do we leave our filty country and
come to their advanced cultureso you seem to be joining their league and if it is so
then i pitty ur self esteem.So 4m now see the full picture and then give ur OO SO
IMPORTANT VERDICT.I am not at all partial i would have bad mouthed any Indian
harburing similar meaningless despising thoughts,so bro all in all its not only
OSAMA BIL LADEN who is killing and destroying life but also these self praising
people of ADVANCED culcure but with a little lipstik and mascara :D think
about it bro.
3. ROHAN 11 says:
August 30, 2009 at 11:46 pm
AND WELL TO UPDATE UR INFORMATION I LIVE IN INDIA
4. n says:
August 31, 2009 at 12:42 am
Rohan 11 ^ since your mind is set that everyone except indians are murderers there is
no point in arguing with you and for your info i am not a bro and there is no league
when it all comes down we are nothing but a bunch of pathetic blood cells and maybe
some people need to realize that.. including the people in australia and YOU! and by
the way even people in india wear mascara and lipstick.. but that does not make you
educated.. and you know what india is advance but in things that indian think dont
matter. Most of the fashion industry is in india.. india has also produced many films
actually the highest numbers of films.. but hey in india anything that ever matters is
politics, education, computer, and doctors.. nd that my friend is a reason why indians
who are seen as stupid people who will never be successfll in life because they are
intrested in commerce and art come to foreign countries where everyone and anyone
is seen smart.. and i do believe what the australians are doing is wrong but hey why
give them the reason to bash on us.. look on your mistakes before you point out
others!
5. ROHAN 11 says:
September 1, 2009 at 2:11 am
1st of all that lipstick and all was a metaphor,which i think a 14year old like u wont
understand,so any ways,but i want u to take some some time 4m ur ooh so busy
schedule and THINK(its a good mind exersize ),about the fact that behaviour and
personal habbits(bad),dressing,unhygiene,accent,sloppyness,complexes are are bad
and noxious things which i do agree,BBUUTT THHAT DDOEESNT CCAALL
FFOR PHHYYSSICALL ABBUBUSE TO THOSEE PPERSSONS.ITTS NOOT
HHUMMANE.But sorry my bad how can i make u underfuckingstand that inhuman
nature should be despised by everyone not APPLAUSED.But there u go AGAIN
making trivial matters to the top and grave matter to the ignore list its not fare
my.well..aamm..whoever the fuck u r :DAnd spare me dont ever write in this
thread as u stubborn devil blodded people make this a brothel each time u write
something so do nothing just think and murture urself u 14 somth and wen u r done
try to to statistics if these things are taught in ur school-and learn how to give
weightage to things according to their importance.GOOD BUY AND GOOD LUCK
6. n says:
shows how mature you are cursing at a 16 year old.. and unless you live here you
would never understand and have an open mind.. and you know what dont write
anything back because i do have a busy schedule bcause i dont sit around and look for
people to comment on things i write.. get a job! and have an open mind.. and i did
mention that i agree what australians are doing is wrong but when people get
frustrated like you did.. cursing is the first step phsyical is the second..
7. ROHAN 11 says:
September 2, 2009 at 5:15 pm
Well thats where we draw the line unlike u eunuchs.U r the worst kind of human i
have ever seen,no more reasoning with a ********* like u.And 4 ur information kid i
have a good job,unlike u sitting there with the x-box and ur dads money u
ABCD(AUSTRALIAN BORN CONFUSED DESI).As to u killing and hitting is
okay,if someones behaviour is bad,i am hoping that ur filthy richi rich Dad gets
beaten up like shit and then would like to know ur comment,so kid u r a miserable
excuse for a life dont visit this thread,it was made to discuss the violence happening in
AUSTRALIA to INDIAN students and is not about the (NAMAKHARAM) PEOPLE
LIKE U,too bad,i feel sorry 4 u ,i know that deeply u suffer from identity crisis,and
inferiority complex and thats why to gel with ur phoren pherends u are writing such
illogical stuff,i pitty ur self esteem.LOOKING forward to read about ur dad getting
beaten up to death and then ur OOH SOOO IMPORTANT COMMENT AND ur
awesome logic u ***** ********.People with violent reasoning like u should be put
behind bars,its an insult for us to even spit in ur face.
8. elareh says:
can can eaters caneatersflcukin racists(sic) first it was the irish then the greeks then
the vietnamese then the somalians then lebos and now indians this country is the
best in the world (australia) but the people in it are m/fs two faced sellouts.filthy
fluckin convicts fuckem..all you indians should get together bring 100 million of
your cousins here and mash the skip population JUST DO IT!!!!
9. ROHAN11 says:
This was getting serious bro,u made it funny lol.
10. ROHAN11 says:
But honestly all we could do is that we can compromise a little bit within
ourshelf.And by our self i mean everyone living in this damn planet.Couse for the
sake of humanity alleast we can do is to be not harmful to each other if not useful.And
for u,plz dont tell me u r a girl couse i dont wanna take my word(bro) back.Cheers
11. roli says:
November 11, 2009 at 10:45 am
what ever happened has happened and some believe that australia is a safer and
peaceful country and now many believe its not.but i dont get why these issues has to
come up now..its because of the sensatioonalisation of the media..i have decided to
do research on it and am glad that i know a thing which many a people dont.atleast
i havnt come acrooss.theres an organisation called Association of Australian
Education Representatives in India (AAERI) http://www.aaeri.org/ which is the
only regulatory body which works closely with australian and indian government and
ensure safety to indian students..but how many of you know that.
i suggest pls visit the visit the websites know abt the dos and donts in australia then
make a decision.
12. Michael says:
November 20, 2009 at 1:40 am
I am an Australian uni student and I have heaps of Indian friends who are great, i have
always grown up having friends from all over the world and I will tell you now that
Australians are generally not racist. However, you always find racism wherever you
go around the world i have lived in Europe and China and its the same
everywhere I do believe that some of these attacks were racially motivated and that
is terrible, however the viewpoint of most Australians seems to be that International
Students are disadvantaged and therefore targeted by criminals. Many Int Students
also live in suburbs that are known for being rather dangerous and have higher crime
rates.
I feel deeply Sorry to the victims of these attacks.
To Vikas, your comment is pathetic and laughable, seriously if there is any racist
element to these unfortunate attacks, dont you think you just make the situation
worse for yourself and fellow students? If there is heaps of Indians getting onto planes
now to come to Australia to bash Australians, dont you think that we will be more
apprehensive about allowing Indian students to study here? There are many people
who come from many lands to Australia and love it, if you have such sentiments
towards this country, then leave I certainly dont want people like you here And
all this talk of boycotts etc? I dont think many Australians really care at all? We are
one of the most developed and prosperous nations in the world and the level of
demand to study/immigrate here greatly exceeds the number of places available I
feel defensive like most Australians about insults to my country from people such as
Vikas.
13. GSH says:
January 10, 2010 at 12:45 pm
Nag:
The only reason I came to the West is because im not the smartest cookie on the
block in India otherwise its pretty humiliating to be surrounded by these corny
dumbass white people.
My goodness! As an immigrant to Canada myself, I think I can speak for the rest of
the dumbass people in my adopted homeland when I say that it really will be a
pleasure to see the back of you as you hop on that plane and move back to India.
Although, being a self described dummy, you may not being doing the Indian
population any great favours by returning please avoid reproductive activities.
-GSH
14. Tushar Khare says:
January 15, 2010 at 12:23 pm
The reason is same as behind the attacks on North Indian in Maharastrai.e.
insecurities of Jobs ,education,status of livingas The Few Maharastra Leaders are
creating chaos for north Indians in Maharastra,same is happening to Indians in
Australia Indian goverment Impotent to Stop this in Inside India,then how we can
expect from Indian goverment to take some actions against the same crime at
International level
15. Jacinta says:
January 15, 2010 at 3:30 pm
Tushar and others, the Australian people should also be doing all they can to ensure
the safety of Indian people in Australia. I am doing what I can I urge other
Australians to do the same.
16. briand01 says:
January 28, 2010 at 4:28 pm
I have been involved in the security industry for about 30 years and i know that
everybody has to look at self defence from an all round perspective, that is only go to
safe places, secure your house, it would not matter who you are if you go to the wrong
area you will become a victim. I know what most people will say and that is i have a
wright to go where i want when i want. Guys use common sense and be careful where
you go or what you do. I also know that you can take precautions and still be attacked,
learn propper self defence, not sport. Most bullies only pick on easy targets, Harden
up and give it back when you have to. Dont make the mistake of becoming the bully,
defend yourself and your friends by taking propper precautions, but defend yourself
and your friends with all your heart when you have to. Also remember their are no
rules when you are defending yourself. I am Australian and will help someone in
trouble.
17. athicks says:
February 8, 2010 at 12:14 pm
Attack on indian students..i would say is unfortunate but JUSTIFIED. Indians may
say that this is racial but they should question themself who are even more racist?
Obviously indians are the most racist on this planet earth. Look inside india what is
going on! there is alot of racial abuse and caste discrimination going onso how can
they cry when this bastard indians are attacked in Austalia! the external minister of
India may say this and tatthe prime minister may say this and tat but what bout their
own country when their own fellow citizens are subjected to discrimaination. Untill
and unless there is no racial and caste discrimination within India, india has no right
to open its mouth and say its racial abuse and discrimination. Indians are the most
hypocrite people living on this planet earth. I thank the Australians for teaching the
indians a lesson and make them realise how to behave. i would suggest continue to
kick the indians till there is a change in their own country. THANK YOU
AUSTRALIANS!
18. Ajay says:
I personally believe Indian student or our young generation need to behave in public
when they are in another countries.I am myself in USA and able to see how our new
generation behaves.I have seen them behaving worse then white boys..many of
them..(yes its true) believe in showing off.I am sure those in Australia are not
exceptions and behaving like just an @sshole in public.I dont blame those who
attacks them and even killing them.They first need to learn how to behave and stay
outside.
19. Drew says:
February 10, 2010 at 4:46 am
A large number of the posts on this blog basically end up reinforcing the view that
Indians are an overly emotional and reactionary people with a major inferiority
complex left behind by their former Victorian masters. The number of middle and
lower middle class people who have told me that they were better off under the Brits,
is frankly astounding! How can you feel beholden to a colonial ruler who taught you
to look down upon the open and progressive aspects of your culture and at the same
time used you as an underclass that created destructive schisms within your own
society? Friends became enemies, caste boundaries became politicized due to British
census statistics, India was divided twice over and then after looting every thing of
just about any value, they leftBut did they?
I seriously doubt that! Just count the number of native born icons and symbolisms that
any school going kid relates to and juxtapose them against those from the Anglo-
Saxon world, and you will find that todays upwardly mobile Indian family has scant
little knowledge, respect or interest in India and its multitude of cultures.
Most of course blame politicians but then, arent they Indian too?
Indian love to judge others and put themselves on a moral high horse claiming
(falsely) that they are this ancient unchanging civilization with a perfect moral and
humanistic record.
Alas, problems begin when a person who knows all about the streets of NY and
nothing about New Delhi, uses too many bleaching creams and too little
contraception!
Things may be awry when a 14-24 year old boy or girls virginity and marriage is
considered the property of mummy and papa and so they end up thinking that sex
simply means producing (preferably male)progeny! A land where infant females are
cut away and thrown in ditches, where women are viewed as dowry and frequently
burnt alive for honour, where the government decides what kinds of books, internet,
TV and cinema are fit for public consumption, where minority, tribal and lower caste
groups are periodically killed, humiliated, encountered, exiled and pushed into
poverty, where 70 percent of the country lives not knowing where their next meal is
coming from, where more than half the people cannot read their own names or know
their date of birth. the list goes on and on. The Indian state is indeed a brutal nanny
to its denizens.
After a lifetime of repression, bad to no education, having ones sexual, culinary,
social as well as professional desires and needs curtailed at puberty, watching the
women in the family work like servants and the (usually low caste) servants treated
like dog-poo; and an overdose of American TVHow do you expect the average
Indian boy to turn out??
Cretin comes to mind! If the regular Indian male has not been lucky enough to be
beaten and neutered by papa, mammi tutor, teacher, uncle and friends papa into
becoming an Engineer, Doctor, Lawyer or businessman he will probably thank his
lucky stars to be driving a taxi in Australia or anywhere else!
Its an open secret that every second Indian middle class male between the ages of 14
and 30 would rather live in USA or any other English speaking developed country.
So much for Patriotism!
In a country where netas and goondas are synonymous terms, where the killers of
Gujrat, Orissa (remember Graham Steins and his kids?) and Madhya Pradesh are
celebrated, where the architects of Babri masjid and ensuing pogroms are still national
leaders, where in the so called North East and Kashmir the army kills more civilians
annually than any terrorist attack, where cricket is more important than justice and
religion is more vital than food, where illegal migration and licking USAs backside
are two of the favorite national pastimesHow for gods sake can such a country
actually stand up and call Australia bad?
Of course Oz is a bad place, look at what they are, a bunch of jailbirds who killed all
the natives and took their land. But then at least they dont make war upon their own!
They may be rude, racist, brash and ill mannered. But then, who told all the Indians to
go drive Taxis and join cookery courses down under?
If the Indian show a little self respect and boldness in thought and action, no Aussie
punk would ever dare look them in the eye.
In summation, I shall pose a question for all you bleeding heart India sympathizers.
Why is India India, and Australia Australia?
Does anyone have the guts to answer or are you just going to use the ultimate Desi
cop-out device You see we are still a developing country only!
Grow up my friends, India has not arrived anywhere and the world is still ruled by fat
rich white guys. And that really is the bottom line LOL:)
20. joji says:
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21. Briand01 says:
I am a white Australian and i am one of those bleeding heart sympathisers, i
sympathise with anyone who suffers violence, Just because something happens in
India does not mean it is ok that it happens in Australia. You are missing the point and
that is there is no excuse for violence. I beleive in avoiding violence when i can, but if
attacked i beleive in defending me and whats mine with whatever it takes. I teach self
defence to a group of ladies ( all nationalities) in a refuge for women, im sure they
could tell you about unnecessay violence,condoning violence is wrong.
22. SEXUAL ABUSE TO CHILDREN says:
Most of the peoples are not aware about sexual harassment and its very important to
make them aware this will help us to decrease occurring sexual harassment in our
country. By the help of Pria Cash http://www.priacash.org/forum/ website we can
came to know a lots of things base on sexual harassment. Its my personal experience
that this website helps girls a lot. Plus by using this website we will feel comfortable
to explain to children, Kids and teenagers. We can share our views and queries with
others in its forum..
23. briand01 says:
Sexual harrasment and racism in the workplace is common, read information on your
rights and by all means stand up for yourself. If you are harrassed in any way at work
or anywhere else you should tell people about it, some people get away with it
because no one knows, most often people are picked on because they are considered
an easy target, Find ways to become more confident, for more information check out
http://www.4selfdefence.com. Also contact us for any more information on self
defence training, easy to learn and very effective.
24. briths boy says:
March 29, 2010 at 1:05 pm
fuck AUS and indian fucking dark people
25. briand01 says:
March 30, 2010 at 12:08 pm
Hi briths boy, you are not very intelligent are you, stupid comment from a dumb
person, you sound like you need some help with your vocabulary. Possibly should get
some lessons on manners and i will bet you are a gutless sort of person who picks on
little people and woman or is the real problem you are very small in an important
male way. Take care and go and harass another blog.
26. samuel welsh says:
April 16, 2010 at 6:47 pm
Stand tall , sort those racists out
Indians have nothing to be ashamed of .
Racist loosers suck
Australian Senate report says attacks on
Indian students is not racism
By IndianLocal Editor on Nov 29, 2009 in Latest News
Attacks on Indian Students in Australia is not racism says Australian Senate Report.
An Australian Senate Committee formed to investigate a series of violent attacks on Indian students this year has
ruled out racism as the prime motive.
Indian student groups say the authorities are in denial.
There was very little evidence that the assaults were based on racism or discrimination, committee chairman
and Liberal Party senator Gary Humphries has told The Australian newspaper.
In fact, the term racism figures only twice in the 150-page report submitted to the Senate on Thursday.
The committee acknowledges that with a lack of understanding regarding personal safety, the circumstances in
which international students often find themselves may give rise to fears of racism and they may interpret a
negative experience as motivated by racism even though no such motive exists, an extract from the report
reads.
The committee has recommended that overseas students should be given more information on personal safety
before they arrive in Australia. The universities and colleges should be responsible for imparting this information.
The much-awaited Senate Committee report has come under immediate criticism for not addressing the thorny
issue of racism.
They are still in denial of the major issue, Federation of Indian Students of Australia president Amit Menghani
was quoted as saying by The Australian newspaper Friday.
The violent attacks on Indian students studying Down Under were widely reported in the Indian media leading to
what was perceived as a low-mark in India-Australia relations. Over 30 such attacks have been reported since
early May.
A series of visits by high-ranked Australian politicians and officials followed the Indian medias spotlight on the
attacks, which also led to protests by mostly Indian students in Melbourne and Sydney.
The Senate report, chaired by Liberal Senator Gary Humphries, has made a number of recommendations to
reform the beleaguered Australian overseas education sector.
Australias education exports have rocketed in the past few years but the sector is reportedly marred by lack of
regulation of the education institutes and recruitment agents.
Long term regulatory reform and sustained growth of the industry can only be achieved by state and federal
governments working together, the Senate committee chairman told The Australian.
The capital cities of Victoria and New South Wales (Melbourne and Sydney respectively)are the two major
destinations for overseas students. These two most populous Australian cities are also reporting the maximum
number of irregularities as far as overseas students are concerned.
Victoria is taking extraordinary actions to weed out incompetent providers and protect students, and has set a
regulation benchmark for the rest of the nation, Humphries told the newspaper.
The Senate Committee has criticised the state governments of Victoria and New South Wales for not providing
public transport concessions to overseas students. This has been a long standing demand of groups
representing Indian and other overseas students. Lack of public transport concessions has also been partly
blamed as a reason for attacks on Indian students as they prefer to walk home to save fares.
The report has also discussed a number of issues revolving about the enrolment of students from India and a
number of recommendations have been made to regulate the education agents based in countries like India.
Besides other recommendations for overseas countries, the Senate report has recommended further expansion
of the eVisa system (online visa applications lodged by authorised persons).
Before the Department of Immigration and Citizenships (DIAC) crackdown on Indian students and their
representatives for alleged scams, the subcontinent was the largest source of students for Australian institutes.
Source: ET
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The government is not reducing the gap between the communities but increasing it
Indian students in Australia speak to WSWS about recent racist attacks
By our reporters
20 August 2009
The Australian political and media establishment has responded to the recent spate of racist
attacks on Indian university students with a series of desperate evasions aimed at covering up
the political issues while, at the same time, maintaining revenue from the lucrative
international student market. It has studiously avoided making any genuine examination of
the systematic and institutionalised discrimination suffered by Indian and other international
students.
In Victoria, Labor Premier John Brumby called a Walk for Harmony in Melbourne, the
state capital, on July 12 in response to the violent assaults. Promoting the event, Brumby
insisted We are all equal. Nothing, however, could be further from the truth. In a telling
indication of his real attitude, the state premier refused to allow any Indian students to
address the crowd. (See: Indian students boycott Victorian Labor governments Walk for
Harmony)
International students are subject to tuition fees many times higher than those paid by most
Australian students. They are ineligible for income support, for student concession public
transport fares, and are barred access to Medicare and other basic social services. Every
aspect of their lives while studying in Australia is determined by the government and
university authorities drive to extract maximum profits. Providing education to students from
overseas is now Australias third largest export, behind coal and iron ore.
Revenues from international student tuition and other fees have increased from $200 million
in 1992, $1.8 billion in 2000, to an extraordinary $15 billion today. In 2007, international
students comprised 26 percent of all enrolled students in Australiaa higher proportion than
in any other advanced capitalist country.
The World Socialist Web Site recently spoke with three Indian students in Melbourne.
Ganesh Sundaramurthy is a full-time Masters in Business student and also works as a liaison
officer for the student union at the Bourke Street campus of RMIT University. The campus
provides mainly finance and business courses and has a large number of international
students. He is currently applying for residency.
Ganesh spoke of his experiences since arriving in July 2006 from India where he completed
an engineering degree. As well as my full-time study, I work 12 hours a week here (at the
university), he said. Ganesh also works five to ten hours part-time for a company selling
credit cards in shopping centres. Its a really hard job. Its paid by commission.
As a student liaison officer Ganesh experiences first hand the problems faced by many
overseas students. There are just three of us working here. Last semester we had around 500
cases, on the city campus alone, of students seeking assistance. It has been a major increase
from last year... Ive seen many students facing financial distress.
Ganesh said one of the major issues was the availability of affordable accommodation. He
said Australian universities sent representatives to India, distributing brochures that gave a
false picture to prospective students of university facilities in Australia.
They say, You can live in RMIT Village, and its really nice. You can live in the city but
students arent told that you have to pay $1,200 a month for a one-bedroom studio apartment
to live in the city. The student union, in fact, had started a soup kitchen on campus last year,
which served food to hundreds of students every week.
Ganesh pointed to other issues: International students must pay $300 a year for private
health insurance and they dont have access to Medicare. So when you go to the doctor, you
have to pay for everything, even the consultation fees.
The university has very few medical facilities. Services once paid for out of student union
fees were cut back or outsourced after the introduction of voluntary student unionism (VSU)
by the former Howard government.
Ganesh said most students worked in badly paid jobs such as in restaurants, and that he had
dealt with cases of students working for between $5 and $8 an hour. He said they lived in
poorer suburbs and had to travel late at night on public transport after finishing work.
Because of that, they are always soft targets on the trains at night. All the police can say is
that its the individuals responsibility to protect their property or move to a safer suburb, but
most students cant afford this.
Sachin is from Bangalore, has been in Australia for 16 months and is studying for a business
administration masters degree at Victoria University. He pays around $10,000 in tuition fees
each semester.
Sachin said he had experiences with racism but not to the extent that we hear in the news.
We have had a few abusive incidents, usually from people of low socio-economic
background or on some kind of drugs or alcohol. It happens when people are not in their
senses. So far I havent had an incident where people have attacked me. He said he did not
think attacks were racially motivated but there is an element of racism involved.
Sachin helped distribute an International Students for Social Equality leaflet on the issues at
the Victorian governments so-called Walk for Harmony.
I sensed that the event was a face-saving exercise and organised like a carnival, he said,
with little understanding provided about the life-threatening assaults carried out on Indian
students. They [the organisers] tried to stay away from that topic.
Sachin criticised the governments decision to bar Indian students from speaking at the event
and supported the decision of the Federation of Indian Students in Australia students to
boycott it.
If the main issue being raised was the plight of Indian students, why didnt they allow them
to speak? By not letting them talk, they sent a message that the situation will continue, he
said.
Sachin disagreed with Prime Minister Kevin Rudds claims on June 10 that the attacks on
Indian students were simply a fact of violence in cities around the world. These comments,
he said, are encouraging what is happening. What he is doing is shrugging off the issue
and making this look like something small, that it is blown out of all proportion. I disagree.
This has not just happened now with people making a lot of noisethis has been going on
for more than a year and a half. I have been hearing about Indians being attacked since the
time I have been here and I assume it has been going on for a time before that.
Sachin explained that the university did not help him find affordable accommodation or to
access other services: You would imagine that at a university where you are paying so much
money there would be some assistanceat least regarding who to contact and what to do.
Forced to live with friends during his first weeks in Australia, Sachin did the whole house
hunting thing by myself. He eventually found accommodation in Pascoe Vale and was one
of about 15 people living in a house with eight rooms.
Sachin also remarked that overseas students had difficulty coping with the teaching style in
Australia. We were told at orientation that the teachers here are facilitators, not teachers, and
that you will have to do all your work on your own. I imagined that they would be of some
assistance.
He also explained how he had to pay fees for classes that he never took. When I was
transferring to Victoria from RMIT there is something here they call a census date to make
changes in your enrolment or status at the university. I wasnt aware of that. After
requesting a certificate for the classes he had passed at RMIT, he was informed he had
crossed the census date and needed to pay roughly $10,000 in fees.
Maitreya is from Gujurat and a finance student at RMIT, also paying about $10,000 tuition
fees each semester. He felt that the Indian media was using the recent assaults in Australia for
its own purposes. The Indian media is known to us as...the bastard media. Because they just
need a single thing to spark and they stretch it like anything.
Maitreya, however, was concerned about what was happening and condemned police
inaction. He said he knew an Indian student living in Footscray who was hospitalised after
being stabbed. His friends stayed in the police station for a whole day and the police reply
was, Do you have a picture of the person who carried out the attack? That is a ridiculous
questionas if instead of calling an ambulance his friends should have chased the attacker
and asked him for a photo, he said. The police told Maitreyas friends to forget about this
issue and do not make too much hype out of thiswe cant do anything.
Asked if he had been given assistance to find accommodation and with other issues, Maitreya
replied: None from the university. Ive been lucky, I have my brother here and I get lots of
help from him. I dont have to struggle in the same way as other Indians.
Commenting on the high tuition fees he said: Its too much, its extraordinarily high and
placed extra pressure on students because they feared the high cost of failure. One of my
friends, he said, had to borrow $50,000, at high interest rates. I was paying around $2,800
for each unit I was taking.
Maitreya also criticised Rudds response to the attacks on Indian students. The government
here is not reducing the gap between the communities but increasing it, he said.

1
Indian students in Australia:
victims of crime, racism or the media?
Spolc, Peter
International Student Support Services
University of Western Sydney
Sydney, Australia
p.spolc@uws.edu.au
Lee, Dr Murray
Sydney Law School
University of Sydney
Sydney, Australia
murray.lee@usyd.edu.au
Abstract
A series of attacks on Indian students in 2009 in Australia led to an international media frenzy about the safety
of International students in Australia and Australias apparently racist culture. While on face value this was a
story about crimes against Indian students, the medias reaction to those events (particularly in India), the
reactions of student interest groups, and the reactions of education providers and government, made this story
of
International importance and resulted in significant civil unrest in many Australian cities and suburbs. This
paper examines the available facts of these events, and follows a range of (often competing) discourses
circulating amongst a range of participant groups. From a criminological perspective we analyse the data on
crime patters central to these events and this is discussed with reference to the media responses and student,
education provider and government responses. The paper concludes with recommendations about how the
welfare of students might best be maximised in the context of victims of crime and the reporting of these
incidents.
Keywords: international students, Indian students, crime, racism, media
Introduction
Ever since the formal establishment of a commercial international education industry in Australia in the 1980s,
individuals from many countries have sought an education - and particularly a post-secondary education - in
Australia. Indian students have counted among those students from the beginning.
Indian students have become one of the most significant cohorts of students:
In 1994, Indian students represented just 1.5% of the 102,000 onshore international students.
By 1998, the year most affected by the Asian currency crisis, Indian students represented just over 5%
of the roughly 150,000 international students studying in Australia.
By 2004, the Indian student population had grown to nearly 6.5% of onshore international students.
This number seems relatively small and only a marginal growth since 1998, but this number; 20,749
students represented the fourth largest national cohort.
In the five years since 2004, the number of Indian students has risen to the number two position of
109,356 - just over 19% of a total of over half a million international students coming from 200
different countries. China remains the number one source country for international students.
Today, over 43% of all onshore international students come from either India or China. International
students as a whole constitute around 2.64% of the Australian population, more than the estimated
number of Aboriginal Australians for 2009 of 2.57%.
(AEI, 2009a)
Until 2009, the media paid only occasional attention to these significant statistics with typical references to
international students as cash cows who compromise Australian educational standards. Common themes of
media coverage on international students included victims of mercenary education providers and agents,
collaborators with unscrupulous employers, and perpetrators of migration rorts. In this light, medial
2
constructions of international students ranged from innocent victims to scheming exploiters of innocent
Australian law.
But in May and June 2009, there was an explosion of media interest in Indian students specifically, and as a
consequence, international students in general. Attacks on Indian students in Melbourne and to a lesser degree,
Sydney, were at the core of this explosion which also led to an independent expose of of international students
at
many levels. The experiences of Indian students in Australia became a hot media topic across the world, and the
State and Federal governments panicked at the prospect that this negative coverage might send the international
student demand plunging. The oft-quoted statistics of international education being the third highest Australian
export earner (AEI, 2009b) meant that this panic had a strong economic basis, and no-one knew how serious the
ensuing economic damage would be. This media coverage generated a paradoxical response from government:
we (the government) will show you (the international student) just how much we care about you (so that you,
your friends and your family wont stop buying from us). Clearly, good care of students is primarily an
imperative for the students themselves, but also has benefits for Australias international relations reputation and
the Australian economy.
In order to make sense of this unprecedented cluster of events, this paper looks at Indian students as the victims
of violent crimes and undertakes three specific tests:
1. Were Indian students victims of crime in 2009?
2. Were Indian students victims of racism in 2009?
3. Were Indian students victims of the media in 2009?
Anecdotally, Indian students have been noted as ardent seekers of permanent residence, especially since the
closer links between Australias education and migration programs were established in 2001. As a result, Indian
students have been seen as single-minded seekers of courses with optimistic PR (permanent residence)
prospects,
at times above any concerns of educational merit or vocational appropriateness. Also, Indian students have been
seen as highly motivated by, if not dependent upon, employment to be able to survive in Australia during their
studies.
This paper will show that these two anecdotal perspectives of Indian students:
i) PR interests above educational interests, and
ii) the need to secure an immediate onshore income stream above educational interests,
are intimately connected to the results of the three tests above.
Test No. 1: Were Indian students victims of crime in 2009?
Before examining this first test question, it would be well worth looking at what being a victim - of any sort -
means. Merriam Webster defines it as one that is acted on and usually adversely affected by a force or agent
... one that is subjected to oppression, hardship, or mistreatment. It is most curious that this definition
specifies usually adversely affected because this holds back from the common definition of victimhood as
undoubtedly adverse.
To dig a little deeper, we turn to victimology, a narrow sub-discipline of criminology for a definition. And there
we find victimhood is anything but simple notion. Concepts such as true victim, ideal victim and
undeserving and deserving victims add complex layers to this core definition. Perhaps of most use for this
paper is the idea that victims cannot be separated from the process whereby an individual comes to be
identified
as a victim (Davies, Francis and Greer, 2007, p.144), and the media has an enormous role in establishing that
process. Now that we can say that being victim is a multifarious thing, we can look at the case in hand with
some trepidation.
There is no doubt that a number of Indian students were victims of assaults and other crimes in Australia in
2009. A convenient summary of reports published in Australia on some of those crimes is given at the
Wikipedia page, 2009 attacks on Indian students in Australia. A concise summary of the crimes identified
there is given in Table 1 below.
3
Table 1 details of some of the crimes against Indian students published in Australian media in May/June 2009.
No. date location gender age Crime
1 04-May-09 MEL male 21 assault, "beaten unconscious"
2 01-May-09 MEL male unstated assault, "assaulted, robbed, [verbally abused]"
3 01-May-09 MEL male 25 assault, "stabbed in the head"
4 24-May-09 SYD male unstated assault, "house pertrol bombed, suffered burns"
5 25-May-09 SYD male 25 assault, "stabbed in abdomen"
6 30-May-09 MEL male unstated assault, "beaten by group of fifteen"
7 02-Jun-09 MEL male 21 assault, "slashed across chest"
8 08-Jun-09 SYD unstated unstated assault, "attacked by Lebanese men"
9 08-Jun-09 MEL male 23 assault, "beaten unconscious"
10 08-Jun-09 MEL unstated unstated car burnt
11 11-Jun-09 ADL male 22 assault, turban struck, fight ensued
12 13-Jun-09 MEL male 24 assault, "attacked by three people"
13 15-Jun-09 MEL male 20 assault, assaulted, verbally abused
14 29-Jun-09 MEL male 22 assault, attempt to forcibly remove turban
It is interesting to note that all known ages of the victims were between 20 and 25 and all known genders were
male. This is broadly consistent with the typical demography of this student cohort, except that the population
ratio of male to female of Indian students is three to one (AEI, 2009c).
No female Indian students were reported in this summary, and that absence is worthy of note. The first
possibility is that there were female victims but they chose not to report their assaults. Victims choosing not to
report is a well documented phenomena in the literature on victims of crime. This would not be unusual,
particularly if the physical assaults also extended to sexual assaults as these offences are still notoriously
underreported.
Moreover, if the assaults were clearly racially motivated one might also expect to at least hear an
increase of reports of assaults against women sexual assault is, after all commonly conceptualised as a crime
of
power. Of course the police in all States and Territories are a major source of crime statistics, but these
statistics refer only to crimes reported to and/or detected by police. The Crime and Safety Surveys in Australia
and Crime Victimisation Surveys conducted overseas consistently show that a majority of victims do not report
incidents of victimisation to the police or other government agencies. Estimates from these surveys indicate that
less than 40 per cent of crimes are reported to the police. (Mukherjee, 1999, p. 2) The claims about reported
crimes can only remain speculative precisely because of the absence of data.
The second possibility is that women were not victimised because they were not in high risk locations at high
risk times. This is consistent with notion that many women avoid being out alone after dark for fear they
increase
their likelihood of being victimised. There is no clear data on the time and/or location of these crimes, so this
second possibility cannot be easily tested.
With reference to these possibilities, Adam West of the Victorian Police Media Unit indicated that these crimes
were usually late at night in public places such as near rail lines and stations and typical of assault locations and
times (personal communication, 14 October 2009). In this respect, they may not have been significantly
different to other victims of similar crimes; other international students, and other Australian residents. But there
is no firm data to test this claim.
The possibility that female Indian students avoided those locations at those times remains viable, and indeed
sensible. The converse question may also be asked; why were male Indian students in those locations at those
times? We might speculate that male Indian students were more likely to be expected to earn an income to
immediately begin servicing debt associated with their studies. This imperative takes them away from their
residential areas and often into shift work with odd starting and finishing times. In short, their financial
circumstances forces them into risky employment conditions with an increased associated risk of being
assaulted. Criminologically, this is consistent with a routine activities thesis. This theory holds that crime occurs
when motivated offenders and potential victims come together in a space lacking capable guardians a violation
can occur (Cohen and Felson, 1979). This explains well why the offences occurred in the locations they did; that
is lone Indian students commuting late at night between their places of employment or study and their
residences
4
pass through places lacking capable guardians. However, it tells us little about the motivations of offenders (see
Bottoms and Wiles (2002).
Here there are three possibilities;
1. That the attacks were racially motivated and that race was the primary factor in the selection of a
victim; that is that there were essentially hate crimes.
2. That motivated offenders used race as part of the selection criteria or profile of their victims. That is
that Indian students were seen as soft targets who might carry on them considerable rewards (in the
shape of cash). This does not make the offence a hate or race crime (Mason 2008), yet race may still
be a motivating factor.
3. The Indian students were victimised at much the same rate as other potential victims but a confluence
of media reportage and other problems and uncertainties associated with education and living away
from home played a part in problematising the assault as a race issue.
If the test question were modified to ask: was the number of Indian students represented as victims of crime
more or less than the general population?, A more illuminating perspective on this issue might arise. But since
no race of victim data was recorded in either of the states featuring media reports, this question cannot (yet) be
answered.
Statistics on Assault in NSW and Victoria
The racial identity of the victims of crime is not routinely recorded in either of the two states of interest, NSW
and Victoria. And secondly, the general statistics on assaults for these two show contradictory trends over the
last 12 to 24 months, with NSW falling by 8.1% and Victoria rising by 5.4% (NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics
and Research, 2009; and Victoria Police, 2009).
And the anomalies dont stop there. In the period July 2007 to June 2009, NSW recorded an overall net drop in
non-domestic assaults, ranging from no significant change in nine statistical regions; to a drop of -8.1% in
Sydney; and a maximum drop of -11.7% in the north western statistical division (NSW Bureau of Crime
Statistics and Research, 2009).
In Victoria, the pattern is much more uniform: Adult victims aged between 18 and 59 have increased by 5.9%,
which is typical of all Victorian assault statistics across this period. The five regions of the state experienced
increases of between 2.8% and 8.8% for assault, while the most common location of Indian student attacks,
street/lane/footpath, the second most common location for all assaults after residences, increased by only 4.5%
(Victoria Police, 2009).
Test No. 2: Were Indian students victims of racism in 2009?
Racism is a broad term that can refer to a wide range of beliefs and behaviours and is certainly not a simple
phenomenon. Indeed, definitions of racism vary significantly. Take the Macquarie Dictionary definition for
example, the belief that human races have distinctive characteristics which determine their respective cultures,
usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule or dominate others.
(Macquarie Dictionary, 2009).
An important feature of this and many definitions is the notion of racial superiority, but Sowell (1994) argues
that many assume that racism is a prerequisite for discrimination, or is virtually synonymous with it. However,
a generalized hostility or specific discrimination may be directed to a particular racial or ethnic group without
any belief that they are innately inferior (p. 154). His conclusion means that the recognition of racial difference
alone can be the basis of racist behaviour.
Some commentators view the boundary between the categories of racism and non-racism is significantly blurred
and prefer to work with a continuum instead, with less racist at one end and more racist at the other. This
would admit forms of racism that are more subtle or covert, as well as major acts of racial violence (Trepagnier,
2006)
Blending these two ideas, we can ask: how does recognising racial difference transform into racist acts that
register positively on a racist continuum, such as the attacks that form the basis of this paper? This requires both
evidence that this occurs, and some understanding of the racist motivation of the attackers.
5
The evidence of racist behaviour was sufficient for the Race Discrimination Commissioner, Mr Tom Calma, to
comment that: we need to recognise that racism does exist in Australia. It doesn't mean the whole society is
racist but it does exist with individual's actions and small group actions," and it's important that we all accept
that, understand and start to develop the frameworks to address it into the future and not be reactive but be
proactive.
(The Sydney Morning Herald, 14 June 2009) These statements reflect a view that is most likely held by
many citizens about the diversity of racism in Australia.
However, the evidence that racism per se was the driving force of the attackers is not so easily found. Lets
begin
examining this test question by considering both reported and unreported crimes. We will first consider reported
crimes and assaults in particular.
Any claim that these crimes are inherently racist must first address the strongest evidence available. Crime
statistics in NSW and Victoria do not routinely record the race or ethnicity of victims of crime (NSW Bureau of
Crime Statistics and Research, 2009, and Victoria Police, 2009). And those crimes that do record the
race/ethnicity of the victim are very few, and noted because they feature explicitly racist actions as the core of
the crime. Therefore, it is impossible to make any compelling claim about increased attacks in Indian students
since there is no comprehensive evidence to support these claims, and no official baseline data with which to
measure any change. At this point we can now consider speculations beyond the official records.
Unreported assaults can by definition, only be estimated. Estimates vary as might be expected. Ten years ago,
the Australian Institute of Criminology published an article on ethnicity and crime which suggested that only
40% of crimes are reported, of which only 25% have known perpetrators (Mukherjee, 1999). This means that
the majority of crimes allegedly go unreported and only 10% of all crimes have a known perpetrator. Francis
(2007) identifies seven reasons why crimes may be under reported, ranging from fear of communication due to
language difficulties to a belief that police and other statutory agencies are unresponsive to their needs.
Arguably, the mostly directly relevant group commenting on Indian student victims would be the Federation of
Indian Students of Australia (FISA). FISA is somewhat ambiguous in its determination on the presence of racist
crimes against Indian students. The central question of whether Indian student victims were the victims of
racism was answered by the President of FISA, Mr Gautam Gupta (Are we racist or are we just violent?, ABC
radio interview, 12 June 09) who stated, I do have doubts [that these are racially motivated attacks]. So some of
the attacks where the people or the thugs were abusing people and they were asking them to go back home, or
telling them this is curry bashing, or theyre thrill seekers and they find thrill in targeting a particular
section
of the community which I think is becoming like a pattern. And thats whats disturbing for us and thats where
we think there are racist elements in some of these attacks. Only racist elements were asserted.
A much more reactionary statement from FISA is contained in an article titled FISA calls Australian
Government to stop student killings (4 September 09). FISA looked at international student deaths, an issue that
came to the attention of the media following the coverage of Indian student attacks. Student and FISA
representative, Hardeep Kaur said that, any student death will be the direct responsibility of the negligence of
the Deputy PM and her ineffective structures such as DEEWR and ACPET. All deaths that are avoidable must
be avoided or they should be treated as killings.'
Both of these statements make important assertions. The first is that racism cannot be regarded as the only basis
of the attacks, while the second makes the astonishing assertion that all student deaths are the responsibility of
the Deputy Prime Minister.
Given Guptas claim that these assaults contained racist elements, we need to look further into that possibility,
but this is where the lack of evidence forces us to accept an inadequate evidence verdict. No evidence has been
published that conclusively shows that the perpetrators were driven by a primarily racist motivation.
Test No. 3: Were Indian students victims of the media in 2009?
The notion of a victim of the media is categorically different to the victims of crime or racism in that the
relationship between the would-be perpetrator and victim is impersonal and detached in time and space. So for
this test question, we have to broaden the idea of victimhood to include consequences that negatively impacted
on the victim, and perhaps in less immediate or traceable ways.
6
A very useful key to the victims of the media question is this description of the medias power in relation to
matters of race is provided by van Dijk (p. 37 2000): when power over the most influential form of public
discourse, that is, media discourse, is combined with a lack of alternative sources, when there is a near
consensus, and opponents and dissident groups are weak, then the media are able to abuse such power and
establish the discursive and cognitive hegemony that is necessary for the reproduction of the new racism.
The medias role began in earnest in May 2009. On 27 May, and for several days after, Indian and then
Australian media carried stories of Indian students being attacked, mostly in Melbourne but also in Sydney.
Many of them carried claims that these attacks had been going on for some time, or more extensive than the
specific cases reported.
eg.
The Federation of Indian Students in Australia says there have been more than 500 recorded attacks on Indian
students, most of them in Melbourne. (The World Today: International image hit by attacks on Indians, 29
May 2009)
Trade Minister Simon Crean says Indian authorities raised concerns about students being targeted more than a
year ago. (Australia in damage control over Indian attacks, 1 June 2009)
Violent attacks on Indians have been growing over the last few years and has raised serious concern (sic) for
aspiring students who wish to study in Australia. Australia: Teenagers attack Indian student, critical, 27 May
2009
Overall, these statements suggest racist attacks against Indian students emerged and proliferated before any
police actions took place. But the evidence for these claims is not borne out in the few statistics we have, as we
have seen. Some of the worlds media formed a loose consensus that Indian students were victims of violent
Australian racists, with the Indian media indicative of a hardline racist Australia depiction, and the Australian
media perhaps the most uncommitted.
It was not until these crimes had largely faded from the pages of the worlds media that a more critical position
was expounded. Perhaps the most succinct summary of the themes of the reporting was reported by John Ross
in his August 2009 article, Just another week in international education (Campus Review, 3 August 2009). He
said, any incident of thuggery was headline news so long as there was an Indian connection, but his
concluding remarks capped it all off, International education lobbyists say the industry will survive all this.
Hopefully it will emerge stronger. More attention paid to the students, the security, the inclusion, the
curriculum,
the language skills, the policy settings, the compliance measures, the regulation. And regulation of the media?
Well, nobodys really talking about that.
This is a case of the media critiquing itself. The numbers of attacks were not shown to be significantly greater
than before, but the cause for alarm was nevertheless raised. As Prof. Stephen Connolly, the president of the
International Education Association of Australia responded "We have slipped in our duty of care to some of our
international students. We have had a wake up call (courtesy of the crisis over the security of Indian students),"
(Lane, 2009). The crisis was not about victims of crime or racism, but a crisis in international relations and its
accompanying economic risk.
In the simplest terms, the scoop on Indian students as victims of racist crime became international news because
the global media market is perpetually hungry for racist sensationalism, and once that media cat was out of the
bag, no amount of rational examination of the matter could put it back in. As Indo-Australian journalist, Janaki
Bhahadur astutely observed, At first glance, the crisis seemed to trash Australia's reputation as a safe place
where aspirational and middleclass Asian parents could send their children to pursue their studies. In the process
it imperilled a multibillion dollar Australian industry in the midst of an economic downturn when every export
dollar was needed. (p.1, 2009)
The actions taken by very senior Australian political and government representatives at the time of the crisis and
the months that followed were an attempt to assure Indian authorities that Indias sons and daughters were safe
in Australia. The principal demonstration of this commitment to safety was a number of reforms being
undertaken in response to this crisis, at both state and federal levels. To a significant degree, the media
representation of a crisis of Indian student safety was treated as real in order to highlight the benefits of the
actions being taken by the Australian government and its political leaders. And both the Indian and Australian
governments participated in this political device. As Bahadur succinctly put it: The Indian government, no less
7
than the Australian one, cannot afford to ignore or be seen to ignore the plight of its citizens when they face
violence abroad. The media will not let them.
A very important and unexpected result of media coverage of these attacks was that sharply focused attention
was directed at international students in general, and a number of quite real problems in international education
came to light, most notably though the ABC television program, Four Corners, (Holy Cash Cows, 27 July
2009). This program revealed that foreign students in this country have been targeted by unscrupulous
businessmen, who have set up training schools that supply qualifications that sometimes aren't worth the paper
they are written on and other scams involving migration agents and fraudulent documents. Most critically, Four
Corners discovered evidence that students have made serious allegations to the relevant government authorities
and been ignored or worse found themselves subsequently under investigation by government.
These revelations were consistent with a much more rational response from the government. The broad
consequence of these revelations was that Indian students now have a better prospect than ever of gaining a
genuine and useful education from Australia and a more attentive ear from ombudsmen and corruption
monitoring bodies. Moreover, discussion of many aspects on international studentship has been elevated and
serious critiques of matters as significant as Australias decision to align its education and migration programs
have emerged.
The Deputy Prime Ministers Australian/Indian Community dinner speech in New Delhi on 31 August (Gillard,
2009) captured the transition from the media sensationalism of Indian student attacks to the appropriate review
of government strategy very well. First, it recognised the media coverage of Indian student attacks and second,
the much more significant problem of reform against rogue education and migration operators. It is no surprise
that the attacks on Indian students have disappeared from the worlds headlines in late 2009, while the hard
work
that is being done on regulatory reform goes on with hardly a front page story.
Conclusion
This paper examined three questions about Indian students in Australia in 2009 as victims of crime, racism and
the media. Indian student as victims of crime has not been significantly demonstrated in the recorded statistics,
and evidence of significant unreported crimes is weak. Indian students as victims of racism has not been shown
to be justified, though racism and links to violent crimes cannot be regarded as beyond possibility ,we are not
suggesting that each attack shares identical motivations.
In the light of poor criminological evidence and a plethora of evocative images, the global media has propagated
and fostered claims about crimes and racism related to that are well outside the evidence. However, the claim
that Indian students have become victims of the media cannot be demonstrated. While responsible agencies have
acknowledged the media claims as, at least in part true, the interests of education providers and their associated
economy have been shown to be the most vulnerable participants in these media events.
The media coverage of Indian student attacks in 2009 has in part led to recognition of problems unrelated to
physical safety involving government departments, individuals, education providers and migration agents. These
problems are real, though their impact will most likely to be limited to a minority of international students.
The challenge for Australia now is to establish much more penetrating monitoring of international student
affairs
so that problems are not revealed by the media for its own purposes, and seemingly under the nose of
government. Channels for effectively recording student concerns and rigorously implementing the tough
sanctions already available to international education through the ESOS Act must be stepped up, and both
federal and state governments have made some progress on that charter. And finally, it is also up to the industry
itself to increase its integrity, commitment and accountability in this process in concert with the regulatory
framework.

1

Do You Speak Australian?
The new visibility of Indiansfresh off the ships, insufficiently Aussie, swamping the job scenefeeds a
latent racism
PRANAY SHARMA

Mandeep Singh Cookery student
The Australian dream is still alive for this Delhi youngster as he lands at Melbourne

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Bells Toll
130 Indians attacked countrywide, the Indian high commission says. Of these, 30 were
students.
1,447 incidents of crime against Indians in 2007-08 have been reported in Victoria alone.
The state is crime-prone, and has a force of 13,000, including volunteers, to police a
population of four million.
33 Indians died in violent attacks between 2004 and 2009, says Federation of Indian
Students of Australia spokesperson Gautam Gupta. Of these, six died in 2009. Nitin Garg
was stabbed to death in 2010.
On Jan 5, the Indian government issued an advisory to Indian students in Australia

asking them to take certain precautionary measures while travelling.
33.2% visa applications turned down by Australia between July 1 and October 31, 2009,
up from 6.5 per cent for the corresponding period in 2008. These applications were
mostly turned down because of documentation fraud.
***
K
anan Bhargawa still shudders at the memory of March 16, 2008. This young student from
Ambala was accompanying his friend Jassi that day to the local railway station of Sunshine, the
citys relatively poorer suburb where many Indians stay. They had gone to pick up Jassis wife
who was returning from the city at night. The moment the duo reached the station, they were
accosted by a group of boys. One of them, presumably their leader, demanded a dollar. When
Kanan said he didnt have one, the group fell upon him, raining blows and mouthing racial
expletives. Jassi tried to intervene, only to be beaten up as well. Their fury vented, the assailants
vanished in a jiffy. Kanan has lost vision in his right eye. In a quivering voice, he says, I was
lucky, I wasnt knifed.
One might think that suburbs such as Sunshine are prone to random
violence. One may not even slot the attack on Kanan as completely
racial. But talk to Indians walking around in Melbourne, and theyll
tell you that the spectre of racism is stalking them in every
neighbourhood. Take Kamlesh Patel, a post-graduate in chemical
engineering from the prestigious Monash University. He stays in
Prahran, a posh neighbourhood, safe from the baddies of Sunshine.
A few months ago, as Patel was walking his dog, a carload of
youngsters braked to a halt near him. From inside the car, one boy
shouted, Hey, you Indian bastard, why dont you go back home?
There is what can be termed repressed racism in Australia,
erupting at the slightest provocation or under the influence of liquor
or often for no reason other than the sight of an Indian. Gurdeep
Singhs been driving a taxi for some years now in Melbourne. Only last weekend, a drunk
Australian in his car exploded, F*** off bastard, go back to your country and work.
These examples illustrate vividly the danger Indians in Melbourne face daily. Does this arise
exclusively from an innate racism? Well, the economic fear that Indians, arriving in hordes, will
rob them of jobs in the enveloping gloom of the slowdown ties in with it. As does the cultural

Not only are
Indian students
taking away seats
in colleges; by
staying behind,
they are also
taking away jobs,
says a right-wing
party leader.

factor that the growing Indian community, largely drawn from small towns and villages back
home, is perhaps as a group not sufficiently adjusted to the local
culture and its demands?
It is those in the left-liberal parties who feel the attacks on Indians, or
at least some of those, have a strong racial basis. Those in the
extreme right-wing outfits deny this outright. Among the latter is Jim
Salaem, head of the Australia First Party, which has adopted the
contentious immigration issue as its principal cause. Salaem says it
isnt the white Australians who are attacking Indians. He blames the
violence on those who have migrated from Muslim countries or
Africa. But he concedes that the governments open-door
immigration policy has created enormous problems for white
Australians. The governments education policy of getting students
from India and other countries is depriving our local boys a chance
to get into universities, Salaem told Outlook.
The situation has been compounded, says the Australia First leader, because the education
policy is closely linked to the immigration policy, which allows a large number of overseas
students, including those from India, to work in Australia until they are granted citizenship.
Salaem fulminates, Not only are these Indian students taking away the seats in colleges and
universities, they are also taking away the jobs that could have gone to an Australian student. In
addition, by staying back and getting a permanent residency in Australia, they are becoming a
serious threat to white Australians in the job market. He consequently wants overseas students
to return home after they complete their studies.
Similarly, Bob Vinnicombe of One Nation, yet another right-wing group, wants a cap on the
number of immigrants coming to Australia. The government should actively encourage bringing
in Christians and white people from Zimbabwe and South Africa, he told Outlook. Neither the
Australia First Party nor One Nation matters much in Australias parliamentary politics. But
Vinnicombe claims that many politicians in other parties share his views, though they refrain from
going public for political reasons. His and Salaems views may not be shared by most
Australians, yet the attacks on Indians have brought the immigration and race issues to the fore
again.
Perhaps their views have also gained ground because Indians have
become more visible in Australia. The Australian cant miss him in
his daily routine. He sees the Indian on the train when he goes to
work; its the Indian who serves him at the takeaway; the Indian is
there again behind the counter when he goes to buy groceries at the
supermarket; he mans the gas stations, or is behind the wheel every
time the white Australian takes a taxi at night. As if all this isnt
enough, he also finds a few of them living in his posh
neighbourhood. Says Gautam Gupta, spokesperson of the
Federation of Indian Students in Australia (FISA), Perhaps
somewhere in the Australian mind, the Indians have started playing
a role.
The furore over racism is also a case of mismatch in perceptions.
Most attacks are seen back in India as racial, even though some can be purely for robbery. In
Australia, an attack is not deemed racial till it can be established that the intent was such, and
not purely criminal. To understand why Indians are particularly susceptible to mugging, one only

Adds another,
The government
should actively
encourage
bringing in
Christians and
white people from
Zimbabwe and
South Africa.

Most Indian
students perhaps
know about our
geography, but
know little about
Australian
history, says a
professor of
history in Sydney.

has to hear the mean joke doing the rounds here: Whats common between an atm and an
Indian? You get money whenever you hit them.
Its true many young Indians flaunt their iPhones, iPods or carry laptops around the city. Those
looking for easy money target Indians because they have things that can be sold easily. Since
most Indian students share a pad with six or seven others, they feel its safer to carry cash with
them rather than leave it behind. They are loath to deposit money in a bank fearing they might be
asked whether they are adhering to laws regulating the number of hours they can legally work.
No wonder, the authorities here are advising Indians not to carry their valuables on them. This
has FISA president Amit Menghani bristle, How can you ask them not to carry their mobile
phones? How will they ask for help if they are attacked?
Partly, the violence in Melbourne, including attacks on Indians, has
increased because the economic downturn has compelled the
Australian government to downsize its police force by 2,500
personnel. The state of Victoria today has a police force of only
13,000 personnel to man a population of over four million people.
So, you no longer find a cop patrolling many a railway station, often
the site of attacks.
Indians are also considered soft targets because they dont retaliate.
No one messes around with the Chinese, for instance, because they
rush out to help their fellow nationals in distress. The Indian, in
contrast, its said, rushes to the media. The Indian community is also
a house divided. Melbourne has 1,50,000 Indians, but on the
January 26 celebration of the Australian National Day, they were the
only nationality marching under four separate banners.

Nor is there unanimity among Indians whether or not these attacks are racist in nature. Those
who are rich and have resided here for years vehemently deny that Australians are racist. Vasan
Srinivasan, president of the Federation of Indian Association of Victoria, can be counted as one
among them. I have been living here for the last 23 years, he told Outlook. but have never

Agrees Benjamin
Cass: There are
only two things
they know about
Australia, that it
has kangaroos and
that we play
cricket.

experienced any racial slur from the Australians. I have two young daughters; if they were racist,
do you think I would have stayed in this country? Of course, there is always the counter-
argument: that the rich can keep away from troubled areas, not travel in public transport and are
therefore less vulnerable to racial abuse or attacks.
This group of rich Indians partially blames the attacks on their
brethren who have arrived recently in droves, belong to small towns,
and are completely oblivious to the cultural sensibilities of
Australians. They blast their Bhangra music on trains, talk loudly
while travelling in public transport and make lewd comments and
gestures at young Australian girls. Says Gagandeep Singh, who
manages a petrol pump in one of the Melbourne suburbs, Some
months back, while travelling on a train with my parents who were
visiting me from Punjab, I felt so ashamed because you could clearly
hear the choicest Punjabi abuses from a group of Indian boys who
were also in the compartment. An Indian lady says a young
Australian girl once confided in her that she prefers to stand in train
coaches than to sit next to Indian boys. Otherwise, she said shed
spend the entire travel time warding off their advances.
The controversy over racism also stems from ignorance about each others culture and history.
Most Indian students perhaps know about the geography of Australia, but have very little
knowledge about its history, says Heather Goodall, a professor of history at the University of
Technology, Sydney. She says most Indians only know that Australia followed a white-only
immigration policy for much of its history, forgetting its strong left-liberal tradition and its fight
against racism. Agrees Benjamin Cass, who has worked with Indian students planning to come
to Australia to study, There are perhaps only two things they know about Australia: one, that it
has kangaroos and two, that the people here play cricket.
Indeed, the attacks on Indians have prompted many Australians to
call for urgent introspection and acknowledgement that racism is still
a serious problem in the country. Says documentary filmmaker John
Bolston, When youve been told by your political leaders that you
are the best, then it is difficult to accept yourself as racist. Perhaps,
it is time that the government takes the initiative for us to wash our
dirty linen in public. The debate on racism is expected to gather
momentum as Victoria and Australia inch closer to elections by this
yearend.
Others also want Indians to remember that what they are
witnessing, though reprehensible, are typically the birth pangs every
immigrant group has experienced when their numbers have grown
substantially in Australia. It happened with the Chinese, Afghans, Jews, Greeks, Lebanese and
Vietnamese. Its now the turn of Indians, who must unite and establish linkages with liberal
Australians to protect themselvesand their interests.

No one messes
around with a
Chinese because
fellow nationals
run to his aid. The
Indian, on the
other hand, rushes
to the media.

Travelling on a
train sometime
back, I was
ashamed, as you
could hear the
choicest Punjabi
abuses, says
Gagandeep Singh.

Attack on Indians in Australia a very
serious matter: India
PTI, Oct 26, 2009, 09.58pm IST
BANGALORE: India on Monday reacted strongly to yet another attack on Indians in
Australia, terming it a "very serious matter" and said measures are needed for the
community's safety there.

A Sikh was punched in his head by a group of Australians who also removed his turban while
he was sleeping at a bus stop in Melbourne.

"Certainly, this matter of attack on people of Indian origin in Australia is a very serious
matter and government of India is very concerned over this matter", external affairs ministry
spokesperson Vishnu Prakash told reporters here.

"The matter has been taken up at the highest level with the Australian side", he said, adding
"measures have to be taken to put an end to this".

Recalling that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had earlier this year spoken to his Australian
counterpart and external affairs minister S M Krishna visited that country in August, Prakash
said "we were assured that Australia follows the policy of zero tolerance".

He said measures had to be taken to "put an end to this ( attacks)" but hastened to add that
Australia had indeed initiated a number of steps like increasing police presence, patrolling
and better lighting in some areas and having mechanisms to interact with Indian students.

Prakash noted there are 90,000 Indian students studying in hundreds of colleges in Australia
where there was a quarter million of people of Indian origin. So, education and immigration
agents are encouraging the process. The role of some of these agents have to "improve" and
"this aspect is being looked into", he added.

Australia has said that by next year, it would audit all the educational institutions to improve
"gaps" in the system, the spokesperson added.

There have been reports about attacks on Indians in Australia for past couple of weeks. It was
labeled racism both by Indians and the media. Now even Australian Police dept have
admitted its racist attack. Indians in Australia and back home are enraged. They have even
retaliated by holding protests and attacking other nationals. One just hopes this is not another
Cry Wolf instance and the sense would prevail before the racism issue gets blown out of
proportion and student community gets polarized on campuses all over the world.
Petty crime is an urban reality in all cities all over the world. Harris Park in Sydney seems to
be yet another crime infested areas and unfortunately many Indian students live in that
locality. It would be better if overall crime rate is taken into account rather than just focusing
on attack on one particular community and coloring it to be racism issue. Media, Police
dept, Australian government and Indian government must really trudge carefully.
Indian student community is spread all over the world. And thanks to globalization most
universities have students of all nationalities. Even if locals attack foreign students it is more
because of lack of education and job opportunities for the local poor communities. Crime
rates are going up precisely for the similar reasons. Tag of racism will only complicate,
polarize and sow seeds of hatred. Urban realities are different now. Racism is pass. It is
better to look deeper into reasons of crime.
Via The Sydney Morning Herald
9 Responses to Attack on Indians in Australia: Is it Racism?
10.
Jaiyant Cavale said on Thursday, June 11, 2009, 22:45
Indians have always used the Race Card to attract attention. This time around
however, they have become notorious. The world finally gets to see to what extent
these uncouth people can go to.
11.
Raymond said on Friday, June 12, 2009, 4:24
Hi Jaiyant,
Its really sad that you think like that, but its not what you think is important. If you are
following up on the news and the developments in Australia then you will get to know
the real story.
These attacks are not random, but it is also not about race it is about a bunch of people
who are taking these attackes to the front doors of the indians living in Aus.
to people.
Indians dont need to grab the world attention, and we have the brains to understand
when things are wrong and when it id done to our fellow men.
12.
Jaiyant Cavale said on Friday, June 12, 2009, 13:30
Well any violence needs to be condemned. But any distortion of facts (like Indian
media is doing so) needs to be condemned as well.
to people.
You said it yourself Raymond.. It is a reality that has been distorted by Indian media
and sensationalize and racialize the issue. It is doing more harm to Indians than good.
I can give you accounts of several incidents perpetrated by Indians in India against
Whites and Blacks. (many rapes and murders happen against foreign nationals). Do
they scream Racism at every instance?
Crime exists everywhere and outsiders need to maintain a low profile or assimilate
with the local culture. One cannot be loud and brash and expect to be ignored by
thugs at night.
13.
Chor said on Sunday, June 14, 2009, 18:52
You blaming Australians for Racial Attacks? Why not blaming Kashmeeri Muslims
for killing Kashmeeri Pandits and driving them out of the valley? Why you still allow
CONCLUSION city names like Aurangabad which means long live aurangzeb the
killer of Hindus? Leaving your own house cleaning you are going ahead blaming
Australians! just cos those poor people cant come here and vote? SHAME ON You all
AUSTRALIA BASHERS Chor
14.
Jaiyant Cavale said on Sunday, June 14, 2009, 22:41
Hey Chor, we are standing by Australians when they need support. We are supporting
Australians.
http://trendsupdates.com/indian-protests-is-race-card-being-used-too-often/
15.
Madhuri Katti said on Sunday, June 14, 2009, 22:50
Thanks Chor for the comment. But I hope you are not talking about the article. I have
clearly stated that racism is a non-issue here but being made into one by media and
others.
16.
Caroline said on Wednesday, June 24, 2009, 11:54
hey jaiyant,
its good that you are supporting austrailians. But dont you think that the video which
was shown on televisions was very unjust. Beating up people like this for no ryme n
reason.was it just???? But one thing is true that we indians have this bad habit of
being in lime light n thats the reason that we catch up little topics to get publicity.
17.
Ravi said on Wednesday, July 8, 2009, 15:47
Hai everybody,
Since i have never been outside india i cant really comment upon the general
behaviour of the people in australia. But what i feel is first off all we need to stop
racial behaviours inside india. CONCLUSION I have seen lot of people throw racial
comments over the south indians .treating them like an outsider and not giving
helping hand if any south indian is in need of help out of his state. It is not only with
the south indians but it is true all over india with haves and have nots. Still people
dont allow a SC/ST inside their house or even they dont have the previlege to enter a
templewe need to wake up first and then blame others.
18.
Matt said on Saturday, June 12, 2010, 14:16
Great article! As an Australian perhaps I could be seen as biased, but I do not think
there would be much racial motivation behind the attacks. Many Australians, it is true,
are racist to an extent. But this is because of ignorance rather than any actual deeply
held dislike to a certain group. Most couldnt care one way or another.
Also, if you look at the statistics, only about 80% of Australians are white/anglo
saxon. With such a diverse group, it is hard to connect the charge of racism to all
attacks.
Anyway, great article, and I hope people from the Indian subcontinent continue to
visit and emigrate here to enrich this nation.

.
Allyson Hose 29 January 2010

Thousands demonstrate against racism in 2009
recent manifestations of the racism that always fuels Australian capitalism. Escalating
violence has had terrible consequences for many Indian students whove been
targeted, then beaten and maimed. Recently one young man, Jaspreet Singh, was set
on fire. The most vicious attack so far left Nitin Garg, a university graduate and young
worker, dead murdered on his way to work on 2 January this year.
The government and the authorities have known about the rise in attacks on Indian
students for a long time. Long enough to have taken some action in support of
international students and, perhaps, avoided Nitin Gargs tragic death. Victorian Police
figures reveal that 1082 people of Indian descent were victims of a crime in the twelve
months to June 2007. This figure rose to 1447 people in the twelve months to July
2008. Looking at the numbers, the Sydney Morning Herald noted that Victorian
Indians are 2 times more likely than non-Indians to be beaten up or knifed.
But the police and the government unconcerned about the fate of a few foreign
students but very concerned about preserving Australias $A15 billion international
student market have kept insisting that Australia has no problem with racism. In
July last year, Immigration Minister Chris Evans described the Indian medias reports
of racist attacks in Australia as hysterical and insisted that were a multicultural
society and we dont have racist attitudes to people.
Such lies have been parroted again and again by politicians, even in circumstances
that youd think deserve just a dash of compassion. Four days after Nitin Garg was
murdered, Julia Gillard was blithely downplaying the attack in the media, saying, In
big cities around the world we do see acts of violence from time to time
At the end of January Kevin Rudd was still refusing to respond to questions about
Australias racism, saying at a press conference Regrettably, there have been some
incidents recently, lets accept that, but lets put it into context
The message, and the context, is clear. Injured or murdered Indian students dont rate
highly enough to be acknowledged or mourned they will be painted as random
casualties, deserving only grudging recognition in a ten-second sound bite.
The Australian media has begun to demonstrate its own capacity for hysteria as the
failure of the governments strategy of downplaying the racist attacks becomes clearer
each day. CONCLUSION Their hysteria is not about the waste of human life however,
its about the potential loss of profits in the education sector if international students,
scared off by racism, stop buying their education in Australia.
Australias billion-dollar international student market, the countrys third-biggest
export earner, has already taken a hit. From July to October 2009, there was a 46 per
cent drop in Indians applying for student visas for Australia compared to the same
period in 2008. Student visa applications to Australia from all countries (including
India) fell by 26 per cent from July to October 2009.
Australias Tourism Forecasting Committee says that the number of Indian students
studying here is projected to fall by about 20 per cent this year. The committee has
blamed the rise in attacks for the drop in student numbers, with chairperson Bernard
Salt saying the downturn is expected in response to concerns that the Indian
community have had about safety.
The great irony is that its the same people who rely upon racism to run society who
are now worried about its impact on the profits flowing into Australia from
international students. Rudd and Gillard are happy to play the race card to justify their
war on terror, their refugee policy or their Intervention into Aboriginal communities
in the Northern Territory. Racism in itself isnt an issue for them they simply want to
be able to scapegoat various groups when it suits them, then move on smoothly to the
next target.
Thugs on the street are targeting Indian students on a day-to-day basis, but the
message coming from the top of society is that its fine to scapegoat and engage in
racist violence. The Australian government will make mealy-mouthed statements,
dressed up in euphemisms, and nothing will change.
Or theyll do as the Victorian government has done and recruit idiots like Shane Warne
to help soothe tensions, then use the racist incidents as an added justification for
increasing police powers to routinely target and harass young people, particularly
those who are not white.
The appalling response of the police and the government to the racist attacks against
Indian students clearly demonstrates that a solution to racism in Australia can never
include any portion of the bile that our leaders spew out to the media. Denying the
racism that exists, covering it up, attempting to spin the debate using inarticulate
sports celebrities, or looking to reactionary solutions such as increased policing will
never stop the racist outrages that occur regularly in Australian society. The only way
to do this is to follow the example of Indian students themselves to confront racism,
protest, and organise to defeat the racists.

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The recent attacks on Indian in Oz have posed many questions on civil society. The reasons are
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2009-06-01 16:29

THE RECENT attacks on Indian students studying in Australia have attracted global attention. This rabid
cultural and racial menace has attracted worldwide condemnation. One Sravan Kumar Theerthala was
hit with petrol bottles by some unidentified teens while he was reading book in his house at Melbourne.
Baljinder Singh, another student from India studying in Melbourne, was robbed and stabbed in his
abdomen. Both are struggling for life in hospitals. Sravans condition is reported to be very critical, he is
still in coma.
In a separate incident, four students were attacked and burgled by racist elements in Australia. One
Suketu Modi, a businessman from Surat, was attacked in train by a group of students when he had gone
there for IT business. According to students organisations, these racist attacks have been taking place
in Australia for quite some time; most of them went unreported. According to a report, about 20 racial
attacks on Indians have taken place last month in Sydney alone.
Australia, interestingly, is not the only country where rabid faces of racism have been raising heads.
Such dastardly incidents have been taking place in countries like UK, Germany, France and some African
and Gulf countries.
This incident has raised a very perturbing question, which every one of us would like to ponder about
and like to find consolable if not acceptable answers.
Reasons of such attacks: It is too simplistic a proposition to categorically brand them as acts of
criminal or opportunistic activities as uttered by Australian High Commissioner and DCP Melbourne, John
McCarthy. The former has, however, not denied that some racist elements might have been involved in
what he called Shameful criminal acts.

If not the global society, Indian civil society must quest reasons behind it; after all why Indians are
being attacked everywhere? It seems that the existence of these vestigial racial elements even in
cultural, plural societies does have other hidden reasons apart from ostensible causes. Chagrin does not
prevail in Australia; and even Australian media lamented only after vociferous diplomatic and societal
protests at home.
Economic: India has written stories of astounding success in economic fields; thanks to flooded brilliant
young brains in fields of science and technology, management and other frontier areas. Our IITs, IIMs,
and plethora of business and other schools have produced best brains in the world. The campus
selections by MNCs and TNCs over a couple of decades have been a matter of concern to the students of
those countries, which have been destinations of our smart English speaking IT-BPO guys for obvious
reasons. Many of them feel that their job opportunities are being eaten up by Indians. Many guys
working in MNCs and TNCs in countries like the US, the UK, Australia, Germany and a host of other such
developed countries have faced similar acts of discrimination. Many of such incidents go unreported for
simple reason; as the victims have to run from pillar to post once FIR is registered.
Student community particularly do not like to be involved in legal wrangles because they think that they
have come here not to fight legal battle but to complete their studies and make careers. They are also
tormented by the lackadaisical, callous and sometimes, ignorant attitude of police. For instance, in
Australia, the police did not act till the matter was blown out of their capacity to hold. According to
Forbes; about US$ 13 billion is spent by Indian students abroad annually. Australia alone has a US$ 15.5
billion business with foreign students and as many as 1 lakh Indian students study in Australian at
present.
According to an estimate about 8.3 lakh Indian students are studying in countries like the US, the UK,
Russia, France, Australia, etc. Needless to say, those going abroad for higher studies belong to affluent
class of the society. The number of High Net Income (HNI) individuals in India has swelled for some
years. Like many other areas, the lopsided development in the field of education has created a
dangerous in-equilibrium. The affluence of these students studying abroad or working guys, who earn
handsome salaries in MNCs, betrays in their lifestyles and attracts opportunistic activities by teens, who
have been already suffering from a sense of inferiority complexes. These complexes find expression in
such opportunistic acts blended with racism.
Sociological and educational: With the passage of time, the colonies have gained independence from
colonial powers. The European countries are finding their erstwhile colonies rubbing shoulders in
gatherings at International forums. The sense of hatred unconsciously precipitates in their mind and find
expression in such abhorable acts of racial attacks. History has tough us to be proud of our past. Their
past had been excellent but future is full of intense competition which extra-individualistic. In the
present global financial regime, every one, may it be individual or nation, has to find a place for itself
not on the basis of its past but on the basis of its present.
The economic hegemony of the US is all set to nosedive. The American Tsardom in financial market is
likely to be over. The global financial crisis (GFC) has bashed the US, the pain of which is still
emanating. Asian giant China has purchased US$ 1.3 trillion worth US Treasury Bills. A sense of chagrin
prevails in USA, what a travesty; once lender has become a borrower. The Chinese export juggernaut
into the US has changed the entire economic power structure. Protectionist measures taken by the USA
and host of developed nations have these social and psychological dimensions also. The sense of
frustration is obvious in younger minds because their economic future is not as secure as it had been
decades ago.
Ethical and moral: There is no denying the fact that economic development in India has changed our
lifestyles and cultural traits to a great extent. Still then, our social, family, and religious ethos, which
have deep roots, have not eroded to the extent of disappearance. Religious tolerance and non-violence
are still way of our lives. When our boys go abroad we preach them to be adherent to these ethos. In
spite of state of attacks, students in Australia decided to take out a peace march rather than taking to
streets. Normally such incidents meet violent backlashes. But the kind of restraint, which has been
showed by Indians in Australia and abroad, is suggestive of the fact that ethos of non-violence and
satyagraha are still alive in our soul and the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi are inculcated in our way of
life. These characteristics of ours have been taken by many nations as timidity and cowardice. After all,
what explains when two teen attacked four students and went un-retaliated, physically they could have
not only been overpowered but thrashed also.
Progress and affluence of students studying abroad do manifest in their lifestyles, which tempt these
racist elements to attack that serves twin purpose; on the one hand they snatch something from them
and on the other it satiates their hidden desire of inferiority complex.
Racism in Australia towards Indian
students?
Posted on June 6th, 2009 by admin in Life in Australia | PDF Version |
Helpful: 6 Interesting: 5 Okay: 2 Boring: 3

There has been a lot of news lately on Racism in Australia in particular towards Indian students. Last week
Indians rallied in Melbourne for a peaceful protest against racism.
There are news stories that have spread all over the world and Im pretty disappointed in the way that Australia is
being portrayed. My friends and I were talking and had no idea what was going on, except what was on the news.
I love people from other cultures, and had not seen the types of exploitation or violence that was being discussed
about in the news, I had to dig through many websites to find out what the media was talking about on TV it
seemed so sinister and scary, and that Indians have to fear for their life, etc..? What is that about, its certainly
not the reality I know. The media is scaring people from coming here over some robberies and a stabbing of an
Indian student. Maybe Im being naive, but robberies and stabbings happen in capital cities all over the world do
they not? Stay safe, dont go anywhere, dont do anything? The robberies are happening in one part of
Melbourne that even us Aussies hate to travel at night my sister wont even let me park in those train stations
because of the "dodgy" types that hang out there. Its not just a racial attack when you are talking about those
areas of Melbourne, its more a case of avoiding those areas no matter who you are and the problem is that a
lot of international students and unemployed people choose to live in those areas because the accommodation
there is very cheap. Of course, the media have a lot to do with the way that everything is being portrayed, and I
share a couple of those videos below. You can see one side of the story by watching the news, usually a one-
sided out of proportion scary story because those are the types of stories that make it "global" and get more
viewers. There are dodgy areas in every country that people need to be extra careful to avoid, and Im pretty
disappointed that this point seems to have been missed. On the upside, maybe by having a police presence in
these areas, and other security precautions, it may make those areas safer, so perhaps these news stories will
allow more funding to the local police in those areas to be able to make those streets safer, and an overall look at
all the problems that all international students face in Australia, could prove beneficial by it being so global news
right now, especially now that the politicians are now "right in the spotlight" and will have to "Do Something"
because of all the media attention.
Overall, despite Australias bad-publicity about it, I do believe positive things will come from it, especially for
International students.
Exploitation of students by employers, rogue colleges mistreating students, landlords demanding high rents for a
small room only, racial attacks involving Indian students followed by an Indian student protest in the heart of
Melbourne and outrage in politics while students in India burnt the Aussie flag. It all sounds very `Un-Australian`.
But it happened last week and it could happen again. A lot has been said about the robbery and assault of Indian
students in Melbourne. [Read Full Article - Source: Kangaruni.com Proud to be Australian?] Is Australia a racist
country and unsafe for foreign students?
The following couple of videos is whats being shown on the news down here in Australia:
This first video is an 8 minute report about the situation from the ABC news. "Tensions have been simmering for
some time now because when the students get here the promised lifestyle is not what they were told back home.
The students studying in the capital cities find themselves having to rent houses in the outer suburbs and doing
night jobs to make ends meet." There are many university students which dont have their college
accommodation, so that is why we are going to the suburbs,
The second video is another news story from the ABC. This is a news story on International student issues
(mainly Indian) in Australia. Also interviews many people including Federation of Indian Students of Australia.
This third video is one Id really like you to watch if you are reading this. Some Sydney University students went
out to interview actual international students to find out what they really think (not just what the media is making
headlines) and whether students really believe that Australians are Racists. "We hit the streets for guerilla style
interviews to see what real people think."
In my opinion, it is difficult for any student studying in capital cities to make ends meet if they are not fully
prepared before they come here, its hard to get a job if you dont have the skills (even for locals), harder if you
dont have English fluency because you are judged in the interview room and are up against those who are
fluent in English, and the living expenses are much higher. Any student coming to Australia who are worried
about the cost of living, could consider studying in a quieter, cheaper, rural environment rather than a capital city,
the expenses will be much cheaper, although it is much harder to get a job in a rural area as well unless you are
not fussy about the kind of work you do.
These types of news stories happen all over the world, not just in Australia, although now that the news has
reached global publicity and gone "political", I hope that a greater good will come of it and that more awareness
is made of the types of problems foreign students and immigrants face in Australia so that good change is made
to rectify the current problems.
As one of the most multicultural countries in the world, Australia is accepting of all cultures, and all religions and
your right to practice your faith without persecution or discrimination is protected by law. University and vocational
education and training (VET) institutions often have prayer rooms on campus, and there are many places of
worship representing all faiths in towns and cities around the country.
Although I know that racism exists within Australia (and everywhere in the world), I am one of many who believe
its not the majority who are racists, and that most people are welcoming of foreigners and find it exciting and
interesting to meet with people from different cultures, I have seen first-hand that even those that are vocally
against foreigners, are still culturally tolerant and will smile and talk to those that they claim to not like. I have
worked with people from almost every country in the various jobs Ive had over the years and have not seen the
problems that are shown on the media now, even when I worked in Melbourne. Im not naive to think that there
isnt problems at all I do believe that Australia has a lot of work to do with regards to opening up their
understanding of the different cultures, but I also agree that its still one of the most safest and best countries in
the world to live, work, and study, and is a country that is generally very much accepting and welcoming of
people from other cultures.
Related Articles "In the News" this week:
Gilchrist to the rescue
Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney,New South Wales,Australia on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:08:21 -0700
A prominent member of Sydneys Indian community has dismissed as "entirely futile" a planned rally in the city
centre today to highlight assaults on Indian
Indian student body in Australia concerned over anti-Indian Indians
MSN India, Bangalore,Karnataka,India on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 05:20:46 -0700
Melbourne: An organisation representing Indian students in Australia said Saturday it was "quite disturbed" over
how some "anti-Indian Indians" here were
Cine federation appeals to producers to avoid shooting in Aus
Indopia, India on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:11:52 -0700
Mumbai , Jun 6 In the backdrop of attacks on Indian students in Australia, a federation of cine
employees&aposunions has appealed to its members and the
Northeast students question racism in India
Guwahati, June 6 (IANS) With stars in their eyes hordes of students from Indias northeast region head towards
various parts of the country during admission
Indians passive by nature? Dont add insult to injury
WA today, Perth,WA,Australia on Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:03:28 -0700
INDIAN students have some strange friends in Australia. One major columnist condemned attacks on Indian
students last week, deeming them especially odious .
No pattern of violence against Indian students
Times Now.tv, Mumbai,Maharashtra,India on Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:11:15 -0700
Bashing and stabbing attacks on five Indian men in Melbourne prompted a mass protest involving earlier this
week that gridlocked a major city centre
Bollywood body boycotts Australia following racial attacks
However, there are those who believe the attacks should not be allowed to affect the Indian entertainment
industrys ties with Australia.
_____________________________________________________________
To learn more about Studying in Australia, contact Mamoun (feel free to write in English or Arabic):
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3 Comments on Racism in Australia towards Indian students?
3. admin
Commented on June 6, 2009 at 9:29 pm |
Found a website today for Indians living in Australia, so thought Id post it here so that other Indians who
may be reading this might be interested in visiting: http://indians.australians.com/
4. rolly
Commented on November 17, 2009 at 4:20 am |
In light of the recent attacks on Indian students in Australia, Association of Australian Education
Representatives in India (AAERI), the self-regulatory body of education agents and an initiative of
Australian Education International (AEI), is working closely with Indian and Australian government to
weed out any issues that concern the security of Indian students in Australia.
AAERI has been working towards reinforcing Australias standing as a high quality education destination
for all genuine students and is strongly lobbying with the government bodies in India & Australia to
ensure that Australia remains a high quality education destination.
Thus, to accelerate its agenda of ensuring the safety of Indian students studying in Australia, AAERI has
developed an 8 point Action Plan to address challenges faced by Indian students in Australia
http://www.aaeri.org/
March 8, 2010
tolerate.
they have no clue?
and to stop them.
were in force).
Sincerely,
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2. samh78 Says:

March 20, 2010 at 11:14 pm
legacy.
Yours sincerely,
March 8, 2010
tolerate.
they have no clue?
and to stop them.
were in force).
Sincerely,
Share this:

1 Comment
2. samh78 Says:

March 20, 2010 at 11:14 pm
legacy.
Yours sincerely,

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Attack on Indians in Australia a very

serious matter: India

On Jan 5, the Indian government issued an advisory to Indian students in Australia

On Jan 5, the Indian government issued an advisory to Indian students in Australia

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