Recent attacks on Indian students in Australia

[_____V_____]

Anger is mounting among Indian students in Australia in the wake of the recent assaults that left a youth from the community battling for life after being stabbed and another badly burnt following a petrol bomb attack.

The Federation of Indian Student Association in Victoria said that they have been receiving non-stop calls to hold rallies and protest shows in Melbourne against the spate of attacks on Indian youths. However, it was too early to hold such rallies as both Indian and Australian authorities were discussing the issue of the safety of Indian students, FISA President Gautam Gupta said in a statement.

"At this point of time, well-being and health of victims are most important," he said. Gupta said he received at least 300 calls on Friday night, out of which nearly 200 asked him to hold rallies against the attacks.

But he urged the Indian community to maintain calm. His remarks came as an Indian student, 25-year-old Rajesh Kumar, suffered 30 per cent burns after a suspected petrol bomb was hurled at him in his home in Sydney two days ago.

Sravan Kumar, a student from Andhra Pradesh, was fighting for life in a hospital in Melbourne after being stabbed by a screwdriver by a group of teens in a weekend attack that also left three of his friends injured.



Sravan Kumar remained in coma in the intensive care unit of the Royal Melbourne Hospital on Friday night. A 17-year-old from Glenroy has been charged with attempted murder in connection with the attack on Kumar and his friends. Baljinder Singh, another student who was stabbed by two attackers earlier this week, has been discharged from the hospital.

In two of the assault cases, the victims or witnesses reportedly spoke of the specific racial abuse.

But deputy commissioner Kieran Walshe said on Friday that he had 'no specific data' on that. Concerned over the increasing attacks on Indians in Melbourne, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh raised the issue with his Australian counterpart Kevin Rudd on Friday night. Singh, who received a call from Rudd to congratulate him on assumption of office for a second term, used the opportunity to convey India's concerns over the attacks on Indian students in Australia.

Rudd was quoted as saying by the media here that he was 'concerned about any act of violence in the streets and suburbs of Australia's cities and towns and particularly when we are obviously hosts to students from around the world'.

"It is appalling in every sense. Any act of violence, any decent human being just responds with horror at the sorts of attack which have occurred recently," he said.



Fresh from surviving a murderous attack, a 25-year-old Indian student on Saturday appealed to fellow countrymen aspiring to pursue higher education that they should not travel to Australia.

"My advice to every Indian student now who wants to come to Australia is -- please don't come and there's no life here," said Baljinder Singh, who was attacked by two youths in Melbourne recently.

Singh also expressed concern over the condition of another Indian student Shravan Kumar, who was attacked by a screwdriver by a group of teens in a separate incident. Kumar's condition remained "very, very serious," he said.

Kumar is in a state of coma in the intensive care unit of the Royal Melbourne Hospital, where he was visited by Indian High Commissioner Sujata Singh and Consul General in Melbourne Anita Nayar on Thursday.

Singh said one of his friends from Karnal has got a visa to Australia, but he is "very scared" now in the wake of the attacks on Indians.

Recalling the ordeal he faced, Singh said that he was at a train station on Monday night after finishing his work when two knife-wielding boys approached him.

"I was very scared to see the knives. They asked me if I had any money. I told them to hang on as I looked for my purse in my bag which was very messy... In the first five seconds, one of the guys stabbed me in my stomach. I just fell down on the floor," he said.


Actor Amitabh Bachchan has reacted to racial attacks on Indian students in Australia by rejecting an honourary doctorate offered to him by an Australian university.

The Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, had offered the 66-year-old veteran a doctorate for his contribution to the world of entertainment and Bachchan had earlier accepted the title.

The honour was to be conferred on the star in July as a part of celebrations to commemorate a retrospective of his films in the city.

"I have been witnessing, with great dismay and shock, the recent violent attacks on Indian students in Australia, on the electronic media the entire day," Bachchan wrote on his blog.

"I mean no disrespect to the institution that honours me, but under the present circumstances, where citizens of my own country are subjected to such acts of inhuman horror, my conscience does not permit me to accept this decoration from a country that perpetrates such indignity to my fellow countrymen," he added.

[Disease]

http://media.theage.com.au/national/...er-546957.html


It's still a safer place for Asian students than India or Pakistan. Also Australia didn't just comit Genocide like Sri Lanka... But no ones talking about that.

If Idian students don't want to travel to Australia then don't. It's not like the Australian economy relies on it.

[roshiq]

I hope these are some separate incidents but very sad & shocking indeed.

There was a time we heard & used to know that racism is quite alarming in Australia...BUT after some of my very good friends (& also even my boss...the Managing Director of the company where I work) when moved there for higher education & better life then we get started to hear different sides of the matter. They were & still are very much satisfied & honored with their lives in Australia and whenever (very rarely) we talked on this issue they said things aren't that much bad to get worried about; any South Asian student or people from 3rd world countries more or less tastes or have same kinda experience whenever he/she go into any developed foreign country to get 'better education' from them and later on doing a decent job with them by holding a same position or honor. According to them to some extent facing any kinda racial threats are normal out there and sometimes specially at the early days of your life in a developed White foreign country you have to prepare or alert to confront this kinda sad, frustrating & disturbing moments. BUT it'll be very much foolish thing to judge them all or the people of a country with this type of separate unexpected sad incidents which of course not happened on a regular basis.

I'm not sure at all but the things now might get bit out of order in some places for the Indians as followed by the news.

Anyways, there is a funny incident that I like to share with you that happened to a roommate (who is also a Bangladeshi student then) of a friend of mine once in Melbourne. After some months in there one night the guy stalked by some black kids on an alley and somehow managed to ran from them and later ask for help to some lodgers in a house while he was trying to get a safe shelter out there. The lodgers were all Indian students and they ask him whether he is also an Indian or not. For the sake of his safety & protection (as those stalkers were coming right behind him) he answered them "Yes! I'm Indian...help me..they are coming to get me or blah! blah!!" And just after an instant they all get united and stood against those stalkers in front of the house but those stalkers then left the premise as they were then out numbered against those group of students from India.:)

[Disease]

No one has actually said these were racist attacks.... except for ___V___, but that's his agenda. I live in Glasgow, knife capital of Europe, And I'm from Melbourne, And if you come across the wrong person it's not going to matter what race you are, just how tough you are. No matter where you are.

[roshiq]

Originally Posted by Disease

And if you come across the wrong person it's not going to matter what race you are, just how tough you are. No matter where you are.

Ditto:) .

Actually I was just trying to said that also:o ...

[_____V_____]

Originally Posted by Disease

No one has actually said these were racist attacks.... except for ___V___, but that's his agenda.

Oh boy...:rolleyes:


http://news.rediff.com/report/2009/m...and-action.htm

http://news.rediff.com/report/2009/m...w-students.htm

http://getahead.rediff.com/report/20...ft-targets.htm

http://news.rediff.com/report/2009/m...st-attacks.htm


And if you are finding the title of this thread offensive, Disease, here...let me change it.

[cheebacheeba]

25-year-old Rajesh Kumar, suffered 30 per cent burns after a suspected petrol bomb was hurled at him in his home in Sydney

I have to weight in here and say I don't know a hell of a lot of white aussies that throw things like petrol bombs around...I mean, you kind of see news footage elsewhere that shows that kind of thing being employed but not a lot here. Regardless of how the media is spinning it, or the students assumptions on the matter (which might have basis) there's a chance that it's not a racially inclined matter. I mean shit does happen here, there are racist people here as there is in a lot of countries...I mean by comparison for a lot of the cool indians I've know, I've known a fair few indians and other south east asians to be culturally elitist and even (generally towards other asians for some reasons) racist jerks, that doesn't even begin to touch on the the attacking eachother bit - But I try not to let the media manipulate my views.
You're not portrayed through everyday eyes, and 'nor are we...we're both portrayed by sensationalist bullshit that throws around headlines like "Australia Attacks" over such a small matter and infrequency of events like this...does not paint a nice picture.
The whole thing goes both ways, and I tend to avoid anyone of any race who acts as though where theyre from or what they were born with leaves them more entitled than others.

I can go on and on saying we're the most warm and welcoming people in the world, but I'll also acknowledge that we do in fact have a dickhead portion of the population, and not just the whites or the ones the outside world consider "Australians", a portion that misrepresents us...though I wouldn't be too quick to form a view based on the actions of "a group of teens".
Bad parenting knows no borders.

The rest, and I like to think the majority...are pretty much above the whole blatant racism bit - I mean, if we weren't...well, come to Sydney and you might see what I mean;)

[_____V_____]

I can see where you are coming from.

And there is always a section of the crowd (Indian, Australian or anyone else) who is waiting for a few incidents like these to ignite...and then builds on this bullshit and makes it into a major series of incidents. Then come the charges from either side of all kinds - racial, financial, inferiorism etc.

(In fact, a section of the press reports that some selected Aussies Down Under dont like Indians coming down there and grabbing all the Aussie jobs, hence increasing Aussie unemployment...and they are responsible for this)

It happens everywhere, even in this country. What a few narrow-minded bastards would do to influence the populace and wreck things so easily in the society we live in!

I just hope this dies down as quickly as it started, and doesnt turn into something ugly between the two nations.

[cheebacheeba]

In fact, a section of the press reports that some selected Aussies Down Under dont like Indians coming down there and grabbing all the Aussie jobs

Yeah, I have seen this...but hey, qualifications speak...I would say bigger companies and their subsidiaries outsourcing just so they can save a few bucks by shipping a LOT of work in the IT/customer service fields has more effect on jobs here than people coming here and taking them.
Glad I never go in for the business-y/office jobs anymore...I don't have to contend one way or another.

And there is always a section of the crowd (Indian, Australian or anyone else) who is waiting for a few incidents like these to ignite.

Yup, there is. Cycle perpetuation...then it gets worse and they look for someone to blame.

[Disease]

In a country like Australia which is built of different races everything can be seen as racist. The race card holds no ground for me, I'm living in a country where I am not from, all the people I live with and most of the people I work with are not from this country, but who gives a fuck.

And the indian population in Australia makes up only a small percentage of the Asian percentage there.... So maybe if you were Chinesse or Korean you might have some more vilification. But Indians don't threaten our jobs, Australia is always saying come in, you are welcome to anyone.

There were attacks between Sri Lankans in Australia recently as well, does that make Australia racist, to different religions from one asian country attaking each other in Australia.

Everyone is from somewhere if you are Australian, so it doesn't matter if you are Indian or Hungarian, you will be treated the same depending on how you interact with others.