How will India combat Australian Anarchism?
(Madan Menon Thottasseri)____________________________________________________
Racism originated from the never ending covetousness to capture power and exhibit domination in early centuries. There is no much difference in racism whether it is in USA, Canada, Australia or Europe and will never incorporate ‘human-face’ even under any models as academically quoted by many, either inherited from British Imperialism or American Despotism!
US, Canada, Australia and European nations required skilled technicians, Scientists, I.T Professionals and other Technocrats to accelerate the pace of their economic growth and thus kept their racial attitudes at bay while opening the door for immigrants. When the immigrant professionals compete and gain economic status despite the adverse conditions in early stages of career, they are put to discriminatory treatments.
Even top Indian Scientists associated with the US or Canadian Nuclear Reactors and have protection under high security Protocol will not be spared by protagonists of racism. Racism is not uncommon even in Russia or China.
Of course there was some governmental initiative to interact with the regime at Australia to look into the issue of attacks on Indian students when reports on such attacks poured into headlines in media in mid 2009. Unfortunately there was lack of prudence on the part of Australia to thwart continued efforts of antagonist elements promoting racial attacks and spoiling the goodwill of the nation to a greater extent. Our government had no guts to show the finger within the parameters of diplomacy to the oblivious Australian regime and genially give an ultimatum to the Australia.
Racism in Australia got dimensions while it combined with criminal attitude of local hooligans. The recent spate of racial attacks on Indian students in Australia may be mainly due to criminal opportunism supported by anti-social elements. There are very big criticisms within Australia against the failure of the Australian government to prevent the subverting of educational opportunities mainly vocational training by outsiders for permanent residency.
Many analysts pointed out that the subversion of Vocational Courses actually commenced when in the last year Australian government slashed the funding to educational institutions prompting them to further target at foreign students, mainly from India. Many a number of diminutive Universities even without having permanent faculties and on-campus hostels dependent more on huge fees from foreign students and off-set the short fall in government support. They conveniently compromised all existing educational standards mainly for by accommodating foreign students with stumpy knowledge in English. These are the external factors which supported the racial attacks against the immigrant student community.
The Indian community in Melbourne has condemned the cartoon which supposedly depicted a Victoria Policeman as a representative of the hate group- KU KLUX KLAN. They have requested the media in India not to add colour to the incidents in Australia by labeling all sort of crimes as racist attacks.
May be the majority of attacks on Indian students centered on Melbourne where there is substantial Indian emigrants having permanent residency status. It is natural that Indian community fear a backlash on them too if Indian media continue to create a hue and cry seriously damaging the fragile relationship. They have apprehensions and are are not for joining any bandwagon of racism for the murder of Indian student -21 year old Nitin Garg in the last week end.
Nitin Garg was stabbed to death and his body was burned.This incidence have re-ignited the debate about the safety of Indian students in Australia. Attacks on Indian students have become a daily affair since last year. While condemning attacks and indirectly raising questions about the effectiveness of the steps taken by the Australian authorities, the Government of India has issued a restrained travel advisory asking Indian students Down Under to take “basic precautions in being alert to their own security.” Regrettably, the official reaction in Australia, at the federal as well as the state level, has been less than satisfactory — a reaction wrapped around denial. It was very unfortunate that Australian officials discounted the possibility of racism for these attacks. When emotions are running high , this sort of poor consolation and bad diplomacy to be told that the number of attacks were exaggerated or that Indian students fall prey as soft targets when working in vulnerable neighbourhoods….. This insensitivity was reflected in acting Foreign Minister Simon Crean’s remark that such incidents happen not only in Melbourne but also in “Delhi and Mumbai!”
As we are yet to come out of the shock and anger from the cold blooded murder of Nitin Garg, a fresh news of violent act has captured headlines…. . 29-year-old man of Indian origin, Jaspreet Singh, was set ablaze by a group of attackers in Melbourne on Saturday 09 January, 2010.
Jaspreet Singh was attacked in Essendon area of northwest Melbourne shortly before 2.00 am local time (0730 HRS IST), on Saturday at Melbourne, just a week after brutal killing of Nitin.
Singh, who suffered 20 per cent burns on his arms, chest and face was admitted to ‘The Alfred’ hospital. Singh and his wife had attended a dinner party in Essendon between 1.30 am and 2 am and drove to their nearby home in Grice Crescent. He dropped his wife at home and had gone to park his car when he was attacked, as reported by the Australia media.
As per the Police’s information, Jaspreet Singh was attacked by four men while he was getting out of the car. They had pushed him back against the vehicle and poured an unknown fluid on him. One of them ignited the fluid with a lighter before all the attackers fled. Jaspreet had to run by peeling off his clothes.
Denying any racial angle to the attack, detective Acting Senior Sergeant Neil Smyth said it is not yet known who the four men could be or their relationship to the victim. He said investigations indicate the attack was random!
This latest in a slew of attacks against the Indian community in Australia has invited the wrath of the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, with Minister Vayalar Ravi terming the response from the Australian government as “disturbing”.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas celebrations on Saturday, Minister Vayalar Ravi had said that it is unfortunate that things are not moving as promised by the federal government and disturbing for the Indian government as well as for the people of our nation.
However the Ministry of External Affairs chose to downplay the incident and urged the media to exercise utmost restraint in reporting on these sensitive issues, as it could aggravate the situation and could have a bearing on Indo-Australian bilateral relations.
How long Australia to ignore the intensity of the serious problem .It has to deal with, at the highest political level, the growing feeling among Indian students that their concerns about racial violence are not being addressed sincerely. This is against the backdrop of increasing attacks targeted to Indian community, as evidenced by the Victoria police’s own data. Not surprisingly, visa applications from Indian students — who constitute the second largest foreign student contingent in Australia, after Chinese students — have shown a 46 per cent decline. Will this not adversely affect a nation wherein the higher education industry has emerged out as the third largest foreign-exchange earning sector worth $15 billion. The nation known as an attractive destination for higher education and a host of vocational training by offering a variety of value-added technical courses with very conducive environment will not afford to close eyes when there are repeated attacks on Indian students.
Canberra’s may continue to refrain and declare that attacks on Indian students are not racially motivated. How long the Australian government act escapisms as the incidents of attacks really happen one after another? The Canberra should know that the efforts to tackle the deplorable attacks will be diluted by taking a stand-point of defensiveness, denial, and insensitivity.
A Sydney-based cardiologist Yadu Sigh said it was not appropriate to accuse racism without knowing facts and one should think of the Indian community in Australia before drastic comments. He had asked Federation of Indian Students in Australia(FISA) members to have a balanced view and refrain from bringing racial angle without proper basis.
Meanwhile, an Indian doctor who was badly beaten by thugs in Melbourne two years ago, has denied any 'racial' angle into it, saying they are "just bad people doing bad things".
Former Australian Medical Association president Mukesh Haikerwal had said that such attacks were not 'racially motivated', as reported by 'Herald Sun'.
"The Indian student issue is really one of people who don't have transport, working very late at night to hold down jobs to do their study, and who are in the wrong place at the wrong time," he was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
"Having said that, there has been some copy-catting. But in general it's not the case," Haikerwal who was in coma after being attacked on head with a baseball bat in a Williamstown park in October 2008, was quoted as saying by the paper. He had two fractures in his head, two life-threatening blood clots and had to learn how to speak again.
Haikerwal recently spoke privately to Premier John Brumby about the violence on Melbourne's streets, expressing concern over recent attacks and offered advice to tackle the problem.
The doctor said he'd recently returned from India where the violence against students was much discussed among locals. "It's very much on the top of people's questions about Australia generally and Melbourne in particular," he said.
"I have been at pains to point out that in the case of myself, there were seven people done (attacked) the same day and these were bad people doing bad things. We don't want to besmirch the reputation of Australia and Australians because of some bad people."
The Minister for External Affairs - S M Krishna’s remark that many Indian students in Australia are doing courses they could have found easily in any large Indian city , is a fact but not an appropriate comment from the responsible Ministry. Like all south-East nations we Indians too make use of the opportunities for residency in a growing economy. So it would be hypocritical to raise objections.
The Minister had struck the right tone while meeting the Australian High Commissioner Peter Varghese in Delhi and rejected claims that the Indian reaction has been hysterical, and stressed the need for prompt action. The media has to play a role and cannot be a mute spectator .
At the bottom, this is all about security. The students have a right to a safe environment for their studies. It is a pity that Canberra has missed this point altogether in its reaction and continues to waffle in its quest for a hollow semantic victory over whether the attacks are racist or not.
It is a fact that once Indian Students in Australia were considered very intelligent, hard working with pleasing behavior and articulate in English as well. Now the general perception and status of Indian Students are totally reverse due to influx of students who are landed there for short-term certificate courses in cookery classes, hospitality management and hair styling etc so as to take advantage of the visa rules for residency. They behave as if they are in small Indian towns. Further to meet both ends, they do any odd casual jobs at any odd time in very vulnerable places which the local community had never seen earlier. Probably this would have encouraged the certain local adversary elements to think the doctrine of ‘son of soil’ when Indian students steal their jobs and thus prompted them to attack outsiders. These elements consisting hooligans may get political shelter and even get support from highly educated Australian communities who suspect the policy of the Australian government and institutions detrimental to their economy.
Our government never bothered on the issue of our students opting to do higher studies especially petty vocational courses aiming residency in Australia. Many parents from the lower strata of society in Punjab and Haryana would have even disposed off properties to ensure a future for their children.
For the Australian universities the foreign student is only a cash cow, but what about the wider social reception given to them? Do employment options steer them into risky categories like taxi driving and late-night petrol station work? It is a pity that Canberra had not yet understood that the foreign students are to be offered safer environment this point altogether in its reaction. Instead it continued to waffle in its quest for a hollow semantic victory over whether the attacks are racist or not!
Here in India, now our government advice them not fall prey to the less credible Australian institutions for despicable and petty courses. Why didn’t the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) or Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs(MOIA) cautioned at these time when in early 2009 the international media highlighted on the subversion of educational opportunities in Australia solely vocational training for residency purpose? Our Ministries have no system of getting intelligence?
Government of India can take up the issue of continued attacks on our youngsters studying in Australia with international forums such as NAACP in United States and their affiliates in Australia, as well and force the Australian government to clamp racism. India can get support from Indonesia, Korea and Philippines as there are sizable students from these south-east nations do professional courses in Australian Universities. It is to be noted that Countries like Indonesia have deployed officials with ministerial powers and support-staff in their Embassies exclusively to handle issues of their immigrant student communities.
Tough condemnation by Indian media alone will help our youngsters in Australia; the government must refine the diplomatic maneuvers and can channelise the issue even through international community viz. common-wealth, ASEAN etc. Mere Protests fall into deaf ears and will bring about only furious reactions, not solutions to the problem. The government of India should sharpen its edges for effectively interacting with the counter-part in Australia and tactfully handle the agonizing problem.
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Notes: This Article was already posted to Blogs in indianexpress.com ( Can also directly see in expressindia.com) and published as "AUSTRALIAN ANARCHISM" on 11-01-2010.
