1. Indian envoy called to give assurance on safety in Australia
Written by NT Network
Friday, 05 February 2010 01:01
MELBOURNE: The Indian High Commissioner, Ms Sujatha Singh’s stinging remark that Victoria
was a state in denial about the severity of the problem of race attacks Thursday prompted the
Australian state’s premier, Mr John Brumby to say he would like to meet her again to reassure
her that the government was doing all it could to stop attacks on Indian students.
Citing over 100 incidents of racist violence against Indians, Ms Singh told the Governor
General, Mr Quentin Bryce that Victoria was a state “in denial”, The Age reported Thursday.
She is believed to have told Mr Bryce that Australia was not racist but warned of long-term
consequences unless more action was taken to prevent attacks on Indians, the media report
said.
The Indian envoy returns to New Delhi next week for consultations with the external affairs
ministry on Australia’s response to
the assaults.
Responding to her remark, Mr Brumby said he would again seek a meeting with her to
reassure that his government was doing all it could to stop attacks on Indian students. “I’ll be
able to inform her of all of these things and again to reassure her that Victoria is a much safer
place than other places in Australia and indeed around the world,” Australian news agency AAP
quoted Mr Brumby as saying Thursday.
Mr Brumby reiterated there should be a fair and balanced debate on the issue. He said the
most recent cases of violence against Indians, including a man who allegedly set himself on fire
and a murder allegedly committed by an Indian couple, had unfairly damaged Australia’s
reputation.
“There’s always a lot of speculation about these things but if you look at the facts of the matter
... in relation to assault in relation to Indian students, they are under-represented in terms of
their population share.
“I think it’s important in this discussion and this debate that there’s some balance in the
reporting and in attitudes that are expressed publicly.”
Mr Brumby suggested setting up an Indian task force to address racial attacks.
The string of attacks on Indians has caused outrage in India and strained relations between
Canberra and New Delhi. One of the attacks proved fatal. Nitin Garg was fatally stabbed
January 2 in Melbourne while was walking to the restaurant where he worked.
Mr Brumby Wednesday criticised the Indian media and officials and said there had to be “some
balance to the reporting” after it emerged that an Indian man who claimed to have been set
alight by assailants in Melbourne had in fact accidentally burnt himself.
He also referred to the death of Ranjodh Singh whose body was found on the side of a road in
New South Wales December 29, 2009.
“I think the point needs to be made that the people who have been charged with that murder
are both Indians.”
“So I hope that there is some balance to the debate, some balance to the reporting in India and
certainly to date that balance hasn’t been there.”
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