Tuesday, June 2, 2009

ATTACKS ON INDIANS TRIGGERED VIOLENCE


A series of unprovoked attacks on Indians in Australian cities including stabbings and a fire-bombing is ballooning into a serious diplomatic issue that has now involved the prime ministers of both countries.
The beatings have been reported extensively by the Indian media and have the potential to damage Australia's standing in Asia, where the racism of the former White Australia immigration policy has never been forgotten.
They have also triggered violence in the streets of Melbourne during a protest that shut down a key city intersection until early yesterday morning.
The sudden eruption has taken Australia by surprise, although reports of racism and "curry-bashing" have been circulating for months and have led to internet warnings to students not to study in Australian schools and universities.
The warnings and the spate of attacks have alarmed officials who have overseen the growth of education to become Australia's third-biggest source of export income, with the number of Indian students doubling in the past three years to become a A$2 billion-a-year industry.
Courtesy: NZ Herald

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