EVERYDAY WE read about so many heart rending cases of racial attacks on

Indians in Australia; however it is difficult to say whether the Australian

government is taking it seriously or not. A recent example is the death of
an Indian MBA student named Nitin Garg, which left the whole country
shocked and shaken.

According to the reports, the Victorian government is taking these cases not
as acts of racial discrimination but as ordinary criminal activities which
take place all over the world. Another example is of Sravan Kumar
Teerthala who was hit with petrol bottles by some unidentified teens
while he was reading a book in his house at Melbourne. Baljinder
Singh, another student from India studying in Melbourne, was robbed
and stabbed in his abdomen. Both the students are still struggling for
their lives in hospitals.

There can be several reasons for such distressing and shameful

activities. It can not be denied that IT, KPO and BPO employees have
taken away some jobs from the Australians as they possess all the
skills required for the job. So, this can be one of the main reasons for
the attack on Indians. There are other Indians who are working with
multinational firms situated in Australia, Germany, USA, UK etc who
might have also faced several attacks of racial discrimination. But
many cases go unreported and do not come into limelight.

Indian students do not go to other countries to get involved in criminal

activities or fights but for completing their education or for
employment. It has been observed that the Australian police a have
callous and cold attitude towards Indians and they did not act till the
matter had blown out of proportion.

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 one lakh Indian students study in
Australian at present.

After hearing about such incidents, students of different universities

have come together and are protesting all around the country. It’s
high time now that the Indian government takes some serious steps in order
to stop such disgraceful activities. Media is covering all the incidents
that are happening with Indian students in Australia but there is a
need for the Indian prime minister to discuss indepth with the
Australian ministers about the reasons behind these criminal
activities.
Ms Velagapudi (the Complainant) was an Indian migrant, and is an Australian
citizen.

She alleged that Ms Spooner, a co-worker at Symbion Pharmacy Services Pty

Ltd ( formerly Faulding HealthCare Pty Ltd), called her a ”lazy, black, Indian
bitch”, which caused her to be distressed and humiliated, because all the
warehouse employees knew about it. She complained to the management who
ordered an apology and also issued a warning that dismissal would follow any
repetition of the remark.

Ms Velagapudi was dissatisfied, because she believed that the apology was not
genuine, and she therefore refused to accept it. She was of the view that Ms
Spooner’s employment should have been terminated. She also claimed that,
following her complaint, she was victimised by other employees, particularly
by her new supervisor who was appointed after her complaint was made and
who was Ms Spooner’s boyfriend.

Ms Velagapudi complained to the New South Wales Administrative Decisions

Tribunal (ADT), claiming race discrimination and victimisation.

The ADT found that:

• Ms Spooner’s remark constituted race discrimination under the NSW

Anti-Discrimination Act 1977;
• Symbion Pharmacy Services Pty Ltd (the Respondent) did not take all
reasonable steps to properly investigate and resolve Ms Velagapudi’s
complaint, notably a lack of awareness of the impact of the remark on
the Complainant;
• The content of the apology and the manner of its delivery were less than
satisfactory;
• The awareness of Ms Spooner’s boyfriend as the Complainant’s
supervisor, subsequent to the complaint showed “insensitivity and lack
of awareness” by management;
• A suggestion by a manager that the Complainant attempt “to make a
friendship with Ms Spooner and (her boyfriend, the new supervisor) was
considered inappropriate; and
• There was insufficient evidence of a causal link between the alleged
victimisation and the complaint of discrimination.

Symbion was ordered to pay $5,000 for the racist remark and $10,000 for its
“inappropriate and unreasonable” handling of the complaint, demonstrating that
employers can be liable for significant financial penalties for poor handling of
complaints.

Published Tue, 5 Jan 2010 21:06 Copyright © 1995 to 2010, James Cook
University. All rights reserved. ABN 46253211955

Australia’s international education sector is the country’s third largest export earner, behind coal and iron
ore, totalling 13 billion Australian dollars in 2007-08. Over the years, Australia has attracted millions of
Indians for higher education and occupation, and has been one of the most sought-after destinations for
Indians.
Enrolments of Indian students in Australia have increased at an average annual rate of around 41 per cent
since 2002. There were over 97,035 Indian enrolments in Australia in 2008.
But, attacks on Indian students in Melbourne have undermined a public relations blitz to defend Australia’s
reputation as a safe place to study.
The latest incidents will add to the Federal Government’s fears that the spate of attacks is jeopardising
Australia’s lucrative international education market, estimated at $15 billion a year, with about $2 billion
coming from Indian students.
A leading Bollywood union said on Friday it would not shoot any films in Australia until the government takes
action against people behind a series of violent assaults on Indian students there.
The federation has 45,000 members, including actors and engineers working in Mumbai’s huge
movie business.
Australia is a hot destination for Indian film-makers with about a dozen films shot there every year. Two of
last year’s biggest hits, “Bachna Ae Haseeno” and “Singh is Kinng”, were shot in Australia.
Bollywood actor Aamir Khan has condemned the recent spate of attacks on Indian studentsstudying in
Australia.
“(It is) most disturbing to hear about racist attacks on Indians living in Australia. Quite a shame,” Aamir
stated on his blog.
Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan rejected an honorary doctorate from a Brisbane University in protest
against the attacks on Indian students.
“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,” the
Amitabh Bachchan wrote on his blog.
Amitabh Bachchan letter to Queensland University of Technology:
Dear Sir,
I write to you with a heavy heart on a matter that has now reached extremely sensitive proportions.
I have been reading and watching through the media the most unfortunate and violent attacks on Indian
students in Australia; some of them lying in a most critical condition in hospital. I have observed with utter
dismay the anguish that these incidents have caused to the families of those who have become unfortunate
victims.
The Queensland University of Technology has very graciously offered only last week, to confer an Honorary
Doctorate to me for my contribution to the world of entertainment.
Under the prevailing circumstances I find it inappropriate at this juncture, to accept this decoration. My
conscience is profoundly unsettled at the moment and there seems to be a moral disjuncture between the
suffering of these students and my own approbation.
I have the highest respect for your illustrious Institution and wish to express my deepest regard for the
recognition it bestows me with. I do not wish to offend in any manner this kind gesture by the
Queensland University of Technology, but I do hope that you will understand my present feelings.
With warm regards,
Amitabh Bachchan
Australia’s government condemned the attacks but said racism was not behind them. ow the China is
expressing concern for its students studying in Australia. This is a matter of international relations now, not
social politics.
Time Magazine is reporting the racist attacks on Indian students in Australia. The law enforcement does not
seem to be doing a good enough job to stop this from happening. I am glad Amitabh Bachaan refused the
degree from an Australian University to protest these happenings. It is ironic that some Indians that live in
Australia are justifying these attacks and blaming the Indians for being attacked!
Considering the present scenario, no person would prefer to send his / her child to Australia, either for work,
or for study purposes, i am getting same feedback from Chineese parents aswell.

Racial attacks on Indian students spread to South Australia with a 22-year-old being allegedly assaulted by
a teenager in Adelaide after making "rude" comments about his turban, even as the state premier warned he
will not tolerate any form of racism.

Police said the Indian student suffered a broken nose and sore jaw in the incident in Adelaide's busy market
area of Rundle Mall on Thursday and that they have arrested a 17-year-old youth in this connection.

The attacker has been bailed to appear in the Adelaide Youth Court.

A bystander said he saw the Indian student punching first, but the student claimed that his attacker started
the spat when he hit him on his turban and asked "what's that on your head?"
The student, whose requested anonymity, was walking through a local mall with friends when he heard a
commotion behind him, local media reported.

The spate of racial attacks against Indians spread to Adelaide, capital city of South Australia, after members
of the community were targeted in Melbourne and Sydney.

South Australian Premier Mike Rann described the attack as a "disgrace" and said the state has been
welcoming migrants and students from around the world for many years.

"We are seen internationally as one of the safest and most supportive multicultural communities. We will not
tolerate any form of racism," Rann said.

The Indian student said the attacker started a confrontation by making "rude comments" about his turban.

Asked if he thought the attack was racially motivated, the student said he had never felt it was a problem in
Adelaide. "But what would you call this?"

However, he said it "would not change his attitude to Adelaide as a good place to live and study."

In another incident in Adelaide, Pakistani student Yasir Raja, 26, believes his Holden Commodore was
torched because of its "Raja" numberplate.

Raja said friends living in the Enfield area had increased security around their homes in fear of racist Raja
said he had felt safe since he moved to Adelaide four years ago, he was worried recent racist attacks
interstate could encourage similar incidents here.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government has decided to convene a round table to discuss the attacks on June
28. State Further Education Minister Michael O'Brien said the Government had established a task force to
investigate ways to improve the experience of foreign students.

South Australia's student population is more than 27,700 and by 2014 the Government plans to increase the
number to 62,000. International education is worth more than USD 740 million annually to