Rediff.com« Back to articlePrint this article

Australia appalled by racial attacks on Indians

June 25, 2009 10:07 IST
The Australian High Commission in New Delhi in response to the attacks on Indians in their country has said that it is appalled by the attacks and added that the Victorian authorities have established a hotline to help students.

The response comes in the wake of a letter written by the Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee India which sought to know what measures had been taken to ensure the safety of Indian students in Australia.

The response further states that a hotline has been established to assist Indian students studying in Australia.

The hotline is staffed with people fluent in Hindi and English and through this students can raise concerns anonymously.

Further, the Australian government has also announced a round table which will allow international student groups to speak directly with the government.

The response also states that the Prime Minister of Australia has outlined measures to ensure the safety of Indians and the response by the government is being managed by a taskforce headed by the National Security Advisor.

The response also quotes the statement of the Australian Prime Minister in which he said that Indian students are welcome guests in the country.

"The Australians of Indian descent who are over 20,0000 in number, are members of the Australian family. The Indian community in Australia have a long history of remarkable contribution to our nation and we deplore these attacks," the response stated.

Vicky Nanjappa