09 July,2009 07:49 AM IST | | Hemal Ashar
That's what Aussie officials would like us to believe, despite the attacks on Indians
With at least 20 Indian students being attacked in Australia in the past two months, a delegation of Australian officials held a press conference yesterday to spread the message that Australia is a safe country.
Colin Walters, a senior official from the Australian Department of Education, who headed the panel, said Australia was not a racist country and the Australian government had zero tolerance for hate crime.
The panel insisted that the victims had merely been at the wrong place at the wrong time.
No racial motive
Paul Evans, assistant commissioner, Victoria police, reiterated that these crimes were opportunistic and the attackers were mainly youngsters between 15 and 17 years of age whose motive was only theft.
Walters added, "Students carry thousands of dollars in gear, from mobiles to laptops and iPods. They become a target."
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However, the panel failed to convince anyone present why so many Indian students were being attacked when Australian students too carry expensive gear.
When asked if Indians were being attacked because Australians feared they would take away their jobs, Walters unconvincingly said that the Australian economy was not as hard hit as others and there were ample employment opportunities.
Advantage NZ
While Indian students are still cautious about going to Australia, its neighbour New Zealand has taken advantage of this fact.
It is projecting itself as a much safer alternative for Indians. Although Australia has nearly 90,000 Indian students and NZ only 6,000, it is a huge rise as five years ago, only 500 Indian students were studying in NZ.
