The attacks on Indians in Australia continue 
The violent attacks on Indians in Australia continue. Last week, another Indian student was assaulted and left unconscious in Melbourne. The Australian youth attackers told him that “in this place there is no home for you”. This is the second published attack in last one week. There may be many more smaller or unreported incidents that we don’t hear about.

It is very sad and horrifying that these incidents against Indians have continued over the months. Since June 2009, scores of Indians have been attacked and are victims of physical violence at the hands of local Australians. The governments from both sides have been addressing these ugly incidents. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has spoken to his Australian counterpart in the past; external affairs minister S M Krishna has visited the country; and Australia has assured a policy of zero tolerance against the attacks. There have been many steps taken by the Australian Government to deal with all this, but there seems to be no end in sight.

It is clear that the issue is bigger than the Australian authorities. The law enforcement authorities and the policeman on the street can only do so much in this case.

Is the local economy to blame for the attacks?
Many believe that these attacks are triggered by the slow-down in economy. The unemployment is growing everywhere; people are struggling to find jobs. The immigrants and outsider often get the blame for stealing the jobs away from the locals.

This thinking and blame-game is not new or uncommon across the globe. In America, with unemployment exceeding 10%, immigrants and outsourcing are often quoted as one of the reasons for difficulties in finding work. There are many factions and groups, including some media outlets, in USA that openly blame immigrants as part of the economic problem. The main focus in America has been the Mexican immigrants who are blamed for taking away the lower wage jobs from working class Americans.

The attacks in Australia could very well have economic downturn as a contributing factor, if not the bigger or actual rootcause. However, the nature of the attacks, where the students are more prone to the violence,  seems more of a general resentment against sharply growing Indian population.

Racism or not?
Now, this is another can of worms. So far in recent years, this resentment against the immigrants and outsiders has been peaceful – non-violent – except these on-going cases in Australia. No matter how you look at the social or economic issues, it is hard to justify any violence against a particular community under any circumstances.

Every society all over the globe struggles with racial and social biases, some more pronounced than others. The social stigma or prejudice against certain groups is not new. The minorities have learned to live with racial biases, but putting up with violence is a very different story.

Many may argue that this is not racism but some isolated actions of thugs and hooligans. However, the facts are quite simple in this case: a certain group of people is targeting a specific social group of a different race and color – the Indians. The actual cause of these attacks may be rooted in local sentiments or social issues, the incidents have racism written all over them. That is the sad truth.

The Future of Indians in Australia
The Australian authorities have said that these attacks are isolated and are decreasing over time. There are about 100,000 Indian students in Australia, and only about 25 of them have been impacted directly by all this. So, looking the glass half full picture, a very small percentage of Indian population has been affected – at least, so has been reported.

Also, if there is any silver lining, the issue is getting global attention. Many of these criminals are behind bar – a strong message from the Australian law enforcement authorities.

Let us hope that there is an end to this ugliness in a very near future. These violent incidents that concern the daily safety of Indians demand some swift counter measures. Hopefully, the Australian government finds a way to come up with the measures to thwart these attacks for good.

In the mean time, one can only hope that the trouble-makers wake and come to their senses. Yes, a remote possibility, but a possibility nonetheless. :)  These senseless and cowardice actions are not going to solve any of their social, economic or personal problems.

By end of the day, Australia needs the well educated and skilled Indian community as much as Indians need Australia. In fact, the tuition dollars from Indian students is a key source of income for Australian universities, and ultimately, the educated Indian community down-under is a key to the Australian economy in the long run.