Attacks on Indians in Australia has come down: Krishna

New Delhi, Feb 25 (PTI) The number of attacks on Indians
in Australia has come down due to a slew of steps taken by the
federal and provincial governments there to meet Indian
concerns, External Affairs Minister of India S M Krishna told
the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
Making a suo motu statement in the House on the 'Attacks
on Indians in Australia', he said the issue involves a number
of "complex factors" which are "interlinked" and need to be
dealt with in a "concerted and coordinated manner".
He said the incidents of attacks came to notice since 2007
when some students were assaulted in Sydney and since May last
year there was a "significant increase in the number and
frequency of attacks" on Indians in Australia.
India has taken up the issue of assaults with Australian
authorities even at the highest level, he said.
Krishna said the Australian government as well as the
government of Victoria province, where most of the attacks
occurred, have taken a number of steps for safety of Indians,
which include additional police deployment and strengthening
of laws.
Underlining that the government was taking "very
seriously" the issue and the Australian authorities have been
fully apprised of it, he said "as a result, both at the state
as well as the federal levels, they (Australia) have taken
several measures" to improve security and surveillance.
"It can be honestly said that they are making efforts to
meet our concerns," the External Affairs Minister said.
"As a result of these measures, the number of incidents
recorded in these suburbs (of Australia) has decreased," he
said.

Krishna assured the House that the Government will continue
to monitor the situation and "work closely with the Australian
authorities to deal with the issues concerned and improve the
safety and security of our students in Australia."
He said the attacks on Indian students in Australia
involved robbery, assault, violence fuelled by alcohol or
drugs, juvenile crimes and racial abuse.
"Other contributing factors have been financial constraints
of the Indian students which have led to their living in poor
neighbourhoods, working late hours and travelling in late
night public transport, all of which have made them more
vulnerable to street crime which has been on increase in
Melbourne," he said.
He also pointed out that most of the incidents have taken
place in Melbourne.
The profile of the attackers in most of the assaults,
Krishna said, is of youngsters in their teens and early 20s.
He, however, added that the attackers are of "mixed
ethnicity", including sometimes, other Indians. Some of the
attacks have had racial elements, he observed.
Outlining steps taken by authorities there to check the
attacks, he said following incidents against Indian taxi
drivers, the South Australia government has set up a taxi
council to hold discussions with cabbies, many of whom are
students.
He said the Victorian government has strengthened the
Victorian Sentencing Act, 1991 in December 2009, and is
conducting a review of the justice system under a retired
Supreme Court judge to address racial crime.
Three hundred police officers are being added to the
Victorian Police to form a rapid response unit to address
continued attacks, he added. PTI NAB
AHM