Student issue is `hot issue`, says new Oz envoy to India

Natasha Chaku

Melbourne, Aug 6 (PTI) Ahead of assuming charge as
Canberra's envoy to New Delhi, Indo-Australian Peter Varghese
Thursday described the attacks on Indian students here as "a
hot issue" and said it is more complicated than just being a
racial problem.

"Sure student issue is a hot issue. We won't be able to
ignore it and I don't want to ignore it. Something that needs
to be resolved and explained. I will be doing what I can," he
told PTI in an interview as India's External Affairs Minister
S M Krishna kicked off a 5-day visit here with the student
attacks high on his agenda.

Varghese, who replaces Australian High Commissioner John
McCarthy in New Delhi later this month, also strongly refuted
that Australia was racist.

"No I don't (think Australia is racist). I think if you
look at the way Australia has changed in the last 20-30 years
you will get a sense of the country which is when tested is
open to accepting people from a wide range of backgrounds and
from cultures and races. I consider it to be the most
multi-cultural society," he said.

Australian society was free to accept people on their
face value and deal with them as an individual rather than
based their race, he said.

Varghese, who also served as Australia's spy chief, said
the student issue is a more complicated set of issue rather
than just being racist attacks, some of which were linked with
each other.

Varghese described the recent attacks on Indian students
as initially a law and order issue. "In many of the cases, the
Indian students were victims of crime rather than being
particularly targeted."

"There could have been specific cases where motivation
could have been racist and I don't think we exclude that and
it is also the case that in some of these cases you were
dealing with the groups who were living in part of country
where crime was higher or (victims) were commuting at odd
hours," he said.

The impression that the Indian students "as a group are
being systematically targeted is very wrong and misleading,"
Varghese said, adding he will try his best to resolve the
student issue.

Varghese said he was seeing his new role as Australian
High Commissioner to India in much more positive aspect and
not just as the damage control exercise after the student
crisis. There are also other aspects that would need attention
for enhancing ties between the two sides, he added.

Calling the Victorian police's advice to Indian students
that they should not talk in Hindi in public as "not practical
and desirable," Varghese, nevertheless, said the students
should be equally aware that they are not putting themselves
into a risky situation.

He also suggested that Indian students take necessary
precautions while travelling during wee hours or going to
areas with high crime rate. It will be sensible thing to do
for anyone, he added.

On the educational institutions of the country that have
come under scrutiny for their performances, Varghese said for
"most part I think Indian students have a productive and
positive time spent from what we have found from our surveys."

However, he said there was a feeling of disappointment
over the recent educational scams revealing that the
Australian education institutions were not up to the mark.

"There is a small slice of educational institutes which
we are talking about. Vast majority of Indian students who are
doing courses are happy," he said, adding that performances of
a handful of institutions should not overshadow the entire
education industry of Australia.

Born to a Malayali couple, Varghese said he saw his new
job as envoy to India in professional term first rather than
in ethnic or cultural term.

"But clearly for me ...there is a sentimental aspect ...
My parents were originally from India and ...I would like to
think that my personal background will give assistance to me
in understanding in what's happing in India."

Though his knowledge of any Indian language is
rudimentary, he is a fan of Bollywood and is also hoping to
meet some players of the Indian film industry.

"I don't have time to watch Bollywood films but I do like
them and I am hoping to meet some Bollywood players," Varghese
said. PTI