Attacks on Indian students in Australia (from the BBC)

[pampango]

"Australia foreign student abuse proves expensive"

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/newsnight/8242739.stm

"When Indian students arrive in Australia, probably the last thing they think they will end up doing is taking to the streets in a series of boisterous protests. First, they were voicing anger over a spate of muggings and attacks in Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide. Police confirm there have been 97 attacks since late-May, although the true figure is probably much higher since many assaults go unreported."

"Now, the ranks of disgruntled Indian students have been swelled by those who believe they are being ripped off by a private system keen to take their money, but unable to offer value for money or even a proper education. Australia is an educational powerhouse, with 70,000 Indian students alone. After coal and iron ore, it is the country's third most lucrative industry, worth around £7.5bn ($14.35bn AUD)."

"With student interest from India already showing signs of trailing off, it has also mounted a diplomatic offensive. The Australian Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, visited India this month. Mr Rudd plans to make his own visit before Christmas. At a protest march in Sydney this month, the Australian authorities might have been unnerved by the presence of so many camera crews from China, another lucrative market in the overseas student industry."

"Australia is often stereotyped as an unusually racist country, partly because its White Australia immigration policy lasted until the early 1970s. But perhaps the bigger story of the post-war years is how a mono-cultural society became a successfully multi-cultural society, without much of a backlash."