Question about attacks on international students in and around Melbourne

I been asked few times if Melbourne is still a safe place for visitors and international students after what has been shown by the media world wide especially in India. A lot of people has worries and questions regarding attacks on internation students in Melbourne. Some also asked on what can be done to avoid any such situations. Here is what I have to say about it:

It’s a wide topic to discuss. It’s not only the students, it can be ANYONE on the streets, in a pub or restaurant, parking of a shopping center, on public transport or at home late that night can become a victim. It has nothing to do with being Indians or Australians.

Yes, it’s true that Indian International students are easy targets here is what I think about it:

1. International Students works in odd hours, do not have their own transport to go back home late night. Streets on weekends can be full with drunk and people on drugs that can attack anyone for any reason. Locals mostly know what areas to void at what time. It’s just like avoiding certain streets of OLD Delhi and many other cities at night.

2. Public Transport: As I mentioned above international students mostly do not have their own transport, as a result they end up using public transport late night. There are certain rules of using public transport late night e.g. use the first carriage were possible, travel in a group if possible and if anyone is behaving oddly in the train try not to stare at anyone because you just do not know how that person will take it.

3. Walking on the streets late night: Since students will finish work late night they will end up walking to and from the train station. Now if you get approached by someone late night in a street chances are there wouldn't be anyone else in the street late night that could help you. Solution to such problem is either to avoid late night journeys or walk in a group so that others will think before approaching you.

4. Do not show off your expensive mobile phones.

5. Do not show off your gold ornaments.

6. Do not speak loudly in your own language that others cannot understand. Its impolite, mostly educated people ignore it but for certain people it could trigger a problem.

7. If carrying expensive electronic goods try to keep it to yourself without showing it to anyone late night or where others could keep a track of you and those electronic goods.

8. Try to learn local culture and manners. Everything one did in their own country might not be right thing to do in every country. Here are few examples:

(A)Girls wearing fewer clothes than the girls in your country: In many countries you would see that girls would cover most of their body parts, whereas in western countries you could see girls covering less parts of the body. It’s common to see that people who just landed in western countries few days back could be starring at girls. This is considered rude even though intention to wear fewer clothes is to look attractive. Try not to keep your eyes on woman’s body parts for long and while talking to them keep your eyes on their face instead of body parts. If you are staring a woman chances are due to this you are setting wrong impression about the community you represent and secondly you could be inviting the problem from the woman or her friends. Wearing small clothes in westerns countries do not make that person slut.

(B) Speaking loudly in the public transport in your own language: When you are in public transport, always watch around you to see how many people are talking loudly. Answer is not many people will be talking loudly. Due to the culture we are raised in we could be speaking loudly and in our own language, without releasing that people around us not actually appreciating it. Now if you will try to argue that you seen locals do the same, believe me majority of people with manners do not like them either. Educated people would not say anything to you but believe me you are not setting the right example here. Try to speak in a lower volume when in public and preferably in English if you see a lot of people around you who do not understand your language. The same rule applies when you are speaking to someone over the phone, being loud would not make it clear for the person on the other end of the phone line but it will make a lot of people to stare at you with a question mark on their face.

(C) Try to avoid those ring tones on mobile phone that no one can understand other than you or people from your community. Yes a lot of people have loud and funny rig tones but mostly people understand it and try not to judge you.

(D) One more thing to add is playing loud music on mobile phones while in public, please do not do that. No one appreciates listing to others music especially when they do not even understand it; if someone wants to listen to something they know where to get that music from. Earphone are provided with the walk mans, IPODs and Mobile phones for a reason.

(E) Learn to be polite if you haven’t learnt it yet. I come across many people who came to Australia but they do not seem to have learnt to be polite. Start learning from people around you when to use words like PLEASE and THANK YOU (also called TA).

(F) Stop comparing your country with local country. All countries have their own culture and ways of doing things. That does not make one country superior or inferior than other country. Culture differences will always be there, either learn it or start appreciating other cultures. I come across many people who were comparing the cultures and even on certain occasions they were forcing their culture on others, one should not do that.

Most of the time robberies or attacks are opportunistic. Anyone can become victim to these attacks irrespective of their age, gender or colour of skin. I been through this and I still proudly call Melbourne my home. Yes it’s also true that Government and locals can do a better job together. That is another topic all together.