Portfolio Media

Rudd must send message: Australia is safe and not racist

07 January 2010

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd must work closely with the Indian Government to reassure them Australia remains a safe destination, says Shadow Tourism Minister Steven Ciobo.

Mr Ciobo said assurances by Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard Indian students would continue to be welcomed in Australia were simply not enough. What was needed was real and swift action to stem further deterioration of the country’s image on the sub-continent as a tourist destination.

Mr Ciobo said the $17 billion educational tourism market and growing Indian tourist market were at stake.

“What’s needed here is tangible and swift action by Rudd Government leadership to get things back in perspective – Australia is still one of the safest destinations in the world,” Mr Ciobo said.

“The death of Nitin Garg is an absolute tragedy, but it is not symptomatic of a wider problem for Indian students in Australia. The Rudd Government needs to make this crystal-clear in India where it appears the tabloid news machine is running out of control.

“The Rudd Government needs to assure all parents in India considering sending their children here to study Australia is still a safe and welcoming country.”

Australia’s image as a safe and affordable destination had already suffered from media reports of attacks on Indian visitors last year, with a reported 46 per cent drop in overseas student applications from India (in the year to October), he said.

“Already we are hearing that those attacks did serious damage, with the lucrative Indian educational tourism market predicted to hit the skids this year, yet there is no evidence of these attacks being racially motivated,” Mr Ciobo said.

Mr Ciobo said the Indian market had grown significantly in importance to the tourism sector and must be carefully nurtured.

Along with China, India has been one of the few markets to have posted continued growth in recent years, with Indians ranking among the longest-stay visitors, he said.

In the year to September Australia welcomed 115,000 visitors from India who spent an estimated $600 million.

He says if the Rudd Government failed to act swiftly and decisively with the Indian Government, it risked jeopardising not just the Indian educational tourism market but also visitation generally.