Indian scribe attacked in Oz, raid in migration agent office

Natasha Chaku
Sydney, Jul 27 (PTI) In a brazen attack, a young Indian
woman journalist working undercover to expose alleged
migration and education scams in Australia was threatened and
punched by a man here, after which police Monday raided the
office of an agent "exploiting" overseas students.

The woman, working as a reporter with ABC TV, was trailed
near her office over the weekend. Someone ran behind her and
hit her hard, a colleague said.

A spokesperson of the ABC Network told PTI that the
reporter is now "safe and sound". However, the official
refused to divulge the identity of the woman scribe citing
security reasons.

The reporter was threatened while making her programme
'Four Corners' related to the alleged scams, the channel said.

Hours after the news about the assault broke, federal
police and immigration officials raided the office of a Sydney
migration agent allegedly involved in a "scam to exploit
foreign students," it reported.

The attack on the scribe comes close on the heels of
racially motivated assaults on 22 Indian students in different
Australian cities in over a month.

"She was physically assaulted when someone hit her body,
quite brutally, from behind and her attacker then ran away,"
the programme's Executive Director Mark Bannerman said.

"We immediately reported it to the police and they are
treating the incident very seriously. As yet no formal
investigation has been launched but they are looking at the
matter and taking down all the details," Bannerman said.

In an article on its website, ABC said the reporter
went to two different migration agents posing as a customer
wanting to pass an English Language Test without having the
skills and told them that she was willing to buy a fake work
certificate.

She was asked to dish out an amount between USD 3,000
and USD 5,000, the report said.

The report said it was not clear whether the migration
agents or the colleges identified in the 'Four Corners'
programme were behind either the threats or the attack.

Australian Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard condemned
the assault, terming it "cowardly" and "abhorrent".

"Any attack like that which has been reported is

cowardly and completely abhorrent. An attack seemingly on a
journalist working for ABC News going about their work is
particularly disturbing," she said.
A colleague of the Indian journalist said she was

getting "threatening calls" and was "assaulted in broad
daylight on the street when nobody was around".
"She was walking the street and somebody ran up behind

her and hit her hard on the back and she was shocked and upset
and disturbed," Wendy Carlisle, a correspondent of ABC News,
said.
Wendy said it appeared that the attacker was an Indian.

There was no word from the police on it.
The last attack on Indians took place about a fortnight

back when three students were assaulted in Sydney and
Adelaide.
The attacks have continued notwithstanding assurances

from the Australian government that they would crack down
on the miscreants and ensure that the country remains a safe
destination for foreign students. PTI NC
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