Racism swamps education industry

MELBOURNE (JP): The education industry in Australia is linked with the issues of racism at two levels: the endeavor to minimize racism and the damaging effect racism has on the education industry. How big a dilemma this power play between the opposing forces is depends very much on the speed each force takes in influencing the community.

The government, at state and federal levels, agrees with the principles of international education. It not only enhances the country's education industry and brings in a sizable revenue, but also has the potential of enriching Australia's multilateral relationships with other countries. However, for the idea of international education to gain overall acceptance in the community, it is necessary to break down the section of the community that is still very Anglo-centric and extremely suspicious of new elements, especially if they are not Caucasian, let alone of British descent.

While the authorities keep saying that this group is a minority, it does not mean there is a definite line separating this group from the rest of Australian society. In reality, there is a continuum, with race and cultural purists at one end and the multirace and multicultural proponents at the other.

On a good day, the majority of Australian society is scattered between the two ends of this continuum, probably with some crowded right in the middle. However this positioning is by no means permanent. The occasional outburst of racist remarks has time and time again proven the volatility of the situation.

Where racism damages the education industry is when it takes the ugly form of racist behavior, as seen in the recent events sparked by the Pauline Hanson speech in parliament late last year. Reported abuses prompted Sing Tao, one of the largest Chinese language daily newspapers with a circulation of 25,000, to conduct a survey. The 1,100 respondents to the survey reported that before the speech, there had been 23 incidents of written abuse, 299 of verbal abuse, 40 of physical abuse and 25 spitting incidents. After the speech, there had been 47 incidents of written abuse, 670 of verbal abuse, 95 of physical abuse and 79 spitting incidents.

On Oct. 30 last year, the Daily Telegraph reported incidents where visiting Singapore troops training in Australia had been bashed, robbed and abused in a series of attacks linked by officials to the Pauline Hanson race debate.

All these incidents have been widely reported in mass media in the region, exactly where Australia is hoping to increase its clientele for its education industry.

Compared to other industries, education in fact is the most vulnerable, because it involves parents and children. Parents would think twice before spending large sums of money sending their children to Australian schools and universities, after learning about these incidents.

Who would want to pay to send their teenage children to a place where they may be exposed to stress caused by racism? Why send them to this place when there are other places competing for their money?

So for those promoters of Australia's education industry, the success of their venture depends largely on the race of time with the recalcitrant elements of society.

-- Dewi Anggraeni