(1)As flanking states in the eastern Indian Ocean, India and Australia are critical to this emerging arena of geopolitics. Fellow democracies with shared values, concerns and interests, they should have
strong synergies. Yet, somehow the strategic outcomes have been sub-optimal. Likewise, the street violence against Indian students in Melbourne and other cities in 2009-10 was deplorable but it cannot take away from the fact that Australia remains a welcoming home for thousands of
Indian imigrants. Authorities in Australia have responded by cracking
down on dubious educational institutions, and facilitating those
students genuinly seeking education.
Nevertheless, the Taskforce recognises the troubling
legacy of the period. It has recommended that"an an act of goodwill..
visas of Indian students who were in Australia on February 8,2012
and whose pathways towards permanent residency in Australia were
affected
by changes to immigration regulation in that year" extended "for
at least 12 months from December 31,2012".
(2)Rather than working towards reversing our economic slowdown, UPA 2
seems to be concentrating on the revival of larger profits
to India Inc and international finance capital. This has found
expression with the calls for Gennext reforms from the recent
congress working committee meeting. The privatisation, with sizable
foreign financial participation, of pension funds is in
the offing. Likewise, reforms seeking to increase foreign financial
particiapation in the insurance sector granting foreign
banks the right to take over private Indian banks appear to be in the
pipeline. These reforms were onthe agenda of the neo-
liberal trajectory since 2004. however they were prevented by the Left
parties during UPA. This resulted in the relative insula-
tion of the Indian economy from the devastating impact of the global
financial meltdown of 2008. This shield, so to speak, is now
sought tobe ripped apart.(source-Hindustan Times Tuesday, June 12, 2012)
(3)Today is the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the US that
claimed 3,000 lives. The strike was heralded by a series of
25 strikes in Iraq that killed more than 58 people and wounded over
250. Ironically, it was US president Barack Obama who onse
stated:"Al-qaeda in Iraq didnot exist before out invasion." According
to Rand, in the year before the Iraq war, there were only 13
terror attacks in Iraq. In the year after the US invasion, there
were 224 terrorist attacks and 1,074 deaths.
During this period. Rand data shows, there was over 650% increase in
terrrorism-related deaths in Pakistan. Likewise between
2000 and 2006, the number of terrorist attacks in alll of west and
South asia rose from 404 to 5,638.
(source-Hindustan Times Tuesday September 11, 2012)
(4)In Assam, the violence of indigenous Assamese against the Bengali
Muslim community is described by the leaders of the BJP, All
Assam Students Union and the Sangh organisations as righteous anger
against 'outsiders'. Economic refugees are emotively described
as 'infiltrators' from Bangladesh, and although scholalrs estimate
that only around 10% of the Bengali Muslim in Assam are legal
residents, by implication the attacks and ethnic cleansing of the
entire community is rationalised. Likewise, radicalised Islamist
leaders use persecution of Muslims to provoke and justify mindless
violence of the kind witnessed in Mumbai.
(source-Hindustan Times Tuessday, August 21, 2012)
strong synergies. Yet, somehow the strategic outcomes have been sub-optimal. Likewise, the street violence against Indian students in Melbourne and other cities in 2009-10 was deplorable but it cannot take away from the fact that Australia remains a welcoming home for thousands of
Indian imigrants. Authorities in Australia have responded by cracking
down on dubious educational institutions, and facilitating those
students genuinly seeking education.
Nevertheless, the Taskforce recognises the troubling
legacy of the period. It has recommended that"an an act of goodwill..
visas of Indian students who were in Australia on February 8,2012
and whose pathways towards permanent residency in Australia were
affected
by changes to immigration regulation in that year" extended "for
at least 12 months from December 31,2012".
(2)Rather than working towards reversing our economic slowdown, UPA 2
seems to be concentrating on the revival of larger profits
to India Inc and international finance capital. This has found
expression with the calls for Gennext reforms from the recent
congress working committee meeting. The privatisation, with sizable
foreign financial participation, of pension funds is in
the offing. Likewise, reforms seeking to increase foreign financial
particiapation in the insurance sector granting foreign
banks the right to take over private Indian banks appear to be in the
pipeline. These reforms were onthe agenda of the neo-
liberal trajectory since 2004. however they were prevented by the Left
parties during UPA. This resulted in the relative insula-
tion of the Indian economy from the devastating impact of the global
financial meltdown of 2008. This shield, so to speak, is now
sought tobe ripped apart.(source-Hindustan Times Tuesday, June 12, 2012)
(3)Today is the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the US that
claimed 3,000 lives. The strike was heralded by a series of
25 strikes in Iraq that killed more than 58 people and wounded over
250. Ironically, it was US president Barack Obama who onse
stated:"Al-qaeda in Iraq didnot exist before out invasion." According
to Rand, in the year before the Iraq war, there were only 13
terror attacks in Iraq. In the year after the US invasion, there
were 224 terrorist attacks and 1,074 deaths.
During this period. Rand data shows, there was over 650% increase in
terrrorism-related deaths in Pakistan. Likewise between
2000 and 2006, the number of terrorist attacks in alll of west and
South asia rose from 404 to 5,638.
(source-Hindustan Times Tuesday September 11, 2012)
(4)In Assam, the violence of indigenous Assamese against the Bengali
Muslim community is described by the leaders of the BJP, All
Assam Students Union and the Sangh organisations as righteous anger
against 'outsiders'. Economic refugees are emotively described
as 'infiltrators' from Bangladesh, and although scholalrs estimate
that only around 10% of the Bengali Muslim in Assam are legal
residents, by implication the attacks and ethnic cleansing of the
entire community is rationalised. Likewise, radicalised Islamist
leaders use persecution of Muslims to provoke and justify mindless
violence of the kind witnessed in Mumbai.
(source-Hindustan Times Tuessday, August 21, 2012)
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