'Go home Indian': Sikh restaurateur racially targeted in Australia: Report
Melbourne, Nov 16: A Sikh restaurateur living in Australia has alleged that he has been racially targeted several times in recent months, telling him to "go home" and smearing his car with dog excrement.
Jarnail Singh, who runs a restaurant in Hobart, Tasmania, said he has been continuously targeted for over the last two, or three months, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.
"Never, ever has this happened to me before, and it's been continuous (over) the last two, three months," Singh was quoted as saying.
"It's mentally very stressful when it comes to your house, and particularly (being targeted) with your name on it... It's too much mental stress. Something has to be done," Singh told ABC News on Tuesday.
The first incident involved dog excrement being smeared on the door handles of his car, for four or five days in a row, outside his home.
Then, he found racist graffiti in his driveway, telling him "Go home, Indian".
He reported the matter to the police, but, without video evidence, little could be done to track down who was behind it.
Filled with racist comments, Singh first assumed the letter had been written by a young person, and did his best to ignore it, after reporting it to police.
The next letter received about a month later, was even more offensive than the first including comments like "you can **** off back to India" and threats of damage to his car, at either Singh's work or his home.
Singh has lived in Australia for around 15 years, with 10 of those being in Tasmania.
In a statement, Tasmania Police Commander Jason Elmer said the incidents had been reported to police and were being investigated.
He said current legislation allowed for courts to "consider that a motivation of racial hatred or prejudice can be an aggravating factor in sentencing".
Commander Elmer said there was "no excuse for any form of verbal or physical harassment" in the community, and that people were encouraged to contact police immediately if they believe they have been the victim of a prejudice-related incident.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
