A detainee who has been in Australia for the past twenty-seven years is going to be deported to his native land Cambodia. When the Australian authorities were trying to deport him for almost four years, finally the man in question has voluntarily agreed to go back to Cambodia.

The case came to light at the federal Parliament last Wednesday, when the Commonwealth and Immigration Ombudsman reported the same. Accused with a number of crimes, such as robbery and supplying drugs, thereby developing a strong criminal background, the man has been in immigration detention at Villawood, Sydney. While authorities tried to send him back to Cambodia, he then refused to return. But, now the unidentified man is willing to go back to this country.

The man was raised and educated in the Oz land. He arrived the land when he was only nine-year old. After living almost twenty-seven years in Australia, he has become a part of the Australian community. However, the immigration authorities termed him as a non-citizen in Australia.

The removal of the man from Australia is on the priority list for the immigration department, confirmed the Immigration and Citizenship Minister Chris Evans. The minister also confirmed that as per an individual’s deportation procedure, the man will be provided with a post-removal package to support and assist him.

This is one of the many cases included in the Commonwealth and Immigration Ombudsman’s report. Most of these accused have been in detention for several years, where many of them are detained at Villawood.

Recently, the Australian Immigration Minister, Chris Evans stated and made it public that the employers would use the temporary skilled visa program, that is 457 Subclass only if they do not able to find skilled workers within Australia.

The government made it clear that Australian employers are now required to look for the local workers to fill the vacancies first. Further they will be able to use the 457 Subclass visa scheme and recruit overseas skilled workers only when they do not find Australians who could fit the bill. With this, the Oz government wants to deliver that the local skilled workers should be given the priority and provided with the job opportunities created in the country.

The government is trying to make sure that the hiring of overseas employees does not affect the local skills. It is true that Australia needs skilled overseas workers, but at the same time it is also important to ensure that the temporary skilled visa holders do not replace the local workers. As a matter of fact, Australian workers have always been concerned about the possibility of bringing in foreign skilled workers at cheaper rates, thereby making local skills out of work.

However, the Worker Protection Laws are there to protect the rights of the Australian workers. According to February statistics, the average salary of a temporary visa holder in Australia is near about $100,000, up $10,000 from a year ago. The stats clearly show that the 457 Subclass visa holders are highly skilled workers and working for the same pay rates as local residents, which further indicates that the worker protection policies have been effective so far and are working!

An attacker, this time a man of Indian origin has been accused of brutally murdering an Indian toddler just few days back in Melbourne.

Reports say that Dhillon Gursewak, 23, cabbie, has been charged for barbarously killing a three year toddler and shares NO relations with the child! He used to reside in the same house in David Street. Also, sources confirmed the involvement of his wife in the crime too. The culprit, however, was refused bail.

The victim, Gurshan Singh Channa from Punjab was there in Australia with his parents since January, where he was callously killed by the criminal. Following the missing complaints from the parents, an aggressive research lead to his corpse which was lying dumped at the Wildwood Road.

It was said that the family was due return back to their country, but the destiny had something else in stored for them. Police has confirmed that the exact cause behind the crime is yet to come out and confirmed that the body found at the Wildwood Road showed no signs of trauma.

The circumstances are different as compared to other attacks which recently happened in the Aussie country! Therefore one should NOT take this one in the context of racial attacks. Till the time the police confirm any motive; people must not jump to any conclusion!

Phillip Choon Tee Lim, 50, charged of murdering a renowned Aussie medico has been released after spending 18 long years in prison. He was one of the two men who were involved in assassinating a famous surgeon, Victor Chang in the year 1991.

Lim along with Chew Seng Liew were ordered a sentence of 24 to 26 years, but the former was deported back to KL after spending 18 years! He was released after he won a legal fight for his independence.

Victor Chang from Sydney, was an applauded heart surgeon and had earner ample fame, courtesy his contribution in heart transplant methods. He was killed by the two accused, an incident that shocked the whole world! Reports say that Chang was gunned down in the suburb of Mosman, near his house, on his way to the clinic. It was an unsuccessful extortion effort!

Choon, along with four Immigration officials, were due to board a plane to Malaysia, but some technical problems caused a delay in their scheduled take off.

Lim was struggling to get his freedom for a long time. His struggle paid off as the NSW Supreme Court granted him the freedom to go back to his country of origin. But his release would assure that he is permanently removed from Australia, confirmed Director of NSW Immigration Department, Gavin McCairns.

Now Lim has gained the status of an “Unaccompanied Malaysian Citizen” as now his PR Visa for Australia has been permanently ceased!

This month is all about mending the relationships between India and Australia. First it was Kevin Rudd, then Shane Warne, and now Stephen Smith, during his visit to India has affirmed that some of the attacks were racial in nature, which has provided ample damage to Australian reputation as a whole.

The minister on the facet that The Australian Institute of Criminology would soon provide reports on these attacks that would assist the Aussie government deal with these issues in a better way. He went on to elaborate that these attacks have a hint of racial tone which is really shameful and contemptible!

Canberra had earlier denied the involvement of any hint of racism in the spate of racial attacks that happened in Australia.

Smith commented that the government has worked immensely hard to address the whole issue. He commented that they need to be transparent towards the whole issue and affirmed that a lot of things would be performed in the future to portray the Aussie image in a better way.

He also said that applicants who work on part time are at greater risk.  Therefore they should be careful while traveling in Australian premises, especially at night.

Earlier, various measures have been performed in attempt to mend the tensions created between the two nations, courtesy the racial attacks happening in Australia on a regular basis. It is true that the relationship has been hampered in a major way but that does not deprive Australia from gaining the position of being one of the applauded study destinations in the world!

In the end, Smith commented on strengthening the relationships between both the countries!

Recently Aussie leg spinner Shane Warne attended a picnic with some Indians, in an attempt to iron out the creases between India and Australia after the recent racial attacks on foreign students.

The picnic event was held in Melbourne, where the Aussie cricketer and the captain of Rajasthan Royals were flocked by some Indians seeking his autographs. Warnie went on to say that as a Victorian, it is critical for him to maintain the relationships between both the nations.

Earlier, Warne was given the responsibility to ease out the tension (http://blog.abhinav.com/indian-aussie-tension-may-ease-out-courtesy-shane-warne/) between the two nations. Cricket is a game that is widely popular amongst people of both the origins and may act as a perfect source to bring peace, unity and love between Australia and India! The choice is perfect too, as the cricketer holds an equal amount of popularity amongst both Australian and Indian audience!

He said that he is eager to know what the students think about this issue and what their current feelings on this aspect are! He defended Victoria, saying that it is a great city to live in. He added that he simply love India!

Warnie also dined with the students, and assured them that Australia is one of the safest places to live in! Attempts of such kind are desperately needed to mend the relations between both the countries.

The Rajasthan Royals captain will leave for India on 4rth March to take part in IPL3 starting from March 12 onwards!

Racial attacks have done ample damage to Indian-Australian relationship! Now attempts are going on to fix these gaps. After Shane Warne, it’s the turn of Australian foreign minister Stephen Smith to ease out the tension further!

On his three day visit to India, the minister would meet his Indian counterpart SM Krishna, who has already shown his active participation in the whole issue. Apart from this much debated issue, the two Ministers would discuss the security concerns for the Commonwealth Games!

The Australian minister affirmed that both the ministers would have talks on solving the recent hurdles faced by Indian students and immigrants in Australia. He emphasized on maintaining a “Zero Tolerance” towards these attacks and providing assurance on Aussie’s keenness to handle these assaults on Indian students!

The Aussie minister said that he will acquaint the Indian government on various measures taken by the officials to maintain a safer ambiance for Indian students. His visit to India comes a month after his Indian counterpart expressed his concerned over the whole issue and the effect that it is having on the relationships of both the countries!

Courtesy the racial attacks, plenty of Australian delegates, including Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, official Julia Gillard and now Australian foreign minister Stephen Smith have visited India on a regular basis. These visits are surely aimed at easing out the tension between both the countries and building a foundation of a healthy relationship in future! The recent assaults have not only hurt Indian sentiments but also harmed the bilateral ties between both nations!

With a lot of changes in immigration front and series of controversies going around about Australia, many people are found to be much concerned about the image of the country of late. Australia was never discussed like it has been discussed recently. Even the country’s ministers are found worrying about the brand the country has developed so far as one of the most welcoming and unbiased societies across the globe. But, most worried are the people who were considering a permanent move to Australia.

Most migrants with an intention to take permanent residency in the country no more hold the perception that the land of Kangaroos is a secure destination, thanks to the series of factors pertaining to immigration rules and ongoing racial attacks. According to immigration experts, the latest legislative changes, harder selection criteria, alongside the attacks on migrant students and breakdown of private education institutions are enough reasons to make overseas migrants give a second thought to their decision to migrate to Australia. Going by this, many prospective migrants would not put the country in their priority list of destinations.

While talking about the skilled migrants, let us remind you about the latest amendments to the Australian selection process. The very selection process has been made tougher as the country is attempting to attract skilled migrants, emphasizing only on those occupations that have highest skills shortages.

A lot is happening in Australia in the immigration front- the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) being abolished; the Skilled Occupation List is going to be replaced, with which the skilled migrants are worrying about their future in the country.

Anyway, if your are looking forward to migrate to Australia in the near future, it is advised to hire an Immigration and Visa consultant in order to keep up with the latest amendments taking place in the country!

The new immigration stats of Australia revealed that most of the immigrants under the Temporary Overseas Work Visa category are highly skilled professional workers. For 2009-2010, Australia granted ninety percent of the 457 Subclass Temporary Overseas work visas to mostly skilled professionals like managers.

According to immigration reports, the average salary package of all the new temporary skilled workers under the said category is about $100,000. This is an increase of about $10,000 from the previous year. Among the overseas workers, professionals engaged in mining industry are happened to be the highest paid workers, whose average salary is $169,000. Reportedly, financial and insurance workers occupied the second slot with average salary package of $127,000.

If we scan through the immigration figures of 2009-2010, it would come clear that professionals under the temporary work visa category immigrated to the country to fill specialized work positions. If we go by the salary packages, it comes clear that here overseas workers are not used as a source of cheap labor.

Once again the recent figures have proved that Australia is one of the best places in the world when it comes to working conditions and wages. One can expect to lead a decent lifestyle in Australia, if he/she qualifies to work and live there. As a matter of fact, Australia is one of those highly immigrated countries in the world that offers some of the most competitive wages.

If you are contemplating to migrate and work in Australia, help yourself throughout the process of immigration by contacting an Immigration and Visa consultant!

Condemning the racial attacks on Indians in Australia, the “Vindaloo Against Violence” was organized. This was a protest in a dining form where in more than seventeen thousand people enrolled to participate in the campaign. These included everyone from politicians to policemen to the local citizens of Australia.

The campaign first went viral before going global. Starting from an ordinary event involving hundred people via the social networking site – Facebook, it has turned into a mass event across the planet.

The thirty five year old Mia Northrop who was the organizer of this event has been getting invitations from people sitting in Tajikistan to Tokyo, New York, Amsterdam and Stockholm to support the cause.

This clearly shows the phenomenal response that the campaign has received which showed towards the Indian community of four hundred and fifty thousand. Northrop who is a digital media designer by profession, is more than happy to see the positive turn that her small campaign has taken.

Around four hundred Indian restaurants spread across Australia participated. After having the record of the busiest day by Tiffins, it had to close down its website. Tiffins is a curry courier service in Melbourne. The day was so busy that an additional of four vans was aiding their five bikes fleet to ensure the thousand deliveries were made on time during lunch.

Further, in support of the campaign, John Brumby – the state’s premier along with the police dined out to show their support to the cause. Also, the menu of the state’s parliament was converted to Indian in respect to the cause.

On the other hand, Queensland was host to an eating contest and the cafeteria of the parliament consisted of a curry - only menu as well.

Despite the support, it is still yet to be seen as to whether this act actually prevents any attacks in the future!