Behind-the-scenes talks are trying to put a stop to terrifying, violent attacks on a minority religious community, write Eamonn Duff and Natalie O'Brien.
IT BEGAN with minor acts of vandalism, including egg throwing and smashed windows, but instead of remaining periodic footnotes in the night log at Auburn police station, the incidents have grown so violent - and the issue so culturally sensitive - that even authorities are reluctant to speak about them publicly.
Australia's oldest Hindu temple, the Sri Mandir in Auburn, is under siege and its devotees gripped by fear.
On March 19, two men in balaclavas stood at the intersection of a nearby road, spraying the front of the prayer hall with eight rounds of bullets. The building was unoccupied at the time.
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The busy Hindu temple opened in 1977. It is surrounded by a predominantly Muslim population and it is no secret among locals that tensions have been simmering in recent years, caused by concerns about noise and parking problems at Sri Mandir.
''There is no excuse [for the gun attack],'' the editor of Sydney newspaper The Indian, Rohit Revo, said.
''This was not the work of teenagers; neither was it a petty prank. This is part of a sustained and increasingly violent campaign to scare the temple devotees and drive them out. By definition, this latest attack was an act of terrorism.''
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/gunshots-prompt-prayers-for-peace-20110402-1cs8h.html
IT BEGAN with minor acts of vandalism, including egg throwing and smashed windows, but instead of remaining periodic footnotes in the night log at Auburn police station, the incidents have grown so violent - and the issue so culturally sensitive - that even authorities are reluctant to speak about them publicly.
Australia's oldest Hindu temple, the Sri Mandir in Auburn, is under siege and its devotees gripped by fear.
On March 19, two men in balaclavas stood at the intersection of a nearby road, spraying the front of the prayer hall with eight rounds of bullets. The building was unoccupied at the time.
Advertisement: Story continues below
The busy Hindu temple opened in 1977. It is surrounded by a predominantly Muslim population and it is no secret among locals that tensions have been simmering in recent years, caused by concerns about noise and parking problems at Sri Mandir.
''There is no excuse [for the gun attack],'' the editor of Sydney newspaper The Indian, Rohit Revo, said.
''This was not the work of teenagers; neither was it a petty prank. This is part of a sustained and increasingly violent campaign to scare the temple devotees and drive them out. By definition, this latest attack was an act of terrorism.''
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/gunshots-prompt-prayers-for-peace-20110402-1cs8h.html
