Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has said that he was worried over 'the stories his Asian son-in-law has told him about racism in this country' but assured the foreign students, including Indians, that his government was working hard to improve their safety.
"My son-in-law is Chinese, from Hong Kong, I hear stories from him from time to time which make me really worried about what might be going on," Rudd told ABC Television on Monday night.
"But his overall story is that he's completely accepted and part of the Australian family," Rudd said.
According to Sky news TV channel, the experiences of Albert Tse, a Hong Kong-born banker who is married to Rudd's daughter Jessica, were brought up during a question and answer forum with young people in Canberra last night.
In the TV show with young students, an Indian student also told the audience of his experiences of racism.
During the forum at Canberra's Old Parliament House, Rudd said the federal and Victorian governments are working to improve the safety of foreign students who work late at night.
On the issue of race relations, he said Australians needed to keep 'a weather eye' on racist incidents. "This country, Australia, is and shall be a tolerant country," he said.
"We have a combined responsibility: politicians of all sides, community leaders, young people, old people," he said.
Tse married Rudd's eldest child in 2007 and appeared with the Rudd family on the podium when Labor won the election later that year.
Image: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
Photograph: Reuters
