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Death shocks community
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
THE death of another Indian shopkeeper in Auckland has sent shockwaves through the Indian community there.
Dead is Navtej Singh who was gunned down in his Manurewa Riverton Liquor Shop on Friday last week by thieves.
Parliamentarian Pansy Wong has said in a statement on Monday, that since 2000, four Indian shopkeepers had lost their lives in the area, the latest being Fiji-born Krishna Naidu.
Naidu, 22, died while minding his parent's shop in Manukau earlier this year.
His death prompted community leaders like Mrs Wong to think about options to protect themselves from such attacks and their families from, as in this case, its fatal consequences.
"One of the ideas was to install a hotline to report crime, but nothing has happened," Mrs Wong.
"T
here were calls for the Government to step in and deal to the youth gangs that seem to be the training ground for people who commit these crimes," Mrs Wong said.
"But six months down the track little seems to have changed."
Manukau police denied this was a race crime and that video footage of the incident did not suggest a race hit.
Acting Fiji High Commissioner to New Zealand Ponsami Chetty confirmed yesterday that Singh was not originally from Fiji.
Mrs Wong said they had been told that retailers were being encouraged to take further steps to protect themselves and their staff from armed robbery.
"I am not sure what this means or what shop owners could possibly do beyond closing at night, which is what the chief executive of the New Zealand Retailers Association has suggested," Mrs Wong said.
"The problem with this idea is that Krishna Naidu was killed in broad daylight.
"We cannot let criminals continue to run amok and put innocent people in danger."
Mrs Wong said there was little she could say to comfort Singh's wife recently and ease her pain and exhaustion when she visited her with Indian community members.
President of the Fiji Club of New Zealand Alton Shameem said the attack was not a targeted attack on Indians.
He said to the contrary the attackers are high on drugs so they desperately need cash or alternatives to maintain their lifestyle.
He said the whole nation was in a state of shock by the attack on Mr Singh and what he described as the uncaring behaviour of others including the police.
Witnesses claim it took police too long to respond to the calls for assistance that were made by people at the scene.
Death shocks community
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
THE death of another Indian shopkeeper in Auckland has sent shockwaves through the Indian community there.
Dead is Navtej Singh who was gunned down in his Manurewa Riverton Liquor Shop on Friday last week by thieves.
Parliamentarian Pansy Wong has said in a statement on Monday, that since 2000, four Indian shopkeepers had lost their lives in the area, the latest being Fiji-born Krishna Naidu.
Naidu, 22, died while minding his parent's shop in Manukau earlier this year.
His death prompted community leaders like Mrs Wong to think about options to protect themselves from such attacks and their families from, as in this case, its fatal consequences.
"One of the ideas was to install a hotline to report crime, but nothing has happened," Mrs Wong.
"T
here were calls for the Government to step in and deal to the youth gangs that seem to be the training ground for people who commit these crimes," Mrs Wong said.
"But six months down the track little seems to have changed."
Manukau police denied this was a race crime and that video footage of the incident did not suggest a race hit.
Acting Fiji High Commissioner to New Zealand Ponsami Chetty confirmed yesterday that Singh was not originally from Fiji.
Mrs Wong said they had been told that retailers were being encouraged to take further steps to protect themselves and their staff from armed robbery.
"I am not sure what this means or what shop owners could possibly do beyond closing at night, which is what the chief executive of the New Zealand Retailers Association has suggested," Mrs Wong said.
"The problem with this idea is that Krishna Naidu was killed in broad daylight.
"We cannot let criminals continue to run amok and put innocent people in danger."
Mrs Wong said there was little she could say to comfort Singh's wife recently and ease her pain and exhaustion when she visited her with Indian community members.
President of the Fiji Club of New Zealand Alton Shameem said the attack was not a targeted attack on Indians.
He said to the contrary the attackers are high on drugs so they desperately need cash or alternatives to maintain their lifestyle.
He said the whole nation was in a state of shock by the attack on Mr Singh and what he described as the uncaring behaviour of others including the police.
Witnesses claim it took police too long to respond to the calls for assistance that were made by people at the scene.