In wake of the rise in attacks against African nationals in the country, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said several confidence building measures have already been implemented, adding MoS for External Affairs General (Retd.) V.K. Singh has been asked to visit major metros and do a full outreach programme aimed at addressing their concerns.
Highlighting External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's positive remark post her meeting with the African diplomatic as well as the students' community, MEA official spokesperson Vikas Swarup said this issue that was building up has been successfully defused.
"And Minister of State for External Affairs General (Retd.) V.K. Singh also had a sensitization campaign in Chhattarpur where he met with the local residents. And now, it has been decided as EAM (Sushma Swaraj) had mentioned in her statement that MoS VK (Singh) would be tasked with going to all the major metros where concentrations of African community resides," he told the media at a press briefing here.
Swarup said this would be worked out in consultation with the African Diplomatic Corps (ADC) because they have to disclose the figures where they believe a large majority of their citizens are residing.
"And the idea is we fully involve the state governments in this exercise after all law and order is a state subject. So, the plan is for MOS VK (Singh), accompanied by Secretary (Economic Relations) Shri Amar Sinha, to go to these cities with the Police Commissioners of those cities, meet the student community , the locals and do a full outreach programme where we hear their concerns, we try to put in place institutional mechanisms which can address those concerns," said Swarup.
"In this context, I would like to remind you that there was a very unfortunate incident in Bengaluru involving a Tanzanian national and after that the police did conduct a sensitization programme and since then we have noted very positively that not a single such incident has been reported from Bengaluru," he added.
Swarup further said Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar has met with the African students during which they outlined the problems they are facing.
"And they (the problems) were more relating to not getting the right accommodation, the issues with their regularization or extension of their visas etc. So, the Foreign Secretary has assured them that we will try to put in place institutional mechanisms so that these problems do not occur in the future," he added.
The External Affairs Minister had earlier appealed to the Indians to stretch out a hand of friendship to the African nationals.
"I appeal to fellow Indians. Next time you meet an African citizen, pl shake hand and say 'India loves you'," Swaraj tweeted.
Swaraj had earlier on Tuesday met with the family of Congolese national Masonda Kitanda Olivier and said she understood the "pain of a mother who loses a son on foreign soil".
The External Affairs, however, refused to characterise the Congolese national's death as a racist attack while invoking Gautam Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi to convey that India can "never have a racist mindset".
The Foreign Secretary had earlier on Monday met a group of African students in the national capital and assured them of their security in India.
Thousands of African students in India were outraged after a 29-year-old man from Congo was allegedly assaulted and battered to death by three men in south Delhi following an argument over hiring an auto-rickshaw on May 20.
