The pandemic has prompted a rise in racist abuse in Canberra, leaders of the different ethnic groups in the ACT say.
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Among the incidents they cite are:
- Rocks thrown at windows in an apartment block;
- Calling people of Indian background "curry dogs" and worse;
- Chinese people being shouted at as carriers of COVID; and
- Frequent use of foul language and insult.
"Canberra is a very peaceful place but sometimes when racism raises its ugly head, it's really bad," Chin Wong of the Chinese Australian Association in the ACT said.
"We have experienced again and again racial abuse, verbal abuse. Sometimes it is really bad.
"Our businesses get attacked by people who just behave badly."
The group, which covers people of backgrounds from many parts of Africa, South America and Asia, says racism isn't addressed vigorously enough by the police or the ACT's Human Rights Commission.
They feel it is a hidden problem which needs to be brought out into the open.
They say sometimes abusers could be caught easily - like a tenant in a block of flats who has screamed racial abuse at another resident.
"It's a problem but nobody talks about it," said Marial Kot, the head of the South Sudanese Association.
"We feel we are second-class citizens.
"There are a lot of people who are suffering in silence. Kids are being threatened in school."
The group has written to the Human Rights Commission, which the ethnic leaders feel is not active enough in going out to the communities to find out what is going on.
"We don't want them to sit there and wait for us to go to them. We want them to come into the communities and find out what is happening," Mr Kot said.
The cause has been taken up by the ACT's shadow minister for multicultural affairs, Giulia Jones.
"Some people in our community are suffering occasional, but very personally distressing and damaging attacks, based on their race or ethnic background," Mrs Jones said.
One community worker, Vikas Sharma, is setting up an online site so people can register abuse and attacks.
"The important thing to do first is to acknowledge that racism exists here. We can't just push it under the carpet," he said.
The Human Rights Commission said it: "Takes complaints about racism seriously, acknowledging how distressing racism is for individuals, their families, friends and communities.
"The commission looks forward to working with community members to ensure that its complaints process is accessible to everyone in the Canberra community."
A police statement said: "ACT Policing receives a small number of reports of offences which may be racially-motivated. All these reports are taken seriously."
The main crime would be "serious vilification", which occurs when someone "incites hatred towards, serious contempt for, or severe ridicule of, a person or group of people" because of their race, sexuality or gender.
The penalty is fines of up to $8000.
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Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
