A makeshift sign hangs from a balcony at the Clayton campus of Monash university in Melbourne as students console each other

MELBOURNE, Australia, October 21 (IslamOnline  & News Agencies) - A student opened fire without warning in a university classroom Monday, October 21, killing two fellow students and wounding five others before he was wrestled to the ground by people around him, police said.

With nerves on edge across Australia following the October 12 bombing in Bali that left up to 92 Australians dead, officials quickly said they did not believe Monday's shooting had any terrorist links, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Police quoted witnesses as saying the man gave no indication of his intentions when he walked into the economics class on the sixth floor of a building at Melbourne's Monash University.

Then he suddenly stood up and began firing indiscriminately with a revolver and semi-automatic pistol, killing two men and wounding two men and a woman before a student and an instructor overpowered him and held him on the ground until police arrived.

"The gunman just went berserk and started shooting everyone," said Thanh Huynh, whose brother was shot in both legs during the attack.

"I think there was meant to be a presentation by the gunman today," she said.
Police questioned the attacker, described as a man of Asian background in his mid-30s, but gave no motive for the shooting. The two dead men were both ethnic Asians.

"It would appear at this stage that it's not an incident that would be related to any sort of terrorist activity," said police Superintendent Trevor Parks.

"It's probably too early to say that, but it would appear that at the moment," he said.

A witness said the gunman appeared "extremely emotionless" as he was led away by police. "He really didn't care what he'd done," the student, identified only as Gerard, told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio.

Monday's attack occurred in a high-rise building housing the arts and humanities faculty at Monash University's Clayton campus on the southeastern outskirts of Melbourne, Australia's second biggest city.

End of year exams were due to get underway at the school next week.
Hundreds of terrified students fled the building, while some of those wounded staggered around seeking help, witnesses said.

The wounded were taken by helicopter to local hospitals, one of them in critical condition and four others in serious but stable condition.

Police hailed the bravery of those who wrestled the gunman down before he could shoot more people.

"The people who have actually tackled this person have done a tremendous job and I think we've been spared further death or injury because there were a number of handguns present in the classroom," Parks said.

The shooting added to the national trauma suffered in the Bali bombing and came just a day after Australians observed an emotional day of mourning for those killed.

"I was only writing to a friend today that you're not safe anywhere anymore," said Corinne, one of the hundreds of students forced to flee the building by the shooting.

"I didn't realize that it would be proven to me today," she told ABC radio.
The gunman's rampage also renewed calls for further gun control measures in a country which recently outlawed assault rifles but has not legislated against handguns.

"There's no place for semi-automatic handguns in our community," said Senator Bob Brown, leader of the Greens party.

He called on the conservative government of Prime Minister John Howard to deal with the problem at a meeting of national police officials scheduled for next month.

Monash vice-chancellor Peter Darvall said the death toll could have been higher if students had not wrestled the alleged gunman to the ground adding that the students and staff were distressed, reported Australian Newspaper, The Australian. "All I can say is our university is as safe or unsafe as any other part of the community,'' he said.

Meanwhile, the paper reported that the National Union of Students (NUS) has blamed the Federal Government for the fatal shooting at Monash University.

NUS said the government's "disgusting policies" were destroying the lives of university students.

"NUS Victoria, though waiting further information about the shooting, is concerned that the increase in violence on university campuses could be very seriously attributed to the policies of the Howard government," the union said.

"It is not just their disgusting policies which are destroying lives of university students, lumping them with massive debt and forcing students to work two, sometimes three, part-time jobs but also its current position on foreign policy," the statement said.

"John Howard promised us a relaxed and comfortable country, yet is highly unlikely that anyone in this country is relaxed and comfortable.

"Howard has played the politics of divide which has left Australians feeling isolated and scared, contributing to this morning's tragic events.

"It is indicative of an American style of federal leadership that American values and actions are seen in Australian culture."

The comments were attributed to NUS's Victorian education officer Conrad French, environment officer Angus Smith and Victorian president Lambros Tapinos, said the Australian.

Meanwhile, another Australian newspaper, the Sydney Morning Herald said that counseling stations have been set up at the Clayton campus for those traumatized by the shooting.

Monash Student Council president Rebecca Tomilson said the university's counseling services were ready to start helping students deal with the shock of the violent incident.

"We've liaised for them to set up four or five stations where students who witnessed the incident or who are feeling generally traumatized can go and seek support," Tomilson told ABC Radio.

Tomilson said she raced to the studio of the on-campus radio station to alert those inside the union building of the shooting, reported the Herald.

"I just grabbed the microphone and told everyone who was inside the union building what it was that was going on and that we should all be calling people and telling them that the suspect had been apprehended and that we should all be pretty much safe," she said.

The incident brought back memories of the Port Arther massacre in 1996 when a lone gunman, Martin Bryant, shot and killed 35 people in the tourist town in Tasmania – the worst mass killing in modern Australian history.  

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