Picture shows (The University of Newcastle, Australia), University of Newcastle, Australia
Australia is in a dilemma, watching China`s huge investment olive branch on the one hand and deterring the United States on the other. What kind of road should we take? there is a lot of debate in Australia and China. But what is certain is that in today`s globalized economy, if we have been afraid of China`s rise and influence and refused to cooperate, it will undoubtedly slow down or even stagnate its own development.
Editor`s note: on Aug. 24, Australian Chinese media reported that an Indian lecturer at Newcastle University publicly called Taiwan and Hong Kong a "country" in class and refused to change his tongue after a collective protest by Chinese students. In reporting, a scholar interviewed by the Australian newspaper accused students of inciting "nationalist sentiment", saying schools could not tolerate such "bullying" of teaching staff and should safeguard academic freedom. There seems to be a little bit of "China" on Australian campuses recently, with the University of Melbourne and Monash University showing posters saying "No Chinese students", and the University of Sydney finding graffiti on the word "kill the Chinese." In the Australian media, voices about "Chinese espionage" and "interference by Chinese businessmen with Australia`s foreign policy" also appeared from time to time, giving people a feeling of an "unusual" atmosphere. What happened in Australia? Han Jingyi, a Chinese student at the University of Sydney, recounts her personal experience and observations during this period of time.
"it must be true. They must be spies."
One cold morning in October 2015, Canberra`s sky was still clear. A group of Australian anti-spies, armed with flashlights, crept into an empty apartment. They targeted Yan Shirley, a well-known local Chinese woman, whose husband was an Australian official with access to classified information. (ASIO), the Australian security intelligence organization, suspects Mr Yan of espionage for foreign countries for a long time.
Suddenly, in 2015, in front of a modern, designed building at Sydney University of Science and Technology, Zhou Ze-rong, a well-known Chinese businessman in Australia, was donating his own building for the inauguration of a school building named after him. At the ceremony, the Governor and a number of Australian dignitaries were invited to take a photo with the architects and dignitaries of the building.
The clips were produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation`s documentary channel Sijiao with media Fairfax: power and influence: how the Communist Party of China infiltrates Australia. Speaking of Australia`s sentiment towards China in recent times, the documentary has to be mentioned. The film, which aired in June, "exposed" China`s infiltration of Australia`s political system through an example of four Chinese.
Before and after the documentary broadcast, the Australian media created a momentum to promote the film. The author didn`t pay much attention to it at first, but later found the documentary very popular. A local Australian classmate sent a video to the author asking, "is it true?" I communicate with a number of local students found that they have seen the film and believe in the contents. "it must be true, they must be spies," said one of the students, who worked in the local goverment department.
The author really saw the whole film, the first feeling is that some Australians are too careless. But the film is a good reflection of some of Australia`s current feelings towards China.
Australian media made the documentary out of concerns about the active political involvement of Chinese in Australia in recent years. In October 2015, after the alleged "social queen", Yan Shirley was arrested by New York police after the case of bribery of senior UN officials by private interests was revealed. The Australian security agency focused on her Chinese identity and decided to collect evidence that she and her husband were "spies".
In some people`s view, many of the rich Chinese businessmen in Australia have this suspicion. Zhou Ze-rong and another Chinese-born Huang Xiangmo were suspected by the Australian Security Intelligence Organization. Both are real estate developers, in Australia`s major party donations are generous. Some Australian scholars say that their "spending money on strength" will inevitably cause damage to Australia`s political system "; Others claim that "they form a political alliance with Beijing, wielding millions of political contributions from Australia`s major political parties to buy the road up, the sense of presence and the right to speak."
Observers of the Australian media can find that the term "China`s involvement in Australian politics" has been repeated over the past five years. With the number of Chinese in Australia and the amount of Chinese investment in Australia increasing, Australians are beginning to worry about the flow of Chinese capital and more so that the local political environment will be adversely affected. Every huge deal of money for Chinese businessmen in Australia, and every move by a Chinese-American celebrity with a green card, has alerted Australian intelligence.
In fact, some wealthy Chinese businessmen are involved in politics, and their political contributions are seen as a doorway to the upper class, more about private interests than the Australian media, where politicians are trying to magnify the "red attribute". The forced interpretation of the personal interests of businessmen as the influence exerted by China`s goverment is undoubtedly a bit of a catch-up.
"I`ve been in Australia for more than a decade, and I can`t count the racial discrimination I`ve seen."
If big deals and political donations from wealthy Chinese businessmen are only troubling a small number of Australian goverment staff, the growing number of Chinese has really made ordinary Australians feel a "threat" from China. According to census data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in June, the total population of Australia as of August 9, 2016, was 23.71 million, of whom more than 1.21 million were Chinese. In addition to English, which is the official language, Putonghua has become Australia`s second-largest language, with about 2.5 percent of Australians speaking Mandarin at home and 1.2 percent speaking Cantonese daily.
Chinese ethnic groups are concentrated on the southeast coast of Australia, especially Sydney and Melbourne. The higher proportion of the population is putting pressure on the local people in Australia. The Australian Daily Mail featured the headline "Welcome to Chinatown" on the front page, accompanied by pictures of the Sydney Opera House, satirizing that Sydney has been occupied by Chinese.
There is also a constant stream of Chinese who come to study abroad. China is the largest source of foreign students in Australia. According to the Australian Bureau of Education in 2017, there are one hundred and fifty thousand Chinese students studying in Australia, accounting for 30 percent of the total number of international students in Australia.
"ABS" is short for a teaching building at the University of Sydney Business School, but many local students call it "China Building." "really, what you see when you go in is almost all Asian faces, and a lot of students are speaking Mandarin. If it hadn`t been written in English, I would have thought I was in China. " Lauren, a native of Sydney, is currently a graduate student at the University of Sydney Business School. "the students in each class are basically Chinese, and it`s a wonderful feeling. I like my Chinese classmates very much. They are really hard-working and very friendly. "
Contrary to Lauren`s enthusiasm and kindness, too many Chinese students gave Madeleine, a native, a negative mood. "there are too many Chinese students. They take up their books in the study room and the library, but they don`t see anyone coming, and the toilets are full of their little ads. I agree that school should be a place where cultures can integrate and learn from each other, but some of their habits are hard for me to accept. " Madeleine refers to a variety of Chinese advertisements posted in the toilet of the business school building, including supplementary courses, contact information and QR codes for overseas immigration agents and shops.
"the local students have been very polite, and those who have no job are the worst." Nancy, who has got a green card, is helpless when it comes to what Australians think of the Chinese. Native to Guangdong, she emigrated to Australia in 2006 and now runs a gift shop in Sydney. "I`ve been in Australia for more than a decade, and I can`t count the racial discrimination I`ve seen. We are either accused of robbing Australians of their jobs or polluting the Australian environment. I sometimes don`t understand that everyone is emigrated, but they come first and then we arrive, and only the aborigines can be considered as real Australians! "
An Australian pollster conducted a survey of racial discrimination in 2016, and out of 22,000 15-to 19-year-olds interviewed, 1 / 3 said they had been subjected to injustice or racial discrimination. Chinese who speak Mandarin in their daily lives suffer the highest rate of discrimination, reaching 90%.
From all kinds of "China invasion" to "Sandwich Biscuit" among the Great Powers
Many Chinese in Australia have been subjected to racial discrimination, and I was twice cursed by locals on the streets of Sydney for no reason: "you Chinese are rubbish, get out of Sydney, get out of Australia!" Although Australian law strongly opposes racial discrimination and many legal institutions are willing to provide assistance to those who are victims of racial discrimination, the number of Chinese who truly stand up to it is still a minority.
"in terms of historical and cultural traditions, the Chinese are a very gentle nation. We don`t want to cause trouble, nor do we want it to be big. " Hu Ye (pseudonym), an experienced Chinese lawyer in Sydney, believes that many of the cases reflect the "white supremacy" mentality of Australians. "We have to bravely say no to racial discrimination and not be afraid of things," he said.
In my opinion, despite recent incidents of discrimination against Chinese people on Australian campuses, the survey found that local white extremists were responsible. It can be said that naked racial discrimination is still on a small scale. Outside the campus, most Australians are friendly to the Chinese people, but for a small number of people, there are more and more Chinese signs in public places. The so-called "China threat theory" has infiltrated into the lives of some people. For example, a real estate fair in July, in Sydney, a subway station, only Chinese advertising, which some people feel very uncomfortable, think of as a "cultural invasion."
Whether the Australian authorities are wary of Chinese businessmen and Chinese capital, or individual discrimination against Chinese, reflects the subtle changes in Sino-Australian relations. I note that after President Trump came to power, the relationship between the United States and Australia was a little tight because of his strong and unruly play. A poll by Australia`s Roy Institute for International Policy shows that about 60 percent of Australians believe some of Trump`s policies have created anti-American sentiment. Even so, more than 75 percent of respondents said the nearly 70-year alliance between the United States and Australia was important to Australia.
For another Asia-Pacific power, China, Australia`s diplomatic strategy is cautious. At the moment, Chinese investment has raised concerns in Australia`s goverment as authorities gradually tighten screening for foreign participation in infrastructure investment, especially in ports, near strategically important projects. Many Australians want to work with the Chinese, but the traditional US-Australia alliance has failed to materialize. While Australia`s infrastructure needs to be built in China, some sceptics of China`s rise remain unwary.
Australia is in a dilemma, watching China`s huge investment olive branch on the one hand and deterring the United States on the other. What kind of road should we take? there is a lot of debate in Australia and China. But what is certain is that in today`s globalized economy, if we have been afraid of China`s rise and influence and refused to cooperate, it will undoubtedly slow down or even stagnate its own development.
