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This is frightening. The veil is slowly being lifted on true multiculti. First Islam and Muslims, and now China and particularly Chinese Australians doing the work of their masters in the homeland.

“…Chinese residents in Australia number about one million, of whom one-third were born in China. There are also about 140,000 Chinese students being educated in our country. Although much of the older Chinese-Australian population is fully inte­grated and voices critical of the People’s Republic of China have not been silenced, there is increasing evidence of greater pro-PRC attitudes among a significant proportion of Chinese resident in Australia, and the Chinese language media is almost exclusively controlled by pro-Beijing groups.

This brings us to the attitudes of the large Chinese community in Australia and its increasingly strident pro-Chinese government point of view. Australian experts say they have never seen such overwhelmingly pro-PRC attitudes in the Chinese community in Australia.

There can be no doubt the Chinese embassy in Canberra pulls the strings in this regard and uses its cultural influence and threats of retribution to those who have families back in China, as was testified in 2005 by the diplomatic defector from the Chinese consulate in Sydney, Chen Yonglin. A particularly disturbing instance has been an open letter to the Australian government, dated August 6, from the Federation of the Chinese Associations of the ACT to the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister that expresses deep concern with the attitude of the Australian government towards the judgment of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague on the South China Sea. This letter regurgitates the stance of Beijing on this issue and ends up proclaiming “we are proud to be Australian citizens … yet we have strong feelings for our traditional homeland…”

Local allegiance to Beijing brings investment concern

FULL COLUMN BELOW

The debate about Chinese investment in Australia and the presence here of a large Chinese community raise serious questions about Chinese influence and intentions.

Accumulated Chinese investment in Australia still ranks far behind that of Britain, the US and Japan. But its present focus and pace are provoking concern about national security. We are the second largest recipient of Chinese direct investment in the world after the US across the past 10 years.

Last year almost half of China’s investment in Australia was by state-owned enterprises.

Chinese residents in Australia number about one million, of whom one-third were born in China. There are also about 140,000 Chinese students being educated in our country. Although much of the older Chinese-Australian population is fully inte­grated and voices critical of the People’s Republic of China have not been silenced, there is increasing evidence of greater pro-PRC attitudes among a significant proportion of Chinese resident in Australia, and the Chinese language media is almost exclusively controlled by pro-Beijing groups.

With regard to Chinese investment, there is a difference in attitude between Australia’s econ­omists and business people and security specialists. The former argue investment from China should be considered on an equal basis with that from the US, Britain and Japan. To quote former Reserve Bank deputy governor Stephen Grenville with regard to the Ausgrid tender, “Why would we allow US or British bidders yet reject one from China?” That is a surprisingly ill-informed view.

Fairfax Media columnist Brian Toohey argues China can use its presence in Australia to intercept our intelligence communications, but the US and Britain can do the same thing — so apparently there is no difference between the three of them as risks to our national security.

The deputy director of the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney provides a more thoughtful contribution by proposing a foreign investment approval process based on a negative list. Such assets might include roads, railways, bridges, gas pipelines, airports and maritime ports, as well as electricity generation, transmission and distribution, and telecommunications. This latter group is of particular concern to our intelligence agencies.

I agree with the recommendation by Peter Jennings, executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, that Foreign Investment Review Board recommendations involving sensitive national security issues should be elevated to the level of the national security committee of cabinet.

We need some clear understanding that the very different values of China and Australia make it difficult to treat China like any other investor in all circumstances. The fact China is a one-party communist state, lacks freedom of the press and independence of the judiciary, and has a dreadful human rights record cannot be swept under the carpet.

I do not accept the so-called moral equivalence arguments of those who argue we should balance condemnation of Chinese violations of human rights against its remarkable economic achievements and the benefits delivered to its people. It should not be so easy, in my view, to morally appease a one-party state that has at least as murderous a record towards its own citizens as the former Soviet Union. What sort of fitness does that bestow on China as an appropriate investment partner for us under all conditions?

This brings us to the attitudes of the large Chinese community in Australia and its increasingly strident pro-Chinese government point of view. Australian experts say they have never seen such overwhelmingly pro-PRC attitudes in the Chinese community in Australia.

There can be no doubt the Chinese embassy in Canberra pulls the strings in this regard and uses its cultural influence and threats of retribution to those who have families back in China, as was testified in 2005 by the diplomatic defector from the Chinese consulate in Sydney, Chen Yonglin. A particularly disturbing instance has been an open letter to the Australian government, dated August 6, from the Federation of the Chinese Associations of the ACT to the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister that expresses deep concern with the attitude of the Australian government towards the judgment of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague on the South China Sea. This letter regurgitates the stance of Beijing on this issue and ends up proclaiming “we are proud to be Australian citizens … yet we have strong feelings for our traditional homeland”.

As Rowan Callick observed in The Weekend Australian (Aug­ust 27-28) concerts were planned (now cancelled) for Sydney and Melbourne, sponsored by local Chinese business, to celebrate the life of Communist Party dictator Mao Zedong.

There are also allegations of donations made by Chinese businesspeople to state political parties. Callick is quite correct to query what’s happening within our Chinese community. The fact is, there are a considerable number of Chinese residents and students here who feel nostalgic about the People’s Republic and its ruling party. If that is so, we have a dangerous case on our hands with a group of people who are not integrating and who owe allegiance to a foreign power. Such a development risks fuelling further antagonistic attitudes in Australia towards foreign investment.

Paul Dibb is emeritus professor of strategic studies at the Australian National University.