Rita Panahi: Australia should be a refuge for those fleeing China’s tyranny

With China continuing to be a threat to the free world, Australia is morally obliged to provide asylum to Hong Kongers genuinely fleeing tyranny.

China is the biggest threat facing the free world and war with the superpower may be inevitable. That is the sobering assessment of Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo who, while not naming China, made it clear we must brace for war and prepare to send “our warriors to fight”.

Pezzullo, who is tipped to be the next Defence Department secretary, is not a man known for outlandish commentary and it’s highly unlikely he would’ve spoken about the existential threat China poses without ministerial approval.

In calling for the same sense of duty, resolve and preparedness “to face equivalent challenges” as the original Anzacs, he made it clear the Morrison government would steadfastly stand with our allies.

Pezzullo’s Anzac Day message to staff wasn’t about war mongering, but he cautioned we could not allow our natural aversion to war to come “at the cost of our precious liberty”.

The sad reality is conflict with China will be inevitable if Beijing makes a move against Taiwan.

Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo made it clear we must brace for war. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

If we don’t stand with Taiwan against the Chinese Communist Party, a dangerous precedent will be set.

Australia and its allies must also stand firm against Chinese aggression when it comes to acts of economic coercion. Whether it’s negotiating trade deals or investigating the origins of COVID-19, the West cannot allow China to divide and conquer.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton also admitted on Sunday Australia could not discount conflict with China over Taiwan.

“There is a high level of preparedness, as there should be, as there always will be, for our Australian Defence Force to meet the threats that we see in our region toward our country, against our allies,” he said.

Australia must also be prepared to offer asylum to those fleeing Hong Kong, and perhaps Taiwan, if China’s aggression intensifies.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has already pledged to give up to three million Hong Kong residents the chance to settle in the UK after China’s crackdown in mid-2020. The Australian government should make a similar offer.

I know what I’m proposing is not going to be wildly popular with the bulk of the Australian community, which in poll after poll has made it clear it wants migration numbers cut and cut dramatically.

Australia must be prepared to offer asylum to those fleeing Hong Kong if China’s aggression intensifies.

However, Big Australia is an unspoken policy backed by both major political forces and we stand to benefit greatly from taking the highest-calibre migrants in the world.

Migrants who will be lifters, not leaners. Migrants who are not only law-abiding, with crime rates well below the national average, but also highly educated, trained and productive.

People from Hong Kong are freedom-loving and understand the threat of tyranny. They will fight to preserve our freedoms better than many of the self-loathing, Marxist-loving, privileged miscreants born and bred here.

Australia has a moral obligation to provide asylum for those genuinely fleeing tyranny and we would be enriched by fulfilling this moral obligation for those who’ll soon flee Hong Kong.

We are already among the most generous nations when it comes to our humanitarian intake. Those coming from Hong Kong are unlikely to be a drain on welfare and their economic contribution would help address the issue of an ageing population.

An injection of productive, working-age taxpayers is just what we need post COVID.

TOXIC TEACHING

Parents are rightly appalled by the racist, regressive lunacy that their children are exposed to at Victorian schools — but they can’t be surprised.

This is cultural Marxism in action with its simplistic “oppressor and oppressed” narrative, it’s the culmination of the long march through the institutions that began decades ago.

The latest example saw year 11 boys at Parkdale Secondary College shamed for their gender, religion and skin colour during a talk last week on privilege and pronouns.

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