Chinese state media reports international university students face racism, cites UQ student Drew Pavlou as ‘rioter’
Chinese state media has cited a University of Queensland student who says they experience abuse on campus, while targeting student activist Drew Pavlou in an article justifying the government’s warning to students against travelling to Australia.
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CHINESE state media has quoted a University of Queensland student who says they experience abuse on campus, while labelling student activist Drew Pavlou an “anti-China Australian rioter” in an article justifying its Government warning students not to travel to Australia.
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The Global Times reported “dozens” of Chinese overseas students in Australia were witnessing a “surging number of media reports and social media posts about racist insults and attacks targeting Asians, especially Chinese”, with about one-third to have “experienced such abuse”.
The article also said a University of Queensland student surnamed Yang told the outlet that she recently experienced online and in-person abuse on campus.
“Anti-China news has been frequently seen on TV. We now choose to stay at home, and when I have to go outside and wear a mask, I avoid white people in case anything happens,” Yang said in The Global Times.
The University of Queensland relies on Chinese students for about 20 per cent of its revenue.
UQ Vice-Chancellor Professor Peter Høj said international students and the lifelong connections they made while in Australia enriched “our nation and theirs”.
“Australia is voted by international students as one of the safest places in the world to study,” he said.
“We must continue to live up to that reputation that is based on our values of respect and equality by ensuring that there is no place for racism on Australian university campuses.”
The Global Times referenced one of the allegations made about Mr Pavlou, labelling him an “anti-China rioter”, outlining an act for which he is accused of misconduct.
It recounts Mr Pavlou’s action earlier this year where he posted a photo of himself, dressed in a biosafety suit, outside the Confucius Institute at UQ.
“As a student representative it’s my job to keep UQ’s students safe – that’s why I have now placed the UQ Confucius Institute under total and complete lock down until biohazard risk contained!” Pavlou posted on Twitter at the time.
Mr Pavlou said it was the fourth time The Global Times has “condemned” him and was now receiving dozens of threats, including some death threats against him.
“The death threats terrify my family because these threats were made by someone living in Brisbane,” he said.
“So I went to the police station this morning and reported the threat and sought protection for my family.”
In responding to his actions at the Confucius Institute Mr Pavlou said it wasn’t about race.
“It wasn’t intended in any way to be commenting on ethnicity or race, it was simply mocking an arm of the Chinese state over government policies,” he said.
“I believe in the fundamental equality of all human beings, I believe Chinese lives are equal in value, dignity and worth to Australian lives and that’s why I fight against the Chinese Government’s human rights abuses.”
Originally published as Chinese state media reports international university students face racism, cites UQ student Drew Pavlou as ‘rioter’