Go back to China: Clive Palmer's tirade

CLIVE Palmer has been recorded lashing out in angry, expletive-laden tirades of abuse against executives of one of China's largest companies.

CLIVE Palmer has been recorded lashing out in angry, expletive-laden tirades of abuse against executives of one of China's largest companies, which is spending more than $7 billion in Australia.

In one of the recorded rants, obtained by The Australian, the resources tycoon and prime ministerial aspirant twice instructed an executive of CITIC Pacific to "tell your chairman to stick it up his arse".

Mr Palmer, who describes himself to Australian voters as a lifelong friend of China with deep and respectful relationships, told the executive: "I've had enough of you, so just pack up all your f . . king gear and get back to China."

In the same recording, dated 2010 and now on The Australian's website, Mr Palmer added: "You people give me the shits. And if you continue to not pay your way we are going to throw you off to the point where we close your project down.

"I'm chairman of this f . . king company, and I don't want to ring up little shits like you because you won't pay your bloody, your bloody rates or pay your rent."

The Australian has been told that the highest levels of China's political leadership have received reports of Mr Palmer's antics, including yelling and swearing at Chinese executives of CITIC Pacific, part of parent company CITIC Group. The state-owned CITIC Group, China's international investment arm, which was founded with the blessing of China's former leader Deng Xiao Ping, is one of the world's largest companies.

Mr Palmer's company, Mineralogy, is litigating against the Chinese companies in Western Australia's Supreme Court over the royalties he claims he is owed from an iron ore reserve in the Pilbara. Leaked correspondence shows that Mr Palmer's public claims of receiving royalty payments of $500 million a year from CITIC are false.

The Australian sought comment yesterday from Mr Palmer, who has pledged to field candidates representing his Palmer United Party in 150 seats for the upcoming federal election, and from CITIC Pacific.

Mr Palmer was asked about his tirades against Chinese executives and, allegedly, his own staff.

Mr Palmer replied by text message with a reference to News Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch, publisher of The Australian, "Did u (sic) listen to the tape of Murdoch he seems to be abusive of the police?" he asked.

Mr Palmer sent a further message in which he did not deny abusing Chinese executives and his staff but rejected any suggestion of racist overtones. His text stated "there has never been any action against me personally for the matters which you speak".

Mr Palmer's text added: "It's completely untrue that I am in any way racist I judge people on their performance good or bad regardless of race I don't have nor have I ever has (sic) a racist complaint against me unlike the complaints that have been lodged against your employer. All Australians are protected by Australian law, this is just another attempt by The Australian to give us national prominence."

A CITIC spokesman declined to comment on the taped message but said the company's staff "always aim to communicate with external parties in a professional and respectful manner".

CITIC Pacific has so far spent more than $7bn developing the Pilbara iron ore project. The project is China's biggest investment in Australia but it is a source of embarrassment because of costly budget blowouts, missed deadlines, and disputes with Mr Palmer, who sold CITIC the right to mine.

Lawyers for Mr Palmer, who has launched defamation proceedings against The Australian, persuaded a Supreme Court judge last week that the newspaper should not see key documents filed in the royalties legal dispute. Lawyers for CITIC Pacific did not object to the media having broad access to most of the material in the sensitive documents.

Mr Palmer's story about his relationship with China has deep roots going back to his childhood.

He has told journalists and the ABC's Australian Story that as a boy in the early 1960s he went with his father, a former radio broadcaster, to meet the last emperor of China, Pu Yi, and that he sat on the knee of Mao Zedung, the founding father of the People's Republic of China.

Mr Palmer now offers advice to Australians who want to be successful in business with China, saying it comes down to communicating properly and striving to "build friendship, trust or things that really matter in life". He has also called on politicians "to be fair and treat the Chinese people and Chinese government with the dignity they deserve".

However, Mr Palmer said last year that he sometimes regretted his outbursts. "I do say some terribly infuriating things. I say, 'Did I really say that?' when I go home and think about it."

While Chinese executives have incurred his wrath in private, insiders employed by Mr Palmer claim the tycoon has also directed crude abuse at his staff.

In a March legal letter, sent on behalf of Mr Palmer to the leadership of CITIC Pacific, the tycoon, who claims to be a multi-billionaire, sought an urgent $200m from the Chinese. Mr Palmer's letter said their commercial disputes could be resolved by working together "in a friendly manner based on mutual respect and understanding".

"If in the course of the conflicts that have developed since the execution of the documents any CITIC party or any of their directors, officers or employees have been given reason to feel aggrieved in relation to any matter, then Mineralogy sincerely regrets this and apologises for any misunderstanding," the letter says.