Chinese students reject Beijing’s ‘political’ racism claim

The government has formally protested to Beijing over its claims of racism, as Chinese nationals downplayed the allegations.

University of Sydney law students Clement Decheng Sun and Abbey Shi. Picture: Chris Pavlich

The Morrison government has formally protested to Beijing over its claims Australia is too dangerous for its tourists and students, as Chinese nationals already here downplayed allegations of racism.

Australian diplomats in Beijing told Chinese officials there was no evidence of an increase in racist ­attacks against Asians in Australia, as colleagues in Canberra delivered the same message to the Chinese embassy.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham were unable to challenge the ruling themselves because their Chinese counterparts refuse to take their calls.

China advised its students on Tuesday to reconsider studying in Australia — a move that threatens $12bn a year in economic activity — after earlier warning its tourists to stay away as well.

Beijing blamed an increase in racist attacks in Australia, but the advice followed warnings of economic reprisals over Australia’s push for an independent inquiry into the coronavirus pandemic.

Senator Birmingham said he acknowledged there were “instances of racism” that occurred in Australia, which he condemned.

But he said racism was “not tolerated in Australia”, and agencies such as the Australian Human Rights Commission enforced a zero-tolerance approach.

“This is a far higher standard than most other countries live to, and that is why I am so confident that there is no validity at all to a suggestion that Australia is an ­unsafe destination for visitors or students to come to,” Senator Birmingham told the ABC.

Many Chinese students on the Weibo social media platform pushed back against the Chinese government’s advice, declaring “racists are in the minority”.

“Most Australians are friendly,” one wrote. “It’s just politics,” wrote another. A third Weibo user posted: “This is just a game between nations … A kind of suppression of the Australian edu­cation and tourism industry.”

 

University of Sydney law student Clement Decheng Sun told The Australian he expected Chinese students would ultimately ­ignore Beijing’s warnings against studying in Australia.

“I’m not sure how many students will follow the advice. I would have confidence in the Australian education system,” he said.

“It has its flaws but the system is generally a good one. And it is much cheaper than the US or Europe.”

Fellow law student Abbey Shi said there had been an uptick in racism but Chinese families would be more concerned by the lack of ­financial support available for students in Australia who had lost their jobs during the pandemic.

“I haven’t been personally shouted at. But I’m definitely aware of racist incidents and often there are subtle acts of racism against Chinese nationals in Australia,” she said.

“I have felt very supported by my community and by the University. But we haven’t had much support from the government - we can’t get JobSeeker or JobKeeper.

“Chinese families will look at the lack of systemic support and that will concern them the most.”

Archer Zhang, 22, who was scheduled to start a masters of commerce degree at the University of Sydney in February, said she had decided against studying in Australia.

“I’m not going there,” she told The Australian.

She said she and her parents had decided to give up her valid Australian visa and she would seek to study in Britain. “Students (in Australia) are just treated as walking ATMs,” she said.

A 2018 Department of Education survey found 95 per cent of all foreign students in Australia nominated safety and security among their top five reasons for studying in Australia.

Universities Australia chief executive Catriona Jackson said she was confident any racist attack against a foreign student would be handled seriously by colleges and police. “Australia is one of the safest places in the world — and Australian universities are committed to making it even safer,” she said.

“Any violent act is taken very seriously and reported to the police.”

Additional reporting: Heidi Han