Beijing influence puts integrity of our institutions at risk

OPINION

• The Australian
• 12:00AM November 30, 2017

PAUL MALEY

• National Security Editor
• Sydney
• @paul_maley

Beijing’s interference in Australian public life is occurring at unprecedented levels and represents an emerging, if not already widespread, form of political corruption.

Last month, ASIO warned it risked being overwhelmed by the scale of the foreign interference threat, which had moved beyond traditional espionage and morphed into a wider assault on Australia’s institutions.

“(ASIO has) identified foreign powers clandestinely seeking to shape the opinions of members of the Australian public, media organisations and government officials in order to advance their country’s own political objectives,’’ the agency wrote in its annual report.

Much of the focus has been on the relationship between a handful of wealthy Chinese and the major political parties, but at the local level the situation is no less troubling.

Candidates linked to the Chinese Communist Party have run at state and local elections. That might not seem particularly consequential, but many a stellar political career has begun with a council stint.

It is an open secret in the Chinese community that the Chinese government monitors dissent and brings pressure to bear on local politics. It does this via the plethora of Chinese community groups, 90 per cent of which now adopt a pro-Beijing line. There is no such thing as diversity in the Chinese language media any more; almost all Chinese newspapers have been brought to heel.

What is at stake is not so much Australia’s secrets but the integrity of its institutions. If Australia’s politic is awash with foreign money, if its parliaments are studded with agents of influence, if its tertiary sector is beholden to overseas money, if debate within the Chinese diaspora is stifled by fear, the effect will be corrosive.

Naturally, Beijing will seek to further its political, economic and strategic interests any way it can. All countries do this, although few do it as intrusively as China. The onus is on Australia to protect its institutions and to draw a line somewhere in that liminal space between legitimate soft-power diplomacy and interference in the sovereign affairs of another state.

A ban on foreign donations and a registry of foreign agents would be a good start. Alas, a similar scheme in the US has proved very difficult to police.

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The difficulty in policing foreign influence is that many Chinese within Australia are, in effect, forced to tow the Beijing line or risk far reaching repercussions. Very little seems to be said on this subject but much is inferred. Perhaps if we start enforcing Australian road rules at least one aspect of our infrastructure will be supported. Many Chinese new to Australia ignore the rules or even drive without a license. And I thought Aussie concepts of customer service were mediocre at best. With few exceptions, workplaces seem to be run with little or no regard for customers or their staff. Tyrannical in some instances. When I asked a Chinese friend of mine why there isn't a lot of focus on cleanliness in the workplace or at home he said "There's no time! Too busy making a living." One of the redeeming virtues of Chinese culture is appreciation and respect for family and the loyalty of friends. If Australia's Australian-ness is to survive the onslaught of Chinese influence then let's start doing what 'they' do: Value family and the Australian way of life. Current infrastructure, it seems, is being whittled away to a point where it can no longer reflect or support this.