Embracing China involves risks for Australia

Officers of the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS), China’s largest external and internal intelligence organisation, may make up a significant propotion of the 1,000. In Embassies and Consulates overseas officially accredited security liaison officers may well be MSS and work in co-operation with local security services. Another stream might be covert officers under diplomatic cover. The majority of MSS officers may operate outside of Embassies and Consulates. In what is now the immediate runup to the Olympics in August MSS officers would be gathering information and intimidating Tibetan seperatists and Falun Gongs members more intensively.

The exchange over the presence of the Chinese torch attendants is a further example of the Federal Government keeping us in the dark.

On the surface Rudd and Jon Stanhope were forced to bow to Chinese pressure allowing the blue track-suited attendants to run near the torch. Rudd and Stanhope were hoping that the Chinese might be prepared to reinterpret a legal agreement on the role of the torch attendants drafted by the Beijing Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games (BOCOG) and probably signed by the ACT Government.

The existence of these torch relay agreements became apparent in a report by the BBC of April 22, 2008. A signed legal agreement between BOCOG and the Greater London Authority (GLA) had among other things identified the security status of torch attendants. As BOCOG negotiates standard agreements with all countries hosting the torch relay, or participating in the Olympics, it is highly likely that the ACT Government or Federal Governments agreed to the status of the torch attendants many months ago. Rudd and Stanhope made bold declarations of no torch attendants anywhere near the touch, but were legally caught out.

The Rudd Government’s decision to embrace China involves risks for Australia. It may have seen the Chinese demonstration as a success because only a few people were intimidated and jostled, but violence was averted only by the good graces of the Chinese Embassy. The ACT Police Force (who are all Federal Police) were stretched.

The ease with which a foreign embassy can mobilise thousands of students is cause for future concern. Their student protests might turn nasty by accident or design. Similarly security services should be finding the continuing intimidation of dissidents by Chinese agents in Australia needs much more investigation and hopefully some action.

Good trade is important but visiting students and foreign diplomats cannot be allowed to curtail the freedom of speech of others.