Mainlanders have right to defend country
Editor’s Note:
Universities in the West have always encouraged freedom of speech among students. But lately there seems to be a tendency of extreme speech in Western campuses. Viewpoints which are not in line with Western interests are being increasingly suppressed. As riots in Hong Kong are still ongoing, some proHong Kong secession activists are also sowing chaos in some Western universities. But when some Chinese mainland students defended China’s stance, they were lashed. What caused this? Two Chinese students studying in Australia shared their views and experiences with the Global Times.
Tan Ran, a Chinese graduate student at the University of Melbourne
The New York Times published an article titled “Chinese Nationalists Bring Threat of Violence to Australia Universities” recently, accusing “Chinese nationalists” of “disrupting pro-Hong Kong democracy rallies at the University of Queensland.” Most Chinese students studying in Australia think the report is ridiculous.
In my opinion, instead of offering a balanced coverage, the report aims at distorting the facts, pandering to Western stance and misleading public opinion.
For example, it said a “scuffle broke out” at the University of Auckland in New Zealand and “three Chinese men were filmed shouting down students from Hong Kong” and “pushing a young woman to the ground.”
However, the video of this incident has spread among overseas Chinese students: The young woman was pretending not to understand Chinese. She fell down with a light touch of another person.
In fact, since the opposition to the proposed amendments of Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation Ordinance began in Hong Kong in June, there have been huge disputes among overseas students. Such disputes extended to campuses in Western countries including Germany and the US. For example, there are posters advocating Hong Kong secession in German universities. But when Chinese students put up posters that support Hong Kong police, some Western media outlets hinted the protesters might have been encouraged by the Communist Party of China.
There is a paradoxical phenomenon: In some Western countries, opposing China represents freedom of speech, but expressing viewpoints not in line with Western interests does not. As long as some Chinese students voice their objections to Hong Kong secession, they are regarded nationalists. Don’t they enjoy freedom of speech?
Of the pro-Hong Kong secession activists in foreign universities, some are only following the trend, some are others’ pawns, and some blindly pursue so-called freedom of speech while taking away others’ right of having a voice.
In Australian universities, many foreign students are also supporting the so-called pro-Hong Kong democracy rallies.
Some foreign students do not care about right or wrong. Many foreigners and Western countries have already decided their position: Everything that relates with China represents mistakes and even autocracy. Their prejudice and narrow-mindedness are shocking.
Political correctness, which often implies an anti-China stance in Western campuses, is squeezing the room for freedom of speech.
Rebecca Xu, a Chinese undergraduate student based in Brisbane, Australia
I have been studying in Australia for three years. Some Australians harbor prejudice against China’s territorial integrity and directly or indirectly support secessionists of Hong Kong or Taiwan. They believe China is a pathetic country because the government controls people’s minds and actions, which of course is far from the truth.
Apart from the media coverage, Hong Kong and Taiwan residents studying or working in Australia are distorting the truth about Hong Kong and Taiwan being parts of China. This deepens Australian misunderstanding on China.
China is both Australia’s and New Zealand’s biggest trade partner. But when reporting these incidents, most of the local media have also taken sides with the protesters, and have been sneering at the Chinese mainland students’ viewpoints. Westerners believe the freedom of speech of Hong Kong protesters should be protected. But why do they regard the Chinese mainland students’ expression to defend their country nationalism? Is this discrimination?
As China-Australia bilateral relationship is at a low point, Australian media and universities should strive to maintain an environment for rational discussion and tolerate diversity of viewpoints. Unfortunately, it seems they have failed to do their job.