The censors in Beijing are extending their reach and what you may say in Australia about China will be the decisive factor in whether an entry visa will be granted, Two government members of the Federal parliament have had entry refused. China demands that they need to " repent and redress their mistakes " before they will be granted visas to visit that country.
The two members of parliament barred from China are Liberal Andrew Hastie and Senator James Patterson. Mr Hastie is the chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security and what has offended Beijing is an opinion piece he published in the Sydney Morning Herald in August in which he likened the world approach to containing China to the failure to prevent the rise of Nazi Germany.
Senator Patterson has warned of Communist Party interference in Australian universities. Both banned members of parliament were part of a delegation titled " China Matters " to tour China and speak to both the government and the Chinese people. This delegation included members of the Labor party who have not been included in the ban.
It is evident that Mr Hastie's raising of the plight of China's Uyghur population in parliament has raised the Communist party ire. Mr Hastie is adamant that he will not change his approach. He was elected by Australian citizens to represent our values and interests, and that's pretty straight forward. Senator Patterson describes China's decision as " disturbing ".
This seems to be part of the enigma that is China today. When Communism took hold in the Soviet Union it led to the " iron curtain " in which Russia restricted contact with the rest of the world Even radio broadcasts were jammed to isolate the Russian population from any form of contact. In contrast, Chinese people can obtain passports and are free to travel the world, but what they say and do in their own country is tightly restricted. China has adopted a capitalist trading economy with the Communist ideological approach of restrictions on what its citizens may say or think. Step out of line in China and you end up in a gulag.
It seems that China's emergence as one of the worlds great trading nation is enabling it to flex its muscles in trying to damp down criticism abroad. It is trying to curb free speech in Australia by using visas as the entry gateway and that invites a tit for tat response. Don't be surprised if Australia puts obstacles in the way of highly placed Chinese officials visiting this country.
It is a clear warning to Australian citizens thinking of visiting China. A visa is needed to both enter - and exit the country. Exit restrictions could easily come into force unexpectedly if that suited the machinations of the mandarins in Beijing !
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