Government vows action on foreign interference after alleged Chinese harassment at Tiananmen Square vigil
Participants at the Perth memorial were questioned and photographed by alleged Chinese officials.
Western Australia’s Premier has expressed concern over the alleged recent harassment of pro-democracy supporters by Chinese officials in Perth, while the Albanese government insists it will continue to stamp out threats of foreign interference.
The Nightly has revealed that several participants at a June 4 night-time vigil commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre were photographed and questioned by officials believed to be working for the local Chinese consulate.
Organisers of the event have formally reported the activity to federal authorities, including apparent threats made to one attendee’s family in China, but the Chinese embassy has so far not responded to questions about the incident.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“I’ve read with some concern the reports in relation to that. Obviously, I haven’t had the opportunity to verify those claims, but Western Australia is a great place to live, it’s based upon Western democratic values,” WA Premier Roger Cook said on Wednesday.
“That is, everyone has the right to free speech and a right to freedom of expression. We want to protect that, and it includes the right to protest,” the Premier told reporters when asked about the incident.
The Federal Minister for Emergency Management Kristy McBain, who oversees the National Security Hotline, says all reports received by the service are dealt with properly.
“I haven’t received a briefing on that at this stage, but obviously any reports made through the National Security Hotline are taken seriously and dealt with through the appropriate agency. If there are any concerns there, they will be reported to the correct Minister,” she said.
“I think we’ve been really clear that as a government we will make decisions in the Australian interest. We’re not going to be deterred by foreign actors,” the Minister said at an event in Canberra to launch the new national messaging system, AusAlert.
“We’ve already seen that with our government expelling the Iranian ambassador earlier in our term because of the interference that the Australian Federal Police and our national security agencies identified, obviously, in the actions that they purported to have taken with attacks on a range of Jewish businesses and synagogues.”
“We’ll continue to take actions that are in the Australian interest and we’ll always protect Australia’s security,” she added.
Western Australia’s Police Force has not commented on last week’s incident, but Police Minister Paul Papalia has condemned the alleged behaviour of consulate staff.
“Look, it’s totally unacceptable that any foreign nation and you know, officials from any foreign nation, to harass Australian citizens in Australia. It shouldn’t happen,” he told reporters.
Last week on the 37th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, the Australian Consulate-General in Hong Kong paid tribute online to the hundreds of protesters killed during Beijing’s brutal crackdown.
“Today, we stand with communities worldwide in remembering those who lost their lives at Tiananmen Square on 4 June 1989,” the consulate posted online.
“Australia remains steadfast in its commitment to upholding human rights, including freedom of association, of expression, and of political participation.”
Earlier this year two Chinese nationals were charged with alleged foreign interference, accused of covertly collecting information about a Buddhist group, on behalf of Beijing’s security services.
The alleged activity which occurred in Canberra was the second instance of Chinese nationals being charged under foreign interference laws that Australia introduced in 2018.
ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess has repeatedly warned that foreign interference remains one of Australia’s principal security concerns.
“A complex, challenging and changing security environment is becoming more dynamic, diverse and degraded,” Mr Burgess said in February.
Six years ago, Perth’s Chinese consulate was also accused of monitoring and recording an anti-Beijing rally held outside Western Australia’s Parliament House, as part of the first public commemoration of the Tiananmen Square massacre to be held in the state.
