Espionage Bills in Australia Stir Fears of Anti-Chinese Backlash<br />"We’re in a position now where people are running scared." Australia has been thrown into turmoil over allegations<br />that China is trying to buy its politicians and sway its elections, charges that have led to increased scrutiny of the rising superpower’s efforts to influence Australia — and fears that a campaign to stamp out Chinese influence risks becoming a McCarthy-esque witch hunt.<br />Mr. White said that We don’t really know how to think about China because it’s not an ally but it’s not an enemy,<br />He and several other prominent critics of China said<br />that at the very least, the law would deter China from pressuring Chinese students at Australian universities, and from using proxies to influence politics with donations.<br />But a thunderous backlash has now erupted — with a public outcry condemning anyone accused of links to Chinese influence, and a series of new bills<br />that would strengthen espionage laws, outlaw foreign political donations and criminalize efforts to interfere in Australian democracy.<br />These efforts have intensified under President Xi Jinping, who seems to view Australia — which has benefited greatly<br />from trade with China — as a laboratory for efforts to sway opinion abroad and increase China’s global influence.<br />"There’s been a head of steam built up around this, and it’s not too far from a moral panic." Mr. White and others say<br />that the suspicions about China and Chinese-Australians reflect broader anxieties about an emerging geopolitical reality: The United States has become less reliable, while China plays an increasingly dominant role in both Australia’s economy and its changing demographics.
