About 10% of university students in Australia come from China (representation)
Beijing / Sydney:
China on Tuesday urged students abroad to think carefully before choosing Australia, citing a series of racist incidents targeting Asians during the COVID-19 pandemic and endangering Australia’s 12 billion dollars (8 , $ 3 billion) in fee income.
The Ministry of Education’s warning came days after the Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism advised citizens against traveling to Australia due to racial discrimination and violence resulting from the coronavirus epidemic , which first appeared in China in late 2019.
The Department of Education issued a statement advising international students “to do a good risk assessment and be careful when choosing whether to go to Australia or return to Australia to study”.
Australian Commerce Minister Simon Birmingham said Australia has processes in place to eliminate racism.
“We are a country that has zero tolerance (towards racism),” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. “Not zero incidents, I understand that, but I think the idea that Australia, in any way, is a dangerous destination for future visitors is one that does not stand up to the scrutiny.”
Relations between Australia and China have become strained since the Australian government proposed an international investigation into how the COVID-19 epidemic in China has become a global pandemic.
The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported on Sunday an investigation by the Per Capita think tank that had documented 386 racist incidents – ranging from abuse to physical intimidation and spitting – since April 2.
China has imposed tariffs on Australian barley imports and blocked some beef imports, although Beijing has denied its actions are linked to the COVID-19 dispute.
Australia has also spoken out on China’s proposed national security laws for Hong Kong, which critics say threaten freedom in the former British colony.
The Australian dollar tumbled further Tuesday on the warning of the Chinese Ministry of Education, falling 1% to $ 0.6951.
About 10% of university students in Australia are from China and provide industry with around A $ 12 billion a year.
Australian universities declined to comment on the warning, saying it belonged to the Australian and Chinese governments.
(This story has not been edited by GalacticGaming staff and is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)
