policy & reform
campusreview.com.au
independence to write anything they
want”, Leibold remains concerned
about the ACRI, and that outfits like it
will proliferate throughout Australian
universities.
Australia’s first ambassador to China,
Stephen FitzGerald, seems to share this
view. Last year, he told the ABC that
‘Confucius’ institutes had no place in
Australian higher education institutions.
There are 10 Confucius Institutes in
Australian education institutions. The
University of Sydney’s was established
in 2008 “based on a partnership with
Fudan University, in collaboration with the
Office of the Chinese Language Council
International in China”.
It was scrutinised in 2013 when the
university cancelled an on-campus visit by
Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, for
fear of offending the Chinese government.
(China and Tibet have been engaged in a
sovereignty dispute since 1959.)
TOP-DOWN INVOLVEMENT
But the issue transcends university
departments. In fact, it goes all the way
up. Leibold thinks university leadership is
in a “very compromised” position due to
their institutions’ reliance on international
students – a majority of whom are Chinese
– for fees.
However, he also blames the government
for withdrawing university funding, leaving
them vulnerable to unquestionably
accepting this kind of money to meet their
mandates. The current trend for universities
to become more entrepreneurial, too,
exposes them to influence, including from
the CCP.
“We need to be very careful about who
we get into bed with,” he says.
UTAS’s Harrison, on the other hand,
more explicitly blames university
leadership for failing to prevent potential
Chinese influence. He cites their collusion
in the matter. “Although they are in a
difficult position, they certainly haven’t
communicated that … to people who work
in universities,” he says.
“For people who are working in Chinese
studies, it’s very isolating because you’re
dealing very closely with these issues all
We need to be very
careful about who we get
into bed with.
the time but you’re not being particularly
supported institutionally, even if you’re
trying to deal with them pragmatically
and realistically.”
In writing this piece, Campus Review
encountered much reticence to speak
on the record. This in itself indicates the
sensitivity of the issue in question, for both
academic staff and leadership. ■
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