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A top British university has been accused of tolerating Chinese interference after hosting a meeting with the Chinese ambassador and telling students to uphold Xi Jinping’s teachings and serve the “motherland”. I can be revealed.
China’s ambassador to the UK, Zheng Zeguang, met with a number of university leaders during a tour of UK campuses last year, but details of the meetings have not been made public in the UK.
Mr Zheng, who was summoned to the Foreign Office on Monday to explain allegations of large-scale infiltration by the Chinese state, was invited to convene in summer 2023 under the auspices of York University, Birmingham University and Leeds University.
None of the universities appear to have shared details of the event on their official websites or UK social media. But they posted glowing reports about the meeting on Chinese social media pages and allowed Chinese state media to film the event. I can be revealed.
I There is evidence that the Chinese ambassador has also visited a number of other British universities on official trips over the past two years, but the details have been hidden from British media.
This comes despite Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden telling the House of Commons on Monday that the government was “working hard to protect our people”. [British] Keep universities away from the influence of the Chinese Communist Party.
The government’s free speech czar Arif Ahmed also announced on Tuesday that British universities could be ordered to break agreements with foreign countries such as China if free speech and academic freedom are undermined. .
but I It has emerged that during a visit to the universities of York and Birmingham last summer, the Chinese ambassador met with Chinese students and called on them to serve China and “heed Xi’s teachings”.
Sir Iain Duncan Smith, former Conservative Party leader and leading China hawk, said: “It shows very clearly how dependent British universities are on China at the moment.”
“They rolled out the red carpet for him so he could come and virtually lecture to Chinese students who were attending the university,” he said.
“[It] This goes against the idea that all students should be free to enjoy the normal freedoms of university life without government interference.
“Wouldn’t it be pretty strange if the British government were to send ambassadors to students abroad and tell them they should act like British citizens?…Our universities are completely We are on China’s side.”
York University, which has approximately 3,000 Chinese students, received a report from the Chinese ambassador’s visit to prospective students from Beijing in July last year, as well as Mr. Zheng’s presentation of a gift from Vice-Chancellor Charlie Jeffrey. The photo was published.
York University wrote in Mandarin on its official admissions page on WeChat, one of China’s most popular social media apps, that Jeffrey “welcomes Ambassador Zheng Zeguang and his delegation” and welcomed more from China. He said he is looking forward to accepting many students.
It added: “During his visit, Ambassador Zheng also visited Chinese students studying at York University and encouraged them all to heed General Secretary Xi Jinping’s passionate teachings, uphold patriotism and serve the country.”
The same photos, quotes and details of the meeting are published verbatim on the Chinese ambassador’s page on the Chinese government website, but are not available on York University’s UK social media.
This comes despite York University publishing details of its meetings with other foreign delegations on its official UK website, including the visit of German Ambassador to the UK Miguel Berger last December. did.
A spokesperson for York University said: “As a university that collaborates in research and education in 51 countries and attracts students from 150 countries, we regularly host visiting international dignitaries.” said.
The government is under increasing pressure from senior MPs to formally designate China as a ‘threat’ amid growing concerns that China poses a serious national security concern to the UK.
MPs and colleagues on the Parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) said last year that China was attempting to “monitor and control the behavior of Chinese students” through a network of more than 90 Chinese student and academic associations at British universities. He reported that he is actively trying. Chinese embassy.
The University of Birmingham, which currently has around 7,000 Chinese students, hosted the Chinese ambassador last summer and was allowed to meet with Chinese students enrolled at the university.
Details of the conference were published on the WeChat page of the University of Birmingham’s Chinese Students and Academics Association, but not elsewhere.
According to the visit report posted on the Chinese government’s website, Zheng told the Chinese students, “Heeding the leadership of President Xi Jinping, continuing the glorious tradition of serving the motherland, and creating new ways to live, We should aim to become the next generation.” We will fulfill our great responsibility in this new era. ”
The ambassador also urged Chinese students at the University of Birmingham to “adhere to the ideal of serving the nation and dedicate themselves to the cause of China’s modernization and national rejuvenation. [and] With love and aspirations for our country, we will continue to maintain an enterprising spirit and promote China’s development. ”
The Chinese ambassador’s official website claimed that the students were “deeply inspired” by his words.
A University of Birmingham spokesperson said the university continues to “protect freedom of speech within the limits of the law and actively encourage discussion, debate and sharing of different opinions and points of view”.
“Some Chinese students contacted the Chinese embassy directly and asked for an opportunity to meet with the ambassador outside of the university visit program,” they added.
The University of Leeds also hosted Ambassador Zheng last summer, where he met with Professor Simone Buitendijk, Vice-Chancellor of the University, and Chinese students enrolled at the University. Although the British university does not appear to have released details of the visit, the Chinese ambassador published a report of the meeting on a Chinese government website, and Chinese state media were also welcomed to the event.
A video posted on China’s state-run news site China News Service showed Ambassador Zheng urging Chinese students to “contribute to the motherland” during the visit.
Details of the event were also published on the WeChat page of Leeds University’s Chinese Students and Academics Association, which featured a video address by Consul General Tang Rui, an official of the Chinese Communist Party, to Chinese students at the university.
Louis spoke directly to “students and parents.” [and] Please vigorously advance the glorious tradition of studying abroad to serve your country. ”
The University of Leeds declined to comment.
President Xi Jinping’s government has been accused of ordering a brutal crackdown on Chinese dissidents abroad, raising concerns that the Chinese Communist Party is monitoring students at British universities.
A parliamentary ISC report in July last year raised serious concerns about Chinese influence in UK universities.
The report said there was a “culture of fear and suspicion among Chinese students in the UK” and urged “institutions, academics and students to discourage engagement with topics that undermine the positive narrative presented by the Chinese Communist Party.” The pressure is on,” he warned.
Experts are also growing concerned that British universities are becoming more reliant on overseas funding after domestic tuition fees remain frozen for most of 11 years. Chinese students make up the largest number of overseas students at UK universities, with more than 120,000 currencies registered, more than in all other European countries combined.
Professor Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at SOAS University of London, who gave extensive evidence to the ISC report, said recent revelations about the Chinese ambassador appeared to undermine students’ academic freedom.
“The crux of the issue is how university authorities choose to work with China’s top diplomats who impose the political obligations of a foreign government on students on campus,” he said. I.
“We treat students the same no matter where they come from, which means we have a duty of care to international students in the same way that we treat our own students. When a country is under pressure from a foreign government, appropriate steps should be taken to prevent it from happening again.”
Professor Tsang added that British universities appear to be bowing to political pressure from diplomats and are “not adequately fulfilling their obligations to protect academic independence and integrity”.
I It can be revealed that Mr Chung has also visited the University of Ulster and the University of Edinburgh in the past two years. Neither man announced the meeting on official channels.
A spokesperson for Ulster University said: ‘While we host visits from a variety of ambassadors from around the world, including ambassadors from Thailand, Poland and the United States, we do not always share these visits on social media.
“International visits like this in no way undermine our commitment to protecting academic freedom.
“This special visit was to meet students who are being taught Chinese through Confucius Institutes, so the delegation met with a variety of students from all over the world.” [Northern Ireland] These are people studying Chinese at primary, secondary and further education universities and Ulster University. ”
The University of Edinburgh declined to comment.
Growing concerns about China
China’s interference in the UK comes after the government announced on Monday that it was believed to be behind two major cyberattacks in the UK that targeted MPs and the Electoral Commission. Concerns are growing.
Mr Ahmed, who was appointed by Rishi Sunak last year as the government’s first free speech czar, also said on Tuesday that universities with close ties to foreign countries “could raise free speech concerns”.
He said the higher education watchdog could ask universities to “terminate” or “rewrite” their agreements with foreign countries if it appeared that students’ free speech was being restricted.
Mr Ahmed’s department, the Office of Student Affairs (OfS), last year warned some universities that their relationship with China had significantly increased due to major global events, mainly believed to be linked to Chinese nationals. It said it had sent a letter asking for contingency plans to be put in place in case the situation worsens. Invasion of Taiwan.
A government spokesperson said: “Our approach to engaging strongly and directly with China is in the UK’s national interests.
“We are aware of concerns about foreign interference with universities and are therefore considering how we can support academic departments to ensure the safety of research.
“We will continue to take steps to significantly strengthen the UK’s protection from foreign interference in our higher education sector and contribute to the protection of intellectual property and sensitive research.”
The Chinese ambassador has been contacted for comment.