Australian College Student Faces Expulsion over Criticism of Communist China

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, a student at the University of Queensland is facing expulsion over his criticisms of the Chinese government and its influence over the university.

Student Drew Pavlou was subjected to a disciplinary hearing over accusations that he has violated university policy by engaging in various forms of criticism of both the Chinese government and the Universities of Queensland. The university has yet to announce whether or not they will punish Pavlou for his alleged transgressions.

Pavlou and his peers have been critical of an organization called the Confucius Institute that offers Chinese language and culture instruction for universities around the world. The organization, which is funded by the Chinese government, has been scrutinized by American lawmakers. In 2019, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) called for an investigation into the Confucius Institute’s influence on American campuses. Although many American universities and colleges have cut ties with the Confucius Institute, dozens of partnerships between the institute and American universities still exist.

Clive Hamilton, a professor at Charles Sturt University and the author of a book about China’s influence on Australia, claims that Australian universities are controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.

“I think that the top levels of the university [of Queensland] have essentially been groomed by Chinese Communist Party agents over the years and they have come to believe that their first objective is to keep Beijing happy. They’ve forgotten what a Western university should stand for,” Hamilton said. “The level of contact between the two is at a minimum unseemly, and really quite improper,” he said.