It is a matter of record that the platform has stopped the Prime Minister’s access, while Anthony Albanese’s account is still active featuring posts criticising the government. SYDNEY - Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison 's Liberal Party lost access to his official WeChat social media account months ago, politicians said on Monday (Jan 24), issuing claims of censorship, while the still-active account being run by a new Chinese controller now promotes Chinese life in Australia. From a report: Australian politicians said Morrison's. The removal of Prime Minister Scott Morrison from the social media site WeChat is deeply disappointing and raises serious concerns of political interference. Australia PM Morrison loses control of WeChat Chinese account as election looms. In the 2020 incident, a note appeared from WeChat saying the content violated regulations, including distorting historical events and confusing the public. A little-known Chinese technology company that took over a WeChat social media account set up for Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Monday it wanted to buy an account with a large fanbase in Australia, and was unaware it was his. (Refiles to correct spelling of ‘minister’ in paragraph 1) By Kirsty Needham and Eduardo Baptista. In December 2020 the Scott Morrison WeChat account was temporarily blocked amid a political dispute between Canberra and Beijing over an image of an Australian soldier in Afghanistan. Australia PM Morrison loses control of WeChat Chinese account as election looms In December 2020 the Scott Morrison WeChat account was temporarily blocked amid a political dispute. The politicians claimed the move represented censorship amid growing diplomatic tensions between Canberra and Beijing with a national election to be held in. He is desperate for the Chinese vote as the election looks like its going to be close, and since a lot of Chinese in Australia do use Wechat, it makes political sense for him to do this. “Any account set up in this way can be shut down at a moment’s notice,” he said. “Yet they can still gain access to critiques of the government, attacks on the government by the (Labor) Opposition Leader,” he added.įergus Ryan, senior analyst with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said having the Prime Minister’s WeChat account registered under the name of a Chinese citizen was “always risky and ill-advised,” and appeared to be a breach of WeChat rules. With a national election due by May, the government would have aimed to use the Morrison account to promote its policies during the Chinese New Year celebrations starting February 1. “There’s 1.2 million Australians of Chinese descent who overwhelmingly use this service and now can no longer access news and information from their Prime Minister,” he said on Australian radio on Monday. Liberal Senator James Paterson, Chair of Parliament’s Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, told media the incident was an example of “censorship” and “foreign interference.” This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |