Chinese ambassador to Australia Zhang Junsai (章均賽) wrote to Labor backbencher Michael Danby urging against his attendance at a pro-Tibet rally, saying it was meant to “tarnish the image of the Chinese government and impair China-Australia relations,” an Australian official said.
Foreign Minister Stephen Smith congratulated Danby for “politely” resisting the request.
“For myself, I think Mr Danby made the right decision and I support him fully,” Smith told reporters.
PHOTO: EPA
“A diplomat is not entitled to somehow seek to direct an elected official or an elected Member of Parliament in how he or she might conduct himself or herself,” he said. “They’re entitled to put a view, but they’re not entitled to try and seek to direct.”
Pro-Tibet protesters tried to break through a police line guarding the Chinese embassy yesterday as they gathered in Canberra to mark the 50th anniversary of a failed uprising against China.
A dozen activists tried to breach the line during the march in support of Tibetan independence and there was a heated exchange between demonstrators and an embassy official when he came out to photograph the group.
Police told reporters they made four arrests for breach of the peace, including one man who threw his shoes at the building. About 150 people converged on Parliament House ahead of the march for a peaceful rally in support of Tibetan independence from China. Bearing flags and banners, they were joined by representatives from Australia’s major political parties.
Greens leader Bob Brown called on Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to declare what he said was widespread Australian support for Tibetan autonomy.
“What we need is political leaders ... who have got the gumption to reflect that Australian call to the Chinese dictators to give Tibet back its freedom, its peace and its rights,” Brown told the rally.
“Today is a day to celebrate the strength of the Tibetan people and their perseverance, and to commit ourselves to continuing the struggle,” Tibetan community spokesman Tsewang Thupten said. “We are also commemorating the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Tibetans and millions who are still under the Chinese occupation.”
Rudd won praise in Australia during a visit to Beijing last April when he raised concerns about human rights in Tibet and urged the Chinese government to hold talks with exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
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