Andrew Hastie (Canning, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Today I raise a matter before the House that is of great importance to the Australian people. It is a matter that poses a threat to our democratic tradition, particularly the freedom of the press, and our national sovereignty. I refer to the threat of foreign interference in our political institutions. In doing so, I have considered closely my responsibilities as a member of the Australian House of Representatives. The beauty of our political tradition is that we protect the free speech of our parliamentarians. That tradition extends back to 1689, when the parliament of the United Kingdom enacted the Bill Of Rights, enshrining free speech in article 9 of that bill. Section 49 of the Australian Constitution and the Parliamentary Privileges Act 1987 declare our present-day link to that tradition, and I take hold of it today.

We live in a rapidly changing world. We are watching the rise of authoritarian states. Those states are conducting foreign interference operations across Western democracies. In Australia it is clear that the Chinese Communist Party is working to covertly interfere with our media and universities and also to influence our political processes and public debates. In the United States, Britain and France we have seen Russia attempt to undermine the integrity of democratic political processes. The Director-General of ASIO, Mr Duncan Lewis, has publicly stated that espionage and foreign interference is being conducted in Australia on an unprecedented scale. On 7 December 2017 the Prime Minister introduced legislation into the parliament designed to protect Australia from this threat. I refer to the National Security Legislation Amendment (Espionage and Foreign Interference) Bill 2017 and the Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme Bill 2017. This legislation is designed to reinforce the strengths of our open democratic system while reducing its vulnerabilities.

The central pillar of the government's counter foreign interference strategy is sunlight. That's why we're seeking to introduce a new Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme. The principle is simple. If a person or entity engages with the Australian political landscape on behalf of a foreign state or principal, they must register accordingly. This will give the Australian public and decision-makers proper visibility when foreign states or individuals may be seeking to influence Australian's political processes and public debates.

Both of these bills are before the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, of which I am the chair. I take my obligations as chair very seriously. I acknowledge the concerns that some have raised about the potential consequences of the bill. We are working through these issues on a bipartisan basis. But the threat remains. It's time we applied sunlight to our political system and a person who has featured prominently in Australian politics over the past decade.

This story begins in New York, USA. On 6 October 2015, Sheri Yan was arrested for the transmission and laundering of over US$1 million of bribery money from China to United Nations officials from 2011 to 2014. Officials who accepted the bribes included the 68th President of the United Nations General Assembly, John Ashe. Yan's arrest and subsequent conviction in 2016 is also significant because of her long-standing connections to Australia through her husband, Roger Uren, a former assistant secretary in the Office of National Assessments.

Yan built an extensive network of Australian and Chinese political and business leaders. ASIO raided her Canberra residence the same month of her arrest in 2015 and recovered a cache of classified Australian government documents. All this has been previously reported on, and I do not wish to cover the intricate details of each offence here. But I will now turn to an unsealed indictment, tendered by the Southern District Assistant, United States Attorneys, and focus on one offence that links back to a prominent Australian. I seek leave to table that document and a US state department cable from 2007.

Leave granted.

I make specific reference to pages 30 and 32 of the indictment, which details how, in 2013, Yan and her associate arranged for a US$200,000 payment to be made to the United Nations General Assembly President Josh Ashe in return for his attendance, in his official capacity, at a conference in China organised by a Chinese real estate developer, referred to in the indictment as co-conspirator 3, or CC-3. Yan and her associate acted in concert with CC-3, arranging the payment of the US$200,000 to Josh Ashe and also a US$25,000 payment for the travel arrangements of his entire team to China. The invitation to Ashe from CC-3 to attend the Guangzhou conference read as follows:

After attending this summit, I wish that you would remember that you have sincere friend in Guangdong Province—the economic powerhouse in China. And your friend here has the pleasure to offer you a permanent convention venue for the UN meetings on the sustainability and climate changes in the efforts to fully realise the Millennium Development Goals, as well as for the 193 members of the UN to convene for multilateral discussions on the topics of priority concerns.

In the correspondence documented in the indictment, it is clear that Yan had a relationship with CC-3. Yan's associate wrote to Ashe, describing CC-3 as 'an old friend of Sheri who is extremely wealthy'. Yan herself recommended to Ashe that the payment of US$200,000 from CC-3 be arranged through her. Ashe appointed Yan and her associate as his 'Advisers on Economic Matters', with a backdated letter referring to the appointments in an email as 'outstanding requests'. On 4 November 2013, John Ashe confirmed receipt of the US$200,000 from China from one of CC-3's companies. On 17 November 2013, John Ashe attended the Guangzhou conference and gave a speech at the conference. CC-3's real estate company, Kingold, posted a photo of the Chinese and foreign leaders who attended the global summit in Guangzhou. In the photo, CC-3 and John Ashe are standing next to each other.

For reasons that are best undisclosed, the United States government did not seek to charge CC-3 for his involvement in the bribery of John Ashe. The bribery does, however, raise the question: what were the objectives of CC-3 in securing Ashe's attendance at the conference? It is not the first time that CC-3 has appeared in US government documentation. The answer may lie in a sensitive US government cable from 2007 that details a conversation between the Guangzhou US Consul General, Robert Goldberg, and a Chinese real estate developer known by his Mandarin name of Zhou Zerong. Zhou was described as 'the well-connected head of the Kingold real estate group' and 'one of China's wealthiest individuals'. Zhou is CC-3. In 2007, he had just become the new head of the Guangdong Overseas Chinese Businessmen's Association. Goldberg wrote that the association's founding meeting clearly had political implications, with participation from several Chinese Communist Party figures, including the director of the United Front department. The United Front is a platform of the Chinese Communist Party that is tasked with influence operations for the People's Republic of China. It aims to influence the choices, direction and loyalties of its targets, with a particular focus overseas on foreign political and business elites. The primary objective of the United Front is to shape thinking and attitudes in a way that is favourable to China. Mao Zedong, for good reasons, described the United Front as one of the three magic weapons of the Chinese Communist Party. Zhou, or CC-3, was no stranger to the United Front. He had assumed leadership of an organisation intimately involved with it. In the final paragraph of the cable, Goldberg wrote that the Guangdong Overseas Chinese Businessmen's Association was essentially a creature of the Chinese Communist Party's United Front program.

What do we know thus far? We know that CC-3 was willing to participate in the bribery of the 68th president of the United Nations General Assembly, in 2013. We also know that Zhou, or CC-3, was in close contact with the United Front, the influence arm of the Chinese Communist Party, in 2007. So, what is the connection to Australia? CC-3 is a Chinese Australian citizen. He has also been a very significant donor to both of our major political parties. He has given more than $4 million since 2004. He has also donated $45 million to universities in Australia. The Australian press has reported these matters, and others, and has been sued for defamation by CC-3. CC-3 disputes a number of the reported allegations. The merits of these defamation cases are appropriately left for a court.

My concern is that defamation cases can have a chilling effect on our free press. Any attempt to silence our media from telling the truth, provided it is the truth, through a defamation claim cannot stand. Our democracy works only if we have a free press that can publish information that serves the public interest. We don't always like what the press writes, but they are essential to a free and flourishing democracy. The Australian people deserve the truth.

As chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security I led a delegation to the United States last month to discuss our espionage and foreign interference legislation with US counterparts. During discussions with United States authorities I confirmed the long-suspected identity of CC-3. It is now my duty to inform the House and the Australian people that CC-3 is Dr Chau Chak Wing, the same man who co-conspired to bribe the president of the United Nations General Assembly, John Ashe, the same man with extensive contacts in the Chinese Communist Party, including the United Front. I share it with the House because I believe it to be in the national interest. My duty first and foremost is to the Australian people and to the preservation of the ideals and democratic traditions of our Commonwealth. That tradition includes a free press. I thank the House.

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