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A review by jcal9
Silent Invasion: China's Influence in Australia by Clive Hamilton
3.0
I was driven to read this novel on the back of the reports that various publishers were refusing to publish the novel out of (alleged) fear of a back lash from Beijing. It is definitely one of the most politically contentious novels I have read but it covers an area that many Australians are afraid to explore due to the threat of being called a racist.
Clive Hamilton does a comprehensive job in analysing the reach of the Chinese state into Australian domestic matters. While some of the revelations in the novel are shocking, there is a fair bit of hearsay (rather than documented evidence) used to support those claims. Independent of some of the scrappy lines of evidence and borderline racist commentary, it is clear that the reach of Chinese state in Australia goes from the grass root Chinese communities all the way to academia and the political parties. Beijing is not just content to set up these networks, since it sees Australia as part of its sphere of influence, but is actively exploiting it to pursue their own usually obscured geopolitical aspirations.
Although, I do not think such a finding is unsurprising. As a middle power, influence by a superpower (such as the US or the UK) in domestic affairs has been part and parcel of Australian history (Petrov affair anyone?). However, what is fundamentally different now is the socio-political reality of China means its influence is often diametrically opposed to some the basic rights Australians see as integral to their society. This means that the influence that Beijing can wield internally in Australia has the potential to shake the structures that are fundamental to democracy and our perceived freedoms, in a way that have never occurred with the US or UK. Therefore, while rough around the edges, the message of "Silent Invasion" is clear - Australians have to be weary of courting the favour (mostly in the form of money) of China at the expense of our values and freedoms.
Clive Hamilton does a comprehensive job in analysing the reach of the Chinese state into Australian domestic matters. While some of the revelations in the novel are shocking, there is a fair bit of hearsay (rather than documented evidence) used to support those claims. Independent of some of the scrappy lines of evidence and borderline racist commentary, it is clear that the reach of Chinese state in Australia goes from the grass root Chinese communities all the way to academia and the political parties. Beijing is not just content to set up these networks, since it sees Australia as part of its sphere of influence, but is actively exploiting it to pursue their own usually obscured geopolitical aspirations.
Although, I do not think such a finding is unsurprising. As a middle power, influence by a superpower (such as the US or the UK) in domestic affairs has been part and parcel of Australian history (Petrov affair anyone?). However, what is fundamentally different now is the socio-political reality of China means its influence is often diametrically opposed to some the basic rights Australians see as integral to their society. This means that the influence that Beijing can wield internally in Australia has the potential to shake the structures that are fundamental to democracy and our perceived freedoms, in a way that have never occurred with the US or UK. Therefore, while rough around the edges, the message of "Silent Invasion" is clear - Australians have to be weary of courting the favour (mostly in the form of money) of China at the expense of our values and freedoms.