I heard an associate professor of something or other interviewed on the ABC on this topic this morning. No mention about why China wants to build it in that location, why it is a remotely commercial prospect, or any strategic concerns for us.
On the contrary, the inference invited was it was racist and a bit misguided to have any such concerns.
Would we be concerned if a say, French company wanted to build a city there? Companies from China just want to make money too, why should we single them out? It is PNG's sovereign right to do whatever they want, etc.
Not a single mention of why it might not be a good thing if China pays the PNG government to build, own and operate a city incorporating a dirty-big port, on an island just 200ks off the Australian coast.
And yes, if a French company proposed it, I would be equally surprised, but undisturbed.
If the French are equivalent, let's get China to build our subs - they'd be much quicker...and hey, we could take delivery at their handy new port in PNG!
This proposition appears mischievous, even by the most naive interpretation. Following the same logic, why can't the PNG government accede to a later request for a Chinese naval presence there in a couple of years? Economic boost to the local community, it's PNG's right.
I usually don't care about the ABC's lefty bias. They are all public servants and listeners know what to expect.
However, I found it objectionable to hear the ABC airing an interview which, on a commercial broadcaster, would have pretty-much amounted to a paid 'infomercial' for this proposed Chinese development.
Sure, it was the interviewee's opinion, but gee, do we really want our National Broadcaster to provide a free platform for CCP infomercials in relation to a serious development to our immediate North?
How about the old USSR building a dirty big port for an infamous 'over-fishing fleet' along with navy ships painted as 'coast-guard' vessels in that spot?
It is not a friendly act, especially viewed in the current context of direct antagonism directed toward us by China, so is it too much to ask the ABC to not run infomercials for the latest move by these cheeky pricks?
I mean, if the ABC doesn’t see any basis for differentiating between democratic countries and the biggest single-party, communist, totalitarian, autocratic, social-score-card-keeping, concentration-camp running, non-rule-of-law regime the world has ever seen, now with a Grand Poobah-for-life, we may as well just sign up for an alliance with them now, because they are very conveniently located.
