China and Australia: The standoff
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 1 October 2020
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The last two reporters working in China for Australian media have flown home after a drawn out diplomatic standoff. Their exit means for the first time since the mid-1970s, there are no accredited Australian journalists in the country. Why have relations between Australia and China deteriorated?
Guests:
Bernard Lagan, The Times Australia correspondent.
Mike Smith, China correspondent for the Australian Financial Review.
Host: Manveen Rana.
Clips used: Channel, BBC, ABC News.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | A few weeks ago in downtown Shanghai as the neon festoon city glowed in middle of the night. |
| 0:09.8 | An Australian journalist was woken up by a knock at the door. |
| 0:15.0 | I ran downstairs, I'm still half asleep, didn't know what was going on and I opened the door. |
| 0:21.0 | There were seven sort of uniformed police standing on my front. the door. |
| 0:25.0 | but it was seven sort of uniformed police standing on my front doorstep. |
| 0:26.0 | But it wasn't the police. |
| 0:28.0 | It was much more alarming. |
| 0:30.0 | It was Chinese state security. |
| 0:36.0 | I thought, oh my God, they've come to take me away. |
| 0:38.0 | I'm going to disappear into a prison somewhere. |
| 0:41.0 | It was quite terrifying. |
| 0:42.8 | As journalists become the latest pawns in a diplomatic feud, how bad are tensions between Australia and China? |
| 0:51.2 | There are now no ministerial exchanges between Australia and China. There are now no ministerial exchanges between Australia and China. So we're |
| 0:55.2 | in the position, our largest trading partner, none of their ministers will talk to us, let alone, |
| 0:59.6 | allow us to go and see them. Doesn't happen. We don't have a relationship anymore, which is the |
| 1:04.2 | strangest place of being. Where do the two countries go from here? Is there a way back? |
| 1:09.8 | You're listening to stories of our times, from the Times and the Sunday Times. |
| 1:15.0 | I'm Manveen Rana. |
| 1:16.9 | Today, the curious case of the disappearing journalists. |
| 1:33.8 | Two Australian reporters are back on home soil tonight after a tense five-day diplomatic standoff in China. |
| 1:35.2 | Mike Smith back in Australia and clearly relieved. |
| 1:38.9 | Very disappointing to have to leave under those circumstances and it's a relief to be back in a country with genuine rule of law. |
... |
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