Reaffirming No WeChat Ban, Australian Immigration Minister Thanks the Chinese Community

"The US bans WeChat; Australia has no intention of following suit"

 Australia's Immigration Minister thanks the Chinese community for its efforts fighting the pandemic

On 25 September, Alan Tudge, Australia's Federal Minister for Population, Cities and Urban Infrastructure and Acting Minister for Immigration, held an online meeting with Chinese community leaders from across Australia, answering questions on matters of concern to many Chinese people in Australia and expressing his thanks for the community's outstanding conduct throughout the fight against the pandemic.

"Thank you to the Chinese community for its support of and contribution to Australia.

You did an excellent job responding to the bushfires and the pandemic.

No matter which country you come from or how long you have been in Australia, our multicultural communities have stood together to help Australia, and this reflects the success of our multiculturalism," Minister Tudge said.

"I am very grateful for the leadership shown by the Chinese community. You donated money and supplies and adhered closely to the restrictions. Prime Minister Morrison once said that you were on the front line of the fight against the pandemic,

Many people who had just returned from Chinese New Year proactively self-isolated, wore protective equipment and did many of the right things," Minister Tudge said.

"If it were not for you,

Australia's management of the pandemic would not have been as successful as it has been."

When a community leader asked how the government would handle the recent cooling of China-Australia relations,

Minister Tudge said that China-Australia relations were "better than ever" in many respects, such as economic trade and people-to-people interaction.

"We have more than 1 million Chinese people living in Australia, and trade in the first six months of this year was also 6% higher than the same period last year. We hope this can continue."

Minister Tudge also reiterated that Australia will not ban WeChat.