Chinese Students in UK Reportedly Coerced into Spying on Classmates
(MENAFN) Chinese students studying at universities across the UK are allegedly being coerced into surveilling and reporting on peers to curb discussions around issues deemed politically sensitive by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), according to a newly released report.
The investigation, published by the UK-China Transparency (UKCT) think tank, also reveals that Chinese officials have warned UK-based university lecturers against covering certain controversial topics in their academic work.
“Our China studies system is subject to widespread CCP influence, interference and harassment. These activities are a source of distortion in the field, its expert body and their output. This in turn likely has downstream effects for the knowledge supplied to government, the media, think-tanks, business, etc., although we have not investigated this in depth,” the report states.
It also raises concerns about the role of financial dependencies in shaping academic choices, pointing to the monetary links between UK institutions and Chinese organizations.
“Some expressions of these problems appear to be caused or exacerbated by financial dependence on China. In this respect the issues in China studies are a sub-crisis of the broader financial crisis in the HE (higher education) sector,” the report adds.
In a swift rebuttal, the Chinese Embassy in London rejected the findings, labeling them as “groundless and absurd,” and asserting that “China respects freedom of speech in the UK and elsewhere.”
The report’s release coincides with the implementation of new UK legislation aimed at safeguarding academic freedom and free speech throughout the higher education landscape.
As of last week, universities in the UK are now legally obligated to uphold and promote academic freedom—especially in cases involving foreign collaborations. Institutions that fail to meet these requirements could be subject to multi-million-pound penalties.
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