Chinese-Australians report less racial abuse and are split over Aukus, survey finds

Fewer Chinese people living in Australia reported being called offensive names or physically threatened in the latest Lowy Institute survey

The report also found an increase in support for democracy among Chinese-Australians and less concern about Beijing-Canberra diplomatic ties

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Sydney think tank the Lowy Institute, which conducted the survey, said understanding the views of the Chinese community was key for social cohesion as growing geopolitical competition was felt in Australia. Photo: AFP

Published: 1:03pm, 19 Apr 2023Updated: 1:05pm, 19 Apr 2023

Chinese people living in Australia have shown increased support for democracy and less concern that diplomatic ties between Beijing and Canberra were a “critical threat”, an annual survey found.

Sydney think tank the Lowy Institute said understanding the views of the Chinese community, including citizens, residents and holders of long-term visas, was key for social cohesion as growing geopolitical competition was felt in Australia.

There are 1.4 million people of Chinese ancestry living in Australia, including migrants from mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, comprising 5.5 per cent of the population.

Fewer Chinese-Australians said they had been called offensive names, with the share dropping to 21 per cent from 25 per cent a year earlier, or physically threatened, for a proportion of 14 per cent from 18 per cent, because of their heritage in the past year.

Members of the Campaign Against Racism and Fascism, an Australian activist group, protest against neo-Nazis in Melbourne earlier this year. Photo: AAP/dpa

The report also found an increase in support for democracy as the preferred form of government among Chinese-Australians, to almost half of those surveyed, a 14-point increase from a year earlier.