Asian-Australians fear ‘Red Alert’ warmongering will fuel rise in racist hate

An alarmist series of articles warning of an impending war with China in two Australian newspapers has raised concerns of rising anti-Asian sentiment

The ‘biased and inflammatory’ reporting has some diaspora members fearing for their safety, as community leaders call for more focus on bilateral ties

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The front pages of the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age on 7 March warning of war with China. Image: SCMP

Published: 8:30am, 18 Mar 2023Updated: 8:34am, 19 Mar 2023

When Malaysian-Australian Thomson Ch’ng saw “China” splashed across the front pages of two of Australia’s biggest newspapers last week alongside the words “Red Alert”, his heart sank.

He knew from experience what was likely to follow – a surge in indiscriminate anti-Asian hate directed at anyone of Chinese heritage, irrespective of where their forebears had emigrated from.

“It is extremely concerning and frustrating,” said Ch’ng, who is president of the Australian Malaysian Singaporean Association, one of the oldest diaspora networks in the country. “There are tens of thousands of people with Asian heritage who call Australia home. Yet their well-being and safety are once again being put at risk.”

The alarmist three-part series of articles that ran in The Sydney Morning Herald and its sister publication The Age warned of an impending war with China based on evidence offered by five “expert” panellists – some of whom have links to the avowedly pro-war Australian Strategic Policy Institute think tank, which is part-funded by weapons manufacturers, such as known China hawk Peter Jennings.

Former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating condemned the Red Alert series for being “wantonly biased and inflammatory” Photo: AAP via AP

Dismissed as “hysterical and hyperbolic” by national broadcaster ABC’s Media Watch programme, and “wantonly biased and inflammatory” by former Prime Minister Paul Keating, the Red Alert series has nevertheless sparked a public debate on the impact of irresponsible journalism – as former diplomats, community leaders and advocates weighed in to chastise the two newspapers for editorialising in favour of a war between Australia and China and hurting social harmony.