China Briefing | Huang Xiangmo and Meng Wanzhou today, any other Chinese tomorrow?
- The US and Australia have slapped China in the face by hounding these Chinese business figures, but Beijing’s response – and its clumsy public relations skills – have served only to make matters worse
But the first day of the Year of Pig, which fell on February 5, was anything but auspicious for Huang Xiangmo, a Chinese billionaire who has been calling Australia his adopted country and has invested billions of Australian dollars in the country since 2011.
The Australian media chose that day to break the story that the government had rejected his application for citizenship and revoked his permanent residency while he was overseas, sending shock waves throughout Chinese communities in Australia and beyond.
The timing of these events may be entirely coincidental and the reasons behind Huang’s and Meng’s nasty experiences starkly different. But in essence, they have been punished over their perceived links with the Chinese government and because they are seen as symbols of China’s rise on an international stage dominated by the US and its Western allies.