by Ganesh Sahathevan
Ambassador Cheng Jingye Pays an Official Visit to the State of New
South Wales (2016/08/16-NSW the first and only jurisdiction in the world to grant a
Chinese Communist Party linked entity the right to issue law degrees
The Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the Treasurer Josh Frydenberg have proposed that the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) would have to approve all investments in a "sensitive national security business", regardless of the value of the deal.
That could apply to businesses in communications, technology, energy and major infrastructure such as ports and defence contractors.
There are to be public consultations on the proposed national security criteria. The public discussion is to be welcomed for it will provide an opportunity to determine if the definition of "sensitive national security business" ought be be broadened to include businesses that can give foreign interests the ability to affect Australia's legal, educational and other institutions.
The case of Zhu Minshen and Top Education Group's is an example of a foreign controlled and funded business that is now in a position to influence the regulation of Australia's legal system.
Zhu Minshen's Sydney City School Of Law (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Top Education Group) is the"first and only" private institution to have been granted the right to issue law degrees by the NSW Legal Profession Admission Board, which is ultimately under the purview of the NSW Attorney General, Mark Speakman and the Cheif Justice Of NSW , Tom Bathurst.
Together with that right comes the power to prevent law graduates from being admitted to practice law in NSW and in Australia, even after they have successfully completed their law degrees.
Known as Rule 19 certificates issued pursuant to the Uniform Legal Profession Admission Rules, the power to do so can and has been used to protect the interests of the entity that issues the degrees. As this writer discovered the power to issue Rule 19 certificates can be used to conceal poor delivery of courses, and can be done with the collaboration of the regulator, in this case the NSW LPAB.
The case of Zhu Minshen and Top Education Group raises the issue of how Rule 19 certificates can be used to ensure that Sydney City School Of Law may be used to ensure that graduates align themselves with the interests of the Communist Party Of China. This is not an unreasonable conclusion given Zhu's history.
In his 2018 book "Silent Invasion" Professor Clive Hamilton reports that Top Education Group's Zhu Minshen organised students , including students from his Top Education Institute to protest against Tibetans at the 2008 Olympic Torch rally, which counted towards the Top students’ assessment.As he puts it, Zhu’s Top Institution is “perhaps the only accredited degree program in Australia that counts agitating for a foreign power towards its qualifications.”
Zhu's law school will soon be producing LLB graduates who will qualify for admission to practise law in NSW and in Australia. As members of the various state law societies they can, like the Chinese students at Sydney University gather sufficient support to control the leadership of those societies.
END
SEE ALSO
NSW LPAB found Zhu Misnhen's Top Group fit and proper to issue LLBs despite Top's links to Chinese government, tax havens, and a mysterious major shareholder -SMH investigation of 2016 reveals details which should concern ASIO, and cause investigation into the conduct of the NSW LPAB
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