Chinese-Australians have continued to experience racist insults but at a lower rate than when diplomatic tensions between Canberra and Beijing erupted in 2020, a new study has found.
Polling commissioned by the Lowy Institute indicates one in five Chinese-Australians said they were called offensive names because of their heritage in 2022.
But this figure of 21% was four points lower than the result in the same survey in 2021, and down 10 points from 31% in 2020, when the diplomatic rift between the Chinese and Australian governments was most stark.
Despite cases of hurtful innuendo about alleged divided loyalties, 92% of Chinese-Australian respondents said they regarded Australia as a “very good” or “good” place to live.
That figure represents a jump of 15 points since 2020, when the Lowy Institute began an annual poll to gauge how Chinese-Australians saw Australia and their place in it.
The director of the Lowy Institute’s multiculturalism, identity and influence project, Jennifer Hsu, said the way politicians and the media conducted the debate about Australia’s relationship with China mattered.
“The intersection of Covid-19, including lockdown and debate around its origins, and the broader discussion about China in Australia have had a material impact on Chinese Australians, as seen in the first and second survey around issues on discrimination,” Hsu said.
She said the ending of lockdown and the Labor government’s attempt to lower the rhetoric on China gave context to the numbers.
The findings are outlined in a report released on Wednesday titled Being Chinese in Australia: Public opinion in Chinese communities.
Australia is home to 1.4 million people with Chinese ancestry, or 5.5% of the population.
“Understanding the views of such a significant, longstanding community is a worthwhile endeavour. But it is even more important at a time when the effects of growing geopolitical competition are being felt in Australia,” the report said.
“Grasping the impact that these and other issues are having on how Chinese-Australians see their place in Australian society is critical, therefore, not least to the country’s social cohesion.”
The findings are based on a national survey of 1,200 adults in Australia who identify as of Chinese heritage and was conducted by the Social Research Centre between 27 September and 10 December 2022.
Weights were applied to the sample design using Australian Bureau of Statistics census benchmarks with a margin of error of 3%. Participants could choose whether to complete the questionnaire in English, Simplified Chinese or Traditional Chinese.
“Most Chinese-Australians have a positive view of Australia,” the report said.
“A majority say that Australia is a good place to live and are proud of the Australian way of life and culture. Three-quarters say they feel a moderate or strong sense of belonging – an increase from the 2021 survey.”
The respondents were asked how much confidence they had in each of 12 leaders “to do the right thing regarding world affairs”.
Six in 10 respondents (60%) had “a lot” or “some” confidence in the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, compared with 25% for the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, in a sign the Coalition has a long way to go to win back Chinese-Australian voters.
A total of 49% expressed confidence in Jacinda Ardern, the New Zealand prime minister at the time of the survey, 42% for the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, and 32% for Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing-wen.
“Almost half of Chinese-Australians say that democracy is preferable to any other kind of government, an increase of 14 points since 2021,” the report said.
Those surveyed were split on whether Aukus, the security partnership with the UK and US, would make Australia more or less safe or make no difference.
Of the Chinese-Australians surveyed, 27% said Aukus would make Australia more safe, 26% less safe and 26% no difference.
The report said a majority of Chinese-Australians used WeChat for their English and Chinese-language news but usage of the app had declined since 2021.
