The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Chinese intelligence officers have confirmed the existence of a spy network at Sydney University and Melbourne University to protect the core interest of Beijing.
Over 90,000 Chinese students from mainland China are studying at the two Aussie universities whom the Chinese government wants to protect from exposure to ideas and activities different from their situation in China.
As a result of the covert operations, some Chinese students told Fairfax Media that have suffered the consequences of the classroom comments which were reported via the Chinese intelligence channels. A senior lecturer at a top Australian university admitted being questioned four times in China by authorities over a remark he made about democracy at a University of New South Wales seminar.