China's Minister of Commerce slams Australia after banning TikTok
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The Chinese Minister of Commerce says Australia needs to apply fair and just measures when assessing social media apps after the country banned TikTok from government devices.
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Logo of the Chinese app TikTok displayed on a phone in front of the Australian flag, 4 April 2023. (Reuters)
The Chinese Commerce Ministry criticized in a statement Australia's decision to ban the use of the Chinese app TikTok.
The ministry urged Australian authorities “to treat all types of enterprises fairly and justly and to provide an open, transparent, and non-discriminatory business environment while creating a favorable atmosphere for the development of China-Australia economic and trade cooperation.”
The Chinese Commerce Ministry says that Australia has subjected TikTok to “discriminatory restrictive measures” which were not applied to other social media applications.
The statement follows Australian Attorney General Mark Dreyfus' decision to prohibit TikTok on government devices.
Dreyfus noted that “exceptions will only be granted on a case-by-case basis and with appropriate security mitigations in place.”
The Attorney General took the decision to ban TikTok based on the reports he received from security and intelligence agencies that claim that the app is collecting information that the Chinese government has access to.
The Chinese Foreign Minister, Mao Ning has previously denied such claims, stating that China "has never and will not require companies or individuals to collect or provide data located in a foreign country, in a way that violates local law.”
She also stressed the country’s commitment to ensuring data privacy.
The #US has been in a frenzy about banning #TikTok. pic.twitter.com/WsagDlLQq0
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) March 1, 2023
Earlier in March, TikTok CEO Zi Chew testified before the US Congress to answer questions related to the company’s relations with the Chinese government.
The CEO replied to the xenophobic claims made by congress members saying, "ByteDance is not owned or controlled by the Chinese government and is a private company," Chew told lawmakers in his opening remarks; ByteDance being TikTok's China-based parent company.
"We believe what's needed are clear transparent rules that apply broadly to all tech companies -- ownership is not at the core of addressing these concerns," Chew added.
Western governments have banned TikTok from public servants' phones. The app was banned in more than half of the American states, the UK, Canada, New Zealand, France, the Netherlands, the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the European Union.
It is worth noting that, the Australian government announced earlier this year that it would be stripping Chinese-made CCTV cameras from politicians' offices due to alleged security concerns.
