Rejected petition Regulate international educational partnerships to prevent foreign influence

Confucius Institutes (CIs) are Trojan propaganda organs funded by the Chinese Communist government and hosted by educational institutions outside of China in the name of language teaching & cultural exchanges. The UK hosts 30 CIs in universities and over 100 Confucius ‘Classrooms’ (CCs) in schools.

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Serious concerns about Confucius Institutes (CIs) and their threat to freedom has led to the closure of 53 CIs worldwide:
•CI is a propaganda tool for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)
•CI promotes communist propaganda in textbooks & cultural events
•CI discriminates against teachers in their hiring practices
•CI plays the role of a spy agency for the CCP
Regulate international educational partnerships with CI to protect democratic values, freedom of thought and prevent foreign influence.

Why was this petition rejected?

It’s about something that the Senedd or Welsh Government is not responsible for.

Petitions to the Senedd must call for a specific action that falls within the powers of the Senedd or Welsh Government.

Universities are largely autonomous and although they do receive some public funding they also derive income from sponsors, donors and project partners. This means that they enjoy a considerable degree of independence. As such, it is difficult to see what legal mechanism could be used by the Welsh Government to interfere in a bilateral commercial agreement between a Welsh University and any third party.

In November 2019 the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee published a report and recommended that the UK Government “provide up to date guidance to universities on the political, diplomatic and legal implications of accepting funding and pursuing collaboration with institutions based in non-democratic states.” The onus was placed on the Universities to decide (after considering the appropriate guidance) whether such partnerships are appropriate.

For this reason it is not possible for the Senedd to take the action called for by your petition.

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Date submitted 19 August 2020
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