Bob Katter

KENNEDY MP, Bob Katter, has called on the Federal Government to cancel its membership with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) which he says has become controlled by the dictatorial Chinese regime.

Mr Katter’s comments follows a push by a China-chaired UN committee to declare the Great Barrier Reef “in danger”.1

The Katter’s Australian Party (KAP) Federal MP says the move by UNESCO is not related to environmental concerns but a further bullying move by the Chinese regime.

“UNESCO has moved to classify one quarter of Australia’s oceans endangered, well how come only five years ago the leading world authority on nature, David Attenborough, said the reef was ‘the most magical place on earth’2,” Mr Katter said.

“Just last October myself and the other Members of the KAP (Nick Dametto, Robbie Katter and Shane Knuth) went diving on the Great Barrier Reef off Mission Beach, and I would describe it as magnificent.

“My office was on the phone just this morning with Daniel McCarthy one of the biggest tourism operators in Cairns; he’s been at Lizard Island for two months and he said the areas that were thought to be dead or destroyed two years ago are now thriving.”

Mr Katter said Australia had to stand up to the bully that is China, and fight this move to classify the Great Barrier Reef as endangered.

“China has come after our coal industry, they’ve halted trade on our beef, grain and wine; well we must say enough is enough,” he said.

“When are we going to stand up? China is still in control of the Darwin Port; they still have their tentacles in our universities with the Confucius Institutes and they’re still in control of our sensitive defence data through the China-owned Global Switch data centre in Sydney.

“The Federal Government has made the right noises, but I don’t see them acting.”

  1. https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/chinaled-ambush-on-health-of-the-great-barrier-reef/newsstory/b99813fe30fbc1919325058327980ce6

2. https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/great-barrier-reef-david-attenborough-says-reports-of-reefsdeath-greatly-exaggerated/news-story/246c2390d4098cfdf3e3d34ca91b9bb0