A NSW Labor MP caused quite a stir yesterday over his speech on China, but many Crikey readers disagree with the inherent scepticism we exhibited in our approach. Meanwhile, readers showed total agreement on the Catholic Church: get on board with mandatory reporting of abuse, or get out. 

On Moselmane’s controversial China speech 

Chris Nyland writes: Bernard, I have long admired your work but I fear that increasingly your views on China have become seriously over the top. We in Australia are building a dangerous situation that risks a backlash against Chinese at a time when we over a million of our citizens are of Chinese origin and a quarter of a million Chinese students.

The way you now write about anyone who does not share your views of the Chinese regime is scary in this context. In this latest case you did not counter the politician’s argument but simply denounced in a seriously dangerous manner. Continue your criticism if you wish, but do more than merely denounce!

Lorraine Paul writes: China is our biggest trading partner in the region. Many, many bad things have happened in the countries of our traditional allies and yet they are often overlooked. I won’t enumerate them because sensible people already know about them and I am not here to educate the uninformed. Life is too short. We need to grow up and throw off this “us and them” stupidity.

 

On abuse and the confessional

Andrew writes: States and territories should remove all funding to religious-based groups until they meet reasonable standards of practice. I.e. no exceptions for discrimination, abuse and full accountability for the systematic covering up of abuse.

Crakeka writes: It is simple. Unless the churches agree to the mandatory notification of abuse by all with access to, or responsibility for children, they should not be allowed oversight on any children’s services; schools, youth groups, foster care family support etc. If this means the entire Catholic education system then that is what must happen. Oversight of the Catholic systemic schools should then be taken over and become the responsibility of the state.

Marcus Hicks writes: The right whine about Sharia Law, yet the Catholics are allowed to force Canon Law down our throats. Any church that doesn’t want to abide by our secular laws should be torn down and used to build shelter for the homeless.

 

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