Radio Free International (RFI) recently reported that Xu Lin, the Chief Director of the Confucius Institute’s World Headquarters and Director of the Chinese Language Development Center of the Ministry of Education, admitted in a BBC interview that her organization’s mission is to export the values of the Chinese Communist Party to “international academic organizations, no matter whether it’s Columbia University, Stanford University, or a district primary school.” The Wall Street Journal also reported that Xu confirmed that Beijing clearly banned Falun Gong practitioners from overseas Confucius Institutes. Meanwhile, Confucius Institute teachers are required to submit reports on whether sensitive political topics were discussed in classes. The University of Chicago and the University of Pennsylvania both recently closed their Confucius Institutes. Canada’s Toronto school district also discontinued its contract. However many U.S. K-12 schools signed secret agreements with the Confucius Institute. [Editor’s note: New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith of the Congressional Executive Commission on China (CECC) has pledged to investigate Confucius Institute contracts and the extent to which U.S. institutions outsource academic control and faculty oversight to a foreign government.]
Source: RFI, December 29, 2014
http://rfi.my/1y0K97F