A news from CBC News.This is a bad news to all the students who really like the Chinese culture,
and all the Chinese, the Chinese-borned-in-Canada, the Taiwanese and the Hongkongners(whatever you announce whether you guys are Chinese or not), even all the Japanese, and all the Korean brothers. No matter what you believe, and what your national identity is, you cannot deny that, Conducius and the Confucianism is a landmark of the culture from Far East.

And now! A gangs of people they want to distory this!

I'd just like to say, "FXXk you, Falun Gong!"



R.I.P. to Confucius Institute in Mac.

McMaster cuts Chinese institute, worried by discrimination
Confucius Institute's contract at Hamilton university won't be renewed

McMaster University is closing the doors on an institute that teaches Chinese culture because of what it believes are its discriminatory hiring practices.

The university is ending its contract in July for the Confucius Institute, a five-year-old office funded by the Chinese government. The closing comes after McMaster investigated the practices used to hire Chinese instructors to work at the institute.

'We had heard from different voices both inside and outside of the university who wanted us to take a look at this.'—Andrea Farquhar, McMaster University

“We were certainly concerned about the hiring decisions that were being made in China,” said Andrea Farquhar, assistant vice-president of public and government relations at McMaster. “The way the university normally functions is incongruent with the way decisions were being made there.”

The Confucius Institute's headquarters in China could not be reached for comment.

The move comes in the midst of an Ontario Human Rights Tribunal challenge by Sonia Zhao, who was hired as an instructor at the McMaster institute in 2010. Zhao says she had to sign a contract ensuring that she would not practise Falun Gong. She left her job in 2011 and filed the human rights challenge in 2012.

Falun Gong is a mainly spiritual movement that began in China in 1992, borrowing partly from Buddhism and Taoism, but also incorporating daily practices and some references to beings from other worlds. It has been attacked by the Chinese government as a cult that engages in "lawbreaking activities."

Zhao's experience wasn't the first incident that raised concerns about the institute's hiring practices, Farquhar said.

“There had been some concerns raised well in advance of that,” she said. “We had heard from different voices both inside and outside of the university who wanted us to take a look at this.”

The university's concerns, Farquhar said, revolved around freedom of expression and choice. McMaster decided to close the institute late last year and went public with the decision this month.

Chinese influence

There are 11 Confucius Institutes across Canada. They are non-profit organizations with a stated mission to teach Chinese language and culture. But some people are concerned that the Chinese government uses them to exert Chinese influence in Canada.

'They've been linked to trying to influence Canadian-Chinese policy. They're basically seen as the soft power of the Chinese propaganda campaign.'—Joel Chipkar, Falun Gong Association of Toronto

Among them is Joel Chipkar, vice-president of the Falun Gong Association of Toronto, which is helping with Zhao's case.

“They've been linked to trying to influence Canadian-Chinese policy,” he said. “They're basically seen as the soft power of the Chinese propaganda campaign.”

McMaster's decision is an encouraging one, Chipkar said. He hopes other universities follow suit.
“We think McMaster's stand is a righteous one.”

Confucius Institutes have positive and negative aspects, said Charles Burton, a Brock University political science professor and an expert in China relations.

They provide much-needed instruction in the ways of China, he said. But they are tied to the Chinese government and come with certain beliefs in terms of Falun Gong, Tibet and other issues.

It's not a new concept for governments to exert “soft power” through educational centres, Burton said. Canada has done it, too. Confucius Institutes are unique, however, in that they are part of their host universities.

Chinese instruction is important, and McMaster students need it, he said. In that way, the institutes provide “enormous benefits.”

“My personal preference would be for McMaster to continue instruction in Chinese language and culture and not do it with funding from a foreign government.”

Zhao and McMaster meet with a mediator on Feb. 14. Neither Chipkar or Farquhar could predict the outcome.

From McMaster's perspective, however, the Confucius Institute will be expected to wrap up in July

“The programs students are taking will all be completed,” she said. “Instructors who are here will finish their time and will return to China. All those plans will go ahead.”

There was just a thread on this.

op is 2000 and late

Originally Posted by ManchuPrince

I'd just like to say, "FXXk you, Falun Gong!"

Uh if you read everything you just posted more closely, you'd realize that you should be saying "FXXk you, Chinese government!"

They're closing it because the Confucius institute, funded by the Chinese government, discriminates against those who practice falungong....

Originally Posted by Ownaginatios

Uh if you read everything you just posted more closely, you'd realize that you should be saying "FXXk you, Chinese government!"

They're closing it because the Confucius institute, funded by the Chinese government, discriminates against those who practice falungong....

or, F*** YOU mcmaster and its employees who overlooked this human rights breach when they were signing the contracts in exchange for a Chinese payout.

AND now the students are fucked over. Because the Confucius Institute is holding students grades from McMaster and all the students enrolled in chinese class are going to be evaluated over the next 2 weeks.

For Chinese 1Z06 7 months of work is wasted. NOW 6 credits evaluated over 2 week.

F*** YOU

Originally Posted by biglandfarm

or, F*** YOU mcmaster and its employees who overlooked this human rights breach when they were signing the contracts in exchange for a Chinese payout.

AND now the students are fucked over. Because the Confucius Institute is holding students grades from McMaster and all the students enrolled in chinese class are going to be evaluated over the next 2 weeks.

For Chinese 1Z06 7 months of work is wasted. NOW 6 credits evaluated over 2 week.

F*** YOU

Ya, that too. Pretty bullshit for everyone enrolled. They should have at least waited until the term was over before announcing they'd be ending their contract...

Originally Posted by ManchuPrince

A news from CBC News.This is a bad news to all the students who really like the Chinese culture,
and all the Chinese, the Chinese-borned-in-Canada, the Taiwanese and the Hongkongners(whatever you announce whether you guys are Chinese or not), even all the Japanese, and all the Korean brothers. No matter what you believe, and what your national identity is, you cannot deny that, Conducius and the Confucianism is a landmark of the culture from Far East.

And now! A gangs of people they want to distory this!

I'd just like to say, "FXXk you, Falun Gong!"



R.I.P. to Confucius Institute in Mac.

McMaster cuts Chinese institute, worried by discrimination
Confucius Institute's contract at Hamilton university won't be renewed

McMaster University is closing the doors on an institute that teaches Chinese culture because of what it believes are its discriminatory hiring practices.

The university is ending its contract in July for the Confucius Institute, a five-year-old office funded by the Chinese government. The closing comes after McMaster investigated the practices used to hire Chinese instructors to work at the institute.

'We had heard from different voices both inside and outside of the university who wanted us to take a look at this.'—Andrea Farquhar, McMaster University

“We were certainly concerned about the hiring decisions that were being made in China,” said Andrea Farquhar, assistant vice-president of public and government relations at McMaster. “The way the university normally functions is incongruent with the way decisions were being made there.”

The Confucius Institute's headquarters in China could not be reached for comment.

The move comes in the midst of an Ontario Human Rights Tribunal challenge by Sonia Zhao, who was hired as an instructor at the McMaster institute in 2010. Zhao says she had to sign a contract ensuring that she would not practise Falun Gong. She left her job in 2011 and filed the human rights challenge in 2012.

Falun Gong is a mainly spiritual movement that began in China in 1992, borrowing partly from Buddhism and Taoism, but also incorporating daily practices and some references to beings from other worlds. It has been attacked by the Chinese government as a cult that engages in "lawbreaking activities."

Zhao's experience wasn't the first incident that raised concerns about the institute's hiring practices, Farquhar said.

“There had been some concerns raised well in advance of that,” she said. “We had heard from different voices both inside and outside of the university who wanted us to take a look at this.”

The university's concerns, Farquhar said, revolved around freedom of expression and choice. McMaster decided to close the institute late last year and went public with the decision this month.

Chinese influence

There are 11 Confucius Institutes across Canada. They are non-profit organizations with a stated mission to teach Chinese language and culture. But some people are concerned that the Chinese government uses them to exert Chinese influence in Canada.

'They've been linked to trying to influence Canadian-Chinese policy. They're basically seen as the soft power of the Chinese propaganda campaign.'—Joel Chipkar, Falun Gong Association of Toronto

Among them is Joel Chipkar, vice-president of the Falun Gong Association of Toronto, which is helping with Zhao's case.

“They've been linked to trying to influence Canadian-Chinese policy,” he said. “They're basically seen as the soft power of the Chinese propaganda campaign.”

McMaster's decision is an encouraging one, Chipkar said. He hopes other universities follow suit.
“We think McMaster's stand is a righteous one.”

Confucius Institutes have positive and negative aspects, said Charles Burton, a Brock University political science professor and an expert in China relations.

They provide much-needed instruction in the ways of China, he said. But they are tied to the Chinese government and come with certain beliefs in terms of Falun Gong, Tibet and other issues.

It's not a new concept for governments to exert “soft power” through educational centres, Burton said. Canada has done it, too. Confucius Institutes are unique, however, in that they are part of their host universities.

Chinese instruction is important, and McMaster students need it, he said. In that way, the institutes provide “enormous benefits.”

“My personal preference would be for McMaster to continue instruction in Chinese language and culture and not do it with funding from a foreign government.”

Zhao and McMaster meet with a mediator on Feb. 14. Neither Chipkar or Farquhar could predict the outcome.

From McMaster's perspective, however, the Confucius Institute will be expected to wrap up in July

“The programs students are taking will all be completed,” she said. “Instructors who are here will finish their time and will return to China. All those plans will go ahead.”

The amount of spelling and grammatical errors in this post IS OVER 9000!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by biglandfarm

or, F*** YOU mcmaster and its employees who overlooked this human rights breach when they were signing the contracts in exchange for a Chinese payout.

AND now the students are fucked over. Because the Confucius Institute is holding students grades from McMaster and all the students enrolled in chinese class are going to be evaluated over the next 2 weeks.

For Chinese 1Z06 7 months of work is wasted. NOW 6 credits evaluated over 2 week.

F*** YOU

Where did you hear that all the evaluations will be in two weeks? In the other thread about this, someone posted a letter they received stating that their instructors would grade everything they'd done to date and then their mark would just be whatever it is now.
Anyways, McMaster is choosing not to renew the contract that ends in July. It's the CI people who are stopping work before that; the courses are expected to be finished well before July.

CONFUCIUS INSTITUTE UPDATE – MARCH 22, 2013

To All Students Enrolled in Chinese Language Courses:

Thank you to all who were able to come to the meeting with President Deane yesterday afternoon. For those who were not able to attend, please see a summary of the key points below:

1. All students will be able to finish their courses and receive their deserved grades and credits at the end of this term.

2. I anticipate receiving details of your grades to date from your previous instructors. Even if I don't receive these, I will work with you and the highly-qualified substitute instructors to ensure that you receive a fair and equitable assessment of your work and are assigned the correct grades.

3. You should focus on your studies and complete all required assignments as usual.

4. All classes will resume on Monday, March 25, 2013 at your usual classrooms at current scheduled times.

At the meeting President Deane provided an overview of the legal and ethical issues that led to McMaster's decision to close the Confucius Institute. McMaster gave formal notice of the closure to its Chinese partners in December, 2012, and has been working hard to ensure the orderly winding-down of the Institute. We had hoped that the instructors from the Beijing Language and Culture University would remain here until July 31, 2013 when the Institute was due to close but, unfortunately, the University's Chinese partners made the decision to withdraw the services of the teaching staff earlier this week. As mentioned above, the University is making alternative arrangements to ensure that you are all able to complete your current courses. The Faculty is also reviewing options for Chinese language programming for the 2013-14 academic year.

Source: http://confucius.mcmaster.ca /




Apparently it's the Chinese government's fault for pulling out the teachers early...

Well, I guess I can't resist the urge to not talk about it...

So a disclaimer first before I discuss this (some were talked about in the other post). I am a Chinese national who got a (Hons)BSc and a MSc at McMaster and my tuition was provided either by my parents or from my supervisor in the forms of research scholarships (ie. not funded by the government). I am currently working at Mac. I have never joined or participated any activities that's organized by CI OR CSSA here so I am not affiliated with those people. Personally, I dislike Confucius's ideas after learning his stuff as part of the course on Chinese literature in high school so I don't really care whether CI here is dead or not. Also, I acknowledge the fact that the Chinese government is far from perfect and I don't subscribe to Communism or anything related.

Now onto the real stuff. I am appalled by the news simply because Sonia Zhao in the news was given the benefit of doubt. I can't help but think she has an ulterior motive and the motive is to become a permanent resident of Canada by seeking asylum after declaring herself as a follower of Falun Gong. And yes I understand she's innocent until proven guilty so I am just questioning her motive but not saying she's a liar because there is no proof. This actually reflects on a bigger issue. China has consistently ranked number 2 on the number of applications for permanent residency to Canada from refugees. And among those refugees, a lot,I mean, really a lot, of people claimed they believe in Falun Gong whereas they lied. This phenomenon is commonly known by the Chinese community here and Falun Gong is the way to fast-track one's PR application. That's why I question Sonia Zhao's motive. If she truly stands up for human rights, good for her! If you are a Canadian, do you really want to admit those liars to Canada? I think Jason Kenney should really take measures against this kind of immigration fraud.

Originally Posted by ptsrm

Well, I guess I can't resist the urge to not talk about it...

So a disclaimer first before I discuss this (some were talked about in the other post). I am a Chinese national who got a (Hons)BSc and a MSc at McMaster and my tuition was provided either by my parents or from my supervisor in the forms of research scholarships (ie. not funded by the government). I am currently working at Mac. I have never joined or participated any activities that's organized by CI OR CSSA here so I am not affiliated with those people. Personally, I dislike Confucius's ideas after learning his stuff as part of the course on Chinese literature in high school so I don't really care whether CI here is dead or not. Also, I acknowledge the fact that the Chinese government is far from perfect and I don't subscribe to Communism or anything related.

Now onto the real stuff. I am appalled by the news simply because Sonia Zhao in the news was given the benefit of doubt. I can't help but think she has an ulterior motive and the motive is to become a permanent resident of Canada by seeking asylum after declaring herself as a follower of Falun Gong. And yes I understand she's innocent until proven guilty so I am just questioning her motive but not saying she's a liar because there is no proof. This actually reflects on a bigger issue. China has consistently ranked number 2 on the number of applications for permanent residency to Canada from refugees. And among those refugees, a lot,I mean, really a lot, of people claimed they believe in Falun Gong whereas they lied. This phenomenon is commonly known by the Chinese community here and Falun Gong is the way to fast-track one's PR application. That's why I question Sonia Zhao's motive. If she truly stands up for human rights, good for her! If you are a Canadian, do you really want to admit those liars to Canada? I think Jason Kenney should really take measures against this kind of immigration fraud.

And how do you propose we do that?
That's the thing about claiming persecution based on your beliefs (religious or otherwise). It's incredibly difficult to prove that you really believe those things.
The only thing I can think of is requiring some sort of proof that the person/family has been threatened/persecuted/is in danger, but that would be extremely difficult to obtain for many legitimate refugees.
The system is far from perfect, but there isn't really an easy/obvious solution to making it better, either.

Originally Posted by starfish

And how do you propose we do that?
That's the thing about claiming persecution based on your beliefs (religious or otherwise). It's incredibly difficult to prove that you really believe those things.
The only thing I can think of is requiring some sort of proof that the person/family has been threatened/persecuted/is in danger, but that would be extremely difficult to obtain for many legitimate refugees.
The system is far from perfect, but there isn't really an easy/obvious solution to making it better, either.

That's kinda my point here. Since it's hard to prove you were threatened/persecuted for obvious reasons, some people take advantage of it. I just feel so bad when taxpayer's money goes into supporting those liars and related legal processes (Once you claimed to be a refugee and before you become PR, the government of Canada will provide financial support for you).

Originally Posted by ptsrm

That's kinda my point here. Since it's hard to prove you were threatened/persecuted for obvious reasons, some people take advantage of it. I just feel so bad when taxpayer's money goes into supporting those liars and related legal processes (Once you claimed to be a refugee and before you become PR, the government of Canada will provide financial support for you).

That's why the government has now made a list of "safe" countries, and refugees from those countries are pretty much screwed over. Idk if China is on that list though. I don't think that's the right way to do it, though :(

I do agree that Sonia Zhao is probably going to apply for PR status, and has an ulterior motive. That doesn't necessarily mean she's lying, though.

From what the McMaster Confucius Institute told me when I was in first year, all the profs and TAs are chosen from candidates who have been teaching at a particular university in Beijing. With the government being so strict with Falun Gong in Mainland China, probably likely that the teaching contracts/university policies that they had in Beijing already stipulated a ban on falun gong and would've looked into whether or not these candidates exhibited any evidence of practicing falun gong before even choosing them as the final candidates.

So I wouldn't be surprised if she just suddenly claimed to be a believer in falun gong so she can fast-track her PR application in addition to trying to receive some settlement money from McMaster to settle this matter (i assume there is some sort of litigation going on since a mediator had to be brought in).

It's just sad to think that McMaster students had to lose such a great learning opportunity because of an individual's personal agenda.

Originally Posted by starfish

That's why the government has now made a list of "safe" countries, and refugees from those countries are pretty much screwed over. Idk if China is on that list though. I don't think that's the right way to do it, though :(

I do agree that Sonia Zhao is probably going to apply for PR status, and has an ulterior motive. That doesn't necessarily mean she's lying, though.

China is not on that list. If you refer to my original post, I was very careful with my wording and I said I questioned her motive but was not going to call her a liar because there is no proof. So yes I think she may have premeditated the who thing just to get PR but we will never know.