Legal action by student activist, Drew Pavlou, against the Chinese Consul General for allegedly inciting violence against him has been dismissed in a Queensland court today.
Brisbane magistrate Janelle Brassington dismissed the application after ruling Consul General Dr Xu Jie has “diplomatic immunity” because he was performing the functions of a consular officer.
A staunch Beijing critic, Mr Pavlou had made an application under Queensland’s Peace and Good Behaviour Act seeking a retraction of comments made by the Chinese official.
It followed a statement reportedly posted on the Consul General website condemning a protest as anti-China separatist activities. Mr Pavlou was a key organiser of the demonstration held at the University of Queensland.
In response to today’s court decision, Mr Pavlou wrote on Twitter, “the court cannot help us.”
“We need Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, to protect Australian citizens by expelling Xu Jie as a diplomat,” he added.
