Is Big Kev Rudd getting ready to take on the winner of the Halfthor vs Eddie Hall superman boxing event? He certainly is rippling in muscle, I think, but then I am half blind, and half mad. Anyway, mutual admiration aside, big Kev, who knows a bit about China, doing a thesis on it, which is mighty impressive, as not too many people do theses:
https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/politics/queensland/kevin-rudd-accuses-uq-of-appearing-to-bend-the-knee-to-beijing-20200602-p54ys1.html
“Former prime minister Kevin Rudd has hit out at the University of Queensland's "mismanagement" of a student activist who has been highly critical of Chinese influence on campus. Drew Pavlou was handed a two-year suspension by the university last week, after he was alleged to have contravened UQ's student charter and integrity and harassment policies. The allegations made against Mr Pavlou were outlined in a confidential 186-page document, but were believed to be linked to his on-campus activism supporting Hong Kong and criticism of the Chinese Communist Party. Pro-Hong Kong protests turned violent at the university last year after demonstrators were confronted by Chinese activists. Mr Rudd said he was becoming "increasingly concerned at how Chancellor [Peter] Varghese is presiding over the shredding of the national and international reputation of one of our nation’s leading universities through the mismanagement of the Pavlou case". "Varghese has allowed this case to escalate into a major debate around the world as to whether the university stands for academic freedom or not. It should have been nipped in the bud much earlier," Mr Rudd told Brisbane Times. "Varghese has boasted he has the experience to handle the complexity of the university’s China relationship given his background as a senior Australian diplomat. "Instead, the university is now seen around Australia and the world as bending the knee to Beijing, rather than just dealing with a badly behaved undergraduate.
"It’s time for Varghese to act now to restore Drew Pavlou’s right to complete his degree - while requiring Pavlou to adhere to the same social media protocols as the rest of us." Mr Varghese intially did not comment on Mr Rudd's remarks but later issued a statement that said Mr Rudd "appears not to understand the role of the university senate or the separation of governance and management". "For the Chancellor to intervene in a disciplinary process and 'nip it in the bud' would be inappropriate, not least because the senate is the final body of appeal against decisions taken by a disciplinary board of the university," he said. A spokeswoman for the chancellor referred to an earlier statement, in which Mr Varghese said he was concerned by aspects of the findings and would convene a meeting of UQ’s Senate this week to discuss the matter. Mr Rudd said Mr Pavlou had been a regular critic of his and he had "hardly conducted himself with grace". "Nonetheless, the university’s response to his case is excessive. Effectively terminating a young man’s academic career is completely disproportionate," he said. "Drew Pavlou is hardly the first brash young activist to protest against their university. I would have expected Pavlou's activism to be tolerated, just as other radical student activists have been tolerated in decades past. "If he has violated state or federal laws, then there are mechanisms available for dealing with that outside the disciplinary procedures of the university." Mr Pavlou, who had six months left of his degree, has vowed to fight his suspension in the Supreme Court. The university has maintained disciplinary action against Mr Pavlou was not in relation to his criticism of UQ's relationship with China.”
Of course not, how could it be? And, good to see you surface from the books again Kev, I sure miss critiquing you, you were almost as colourful as Gillard.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kW0Fy88ilEs&t=3667s
What a wonderful world, yeah, sure Satchmo.