"The Advertiser" (Adelaide) Saturday, 24 May

By Stuart Innes

Several hundred people are expected to protest when a high-level Chinese Government party visit Adelaide tomorrow.

A party of nearly 60 Chinese officials, support staff and media, plus more than a dozen Australian officials, is due to arrive from Perth at Adelaide Airport at 3.30pm.

The group, led by Vice-Premier in the Government of the People's Republic of China, Mr Zhu Rongji, will be here for 24 hours as part of its one-week visit to Australia.

However, a protest is being mounted by the Australian Tibet Council on human rights issues and on alleged Chinese repression in Tibet.

The Premier, Mr Olsen, and Education Minister, Mr Lucas, will greet the party. The group, which includes 13 Chinese secuity officers, then will visit Chapel Hill Winery at McLaren Vale, south of the city.

The SA organiser of the Australian Tibet Council, Ms Ann Sharley, said yesterday a protest was being mounted and probably would be at the airport for tomorrow's arrival.

She said it was under "shameful circumstances" that the visit was taking place.

She said the Chinese visit to Australia was occurring as a reward to Australia for not supporting a United Nations Human Rights Commission move, as it had done in the past.

The commission pointed at China as one of the countries with bad human rights practices, she said.

She said France had been the first to withdraw its support from the commission and had been rewarded with a large contract to supply aircraft to China. "Now Australia is trying for trade benefits from China as a reward for its silence on human rights issues."