Chinese diplomats walk out of Australian Labor conference over Taiwanese officials' presence

Chinese diplomats left Labor's national conference after complaining to ALP National Secretary Paul Erickson about the presence of Taiwanese officials at the high-profile political gathering in Adelaide.

Three Chinese diplomats observing the conference confronted Mr Erickson on Thursday morning to demand that two representatives from Taiwan's de facto embassy in Canberra — the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia — be ejected from the venue.

The incident was first reported by The Australian on Thursday.

The ALP has confirmed that Mr Erickson then made it clear that the TECO representatives were entitled to attend as observers, and would be allowed to remain.

Multiple sources told the ABC that the Chinese delegation left the venue in the hours after the exchange, and did not join other foreign diplomats and political representatives watching the conference that afternoon.

It is not yet clear whether their departure was intended as a deliberate protest — although other diplomatic observers at the conference told the ABC that it was hard to interpret it in any other way.

One Labor delegate also told the ABC that it was "obvious" that China had effectively staged a walk-out.

The ABC has asked the Chinese Embassy in Canberra why its diplomats left the venue, but it has not yet responded.

An ALP spokesperson declined to say if the delegation gave a reason for their departure, saying it was a question for the Chinese Embassy.

The incident could stir fresh tensions between China and Australia in the wake of several recent high-profile disputes — including over Beijing's missile test in the Pacific, confrontations between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea, and Australia's new strategic pacts with both Fiji and Vanuatu.

The two representatives from Taiwan's office are attending as general observers rather than as "international observers" — which includes foreign diplomats and representatives of political parties from multiple countries.

But China has been taking an increasingly hard line on Taiwan as it tries to diplomatically isolate the democratically ruled island, and has been ramping up pressure on countries across the globe to cut or downgrade even unofficial ties with Taipei.

Last week, China heaped praise on Papua New Guinea after it announced that it would shut down Taipei's representative office in Port Moresby.

Mark Harrison, who is a senior lecturer in Chinese Studies at the University of Tasmania, told the ABC that nothing in Australia's One China policy — which acknowledges Beijing's claim over Taiwan without endorsing it — prevented political parties like the ALP from allowing Taiwanese observers to attend.

"Our One China policy applies to the national government — a political party is not bound by it," he said.

"And given the deep trade complementarity (between Australia and Taiwan) it's entirely appropriate for these opportunities to be offered and taken advantage of."

Dr Harrison also praised Mr Erickson's response to the pressure from China, saying it was "an appropriate response to the effort by the Chinese side" to shape Labor's decisions.

"It's important from the Australian side that government and other organisations subject to that effort understand the importance of setting clear boundaries," he said.