Confucius Institute

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (15:14): A further supplementary: the assistant minister outlined some of the activities that she has been involved in as part of her responsibilities as a parliamentary ambassador for the Confucius Institute, albeit saying that there was no written description of what her role should be. Who then determines which schools you visit, when you visit them and what other activities you partake in as a parliamentary ambassador? Is it you, solely you, or does someone else in the Confucius Institute give you a list of activities to engage in?

The Hon. J.S. LEE (15:15): The list of activities is on an ad hoc basis. If an invitation comes through and I'm available and it meets my schedule, then I attend. It's not like a compulsory involvement as such. I am not deemed to be at every single activity or event that has been commissioned or organised by the Confucius Institute. Mind you, the Confucius Institute itself actually does not teach a language. It is under the Department of Asian Studies, and the University of Adelaide actually determines the curriculum of the language studies, not the Confucius Institute itself.