Red Line

4.5 (97)
GOVERNMENT
SERIES

Can we walk the thin line between what some see as an evil empire and others as our greatest economic opportunity? A four-part series investigating China's growing influence in New Zealand.

EPISODE 1

The Blood of Our Friends

Two Chinese New Zealanders are killed in a car crash while on a mission to warn of the dangers of the Chinese Communist Party. So exactly what is China up to in New Zealand? To see more images and details about the series, vist the website here. Two Chinese New Zealanders are killed while on their way to a parliamentary select-committee meeting, to warn of the dangers of the Chinese Communist Party. Their friends, left clutching bloodied fliers, fear it may have been sabotage. In the first part of this four-part podcast, Guyon Espiner and John Daniell begin to investigate the car crash and examine what's worrying the dissident Chinese community here in New Zealand. They look at the rise of China and of President Xi Jinping and how that's being reflected in New Zealand's universities and parts of the media. They speak to Chinese New Zealanders who were in Tiananmen Square in 1989, look at how close we've grown to China and ask how New Zealand is walking the thin line between China and our western allies. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

43 min
EPISODE 2

The Crash

Two dissidents die in a car crash. China expert Anne-Marie Brady reports break-ins at her house and office. A US National Security Advisor warns that Beijing wants "servitude". Should we be worried about the Chinese Communist Party? Or are we being paranoid? To see more images and details about the series, vist the website here. What really happened on State Highway 1 outside Tokoroa? Was it an accident - or something more sinister? And as the political stakes rise, who can we trust to tell the truth? In episode two we dig into the truth about that car crash and those break-ins. What did the police investigations find? And we head to the US to speak to H.R McMaster, who served as National Security Advisor under President Donald Trump, and who has strong words for China. Plus we hear from former Prime Minister John Key, who led the country as our exports to China grew to record levels, who knows President Xi personally and who is impressed with China's remarkable success in bringing hundreds of millions out of poverty. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

37 min
EPISODE 3

A United Front

The Chinese Government has a propaganda super ministry. But how much influence does it have in New Zealand? And is development money from the CCP an opportunity or economic 'invasion'? To see more images and details about the series, vist the website here. The Chinese Government has created a propaganda super ministry - the United Front Works department. But how much influence and reach does it have in New Zealand? In episode three, Guyon Espiner and John Daniell travel to the Far North to look at the opportunities presented by Chinese investments here and New Zealand business potential over there. How concerned do our exporters need to be about human rights in China or other trading partners? We also dig into the massive United Front Works Department and talk to people in New Zealand about the influence CCP propaganda is having here in New Zealand. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

44 min
EPISODE 4

Red Line

As China becomes more assertive, human rights abuses are exposed and evidence grows of our politicians being played, where should New Zealand draw the line? To see more images and details about the series, vist the website here. A New Zealand Uighur fears his parents are in Chinese Communist Party internment camps. And as China becomes increasingly assertive, Western governments push back. But where should New Zealand draw the line? In episode four we ask what's really going on in Xinjiang and what's happening to the indigenous Uighurs. One New Zealand Uighur speaks out about his missing family and we talk to spying experts about China's intelligence activities. Are our politicians being played? What really happened with MPs Jian Yang and Raymond Hou? How extreme are China's human rights abuses? And do criticisms of the CCP amount to criticisms of Chinese people? Guyon Espiner and John Daniell conclude their year-long investigation into China's growing influence in New Zealand and the Pacific. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

45 min
EPISODE 5 BONUS

Bonus Episode: China, If You're Listening E1

If you liked Red Line, you'll also enjoy China, If You're Listening from Australia's public broadcaster, the ABC. Hosted by Matt Bevan it looks at how Australia's relationship with China has gone from warm and friendly to the verge of collapse. If Red Line has piqued your interest in China and the growing tensions in this part of the world, then we'd like to recommend a new podcast from our friends at the ABC in Australia. China, If You're Listening is a podcast about how the relationship between Australia and China has come to the verge of collapse. We covered this in Red Line, but the ABC takes you much deeper into the hostility between two of the countries we reply on most. Not long ago, Chinese President Xi Jinping was regularly having warm, friendly chats with Australia's Prime Ministers. Now, he won't even take their phone calls, trade is being blocked, and Australian politicians are talking about preparations for war. Have a listen to episode one here, as it looks at the life and rise of China's president Xi Jinping. You can follow the full series on Apple, Spotify, iHeart and everywhere you get podcasts. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

34 min
SEASON 1 TRAILER

Introducing: Red Line

Are we paranoid? Or is the Chinese Communist Party out to get us? Guyon Espiner and John Daniell investigate China's growing influence in New Zealand in this four-part podcast series. To see more images and details about the series, vist the website here. Watch the video trailer here. In July 2020, two Chinese New Zealanders were killed in a car crash. Wang Yuezhong and Xi Weiguo were on their way to parliament, trying to bring a message to the New Zealand government. The dead men wanted us to wake up to the dangers of the Chinese Communist Party, but never got to deliver their message. This is a story where global politics hits up hard against people's lives. New Zealand's relationship with China goes deep. We were the first western country to support China's membership of the World Trade Organization in 1997, the first developed country to recognise China as a market economy in 2004 and the first developed country to sign a Free Trade Agreement with it in 2008. Since signing the FTA, trade has gone up between the two countries by more than three hundred percent, to over 32 billion dollars. China is by far our largest trading partner, taking roughly 30 percent of our exports. But increasingly, China's internal and external politics are coming under scrutiny. Crackdowns in Hong Kong, tensions in the South China Sea and more than a million Uighurs in internment camps, suffering forced labour, sterilisations and torture. One by one, western countries are calling the situation genocide. But not New Zealand. Instead, we have "grave concerns". Our government continues to walk a thin line - a thin red line - between our traditional western friendships and our increasingly important commercial relationship with China. In this four-part investigation Guyon Espiner and John Daniell look at China's growing influence in New Zealand. And across the region. They go to protests, universities, parliament, and the homes of dissidents talking to politicians, business leaders, experts and even American military leaders to chart what that influence looks like. How do you view New Zealand's relationship with the world's rising superpower? Are we paranoid? Or is the Chinese Communist Party out to get us? Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

3 min

TRAILER

Introducing: Red Line

Are we paranoid? Or is the Chinese Communist Party out to get us? Guyon Espiner and John Daniell investigate China's growing influence in New Zealand in this four-part podcast series. To see more images and details about the series, vist the website here. Watch the video trailer here. In July 2020, two Chinese New Zealanders were killed in a car crash. Wang Yuezhong and Xi Weiguo were on their way to parliament, trying to bring a message to the New Zealand government. The dead men wanted us to wake up to the dangers of the Chinese Communist Party, but never got to deliver their message. This is a story where global politics hits up hard against people's lives. New Zealand's relationship with China goes deep. We were the first western country to support China's membership of the World Trade Organization in 1997, the first developed country to recognise China as a market economy in 2004 and the first developed country to sign a Free Trade Agreement with it in 2008. Since signing the FTA, trade has gone up between the two countries by more than three hundred percent, to over 32 billion dollars. China is by far our largest trading partner, taking roughly 30 percent of our exports. But increasingly, China's internal and external politics are coming under scrutiny. Crackdowns in Hong Kong, tensions in the South China Sea and more than a million Uighurs in internment camps, suffering forced labour, sterilisations and torture. One by one, western countries are calling the situation genocide. But not New Zealand. Instead, we have "grave concerns". Our government continues to walk a thin line - a thin red line - between our traditional western friendships and our increasingly important commercial relationship with China. In this four-part investigation Guyon Espiner and John Daniell look at China's growing influence in New Zealand. And across the region. They go to protests, universities, parliament, and the homes of dissidents talking to politicians, business leaders, experts and even American military leaders to chart what that influence looks like. How do you view New Zealand's relationship with the world's rising superpower? Are we paranoid? Or is the Chinese Communist Party out to get us? Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

S1

•

3 min

Guyon Espiner

Host
John Daniell

Host

4.5

out of 5

97 Ratings

Great listening here.

07/12/2021

echomikefoxtrot

Somewhat unsettling…
So much for impartiality

05/05/2023

Rational being101

Not exactly what I’d call objective. The host make their leanings clear right from the get go. They go on to offer several objectionable assertions about events that they demonstrate may or may not have happened. They back these up with the opinion of a “leading” academic who during the show according to police evidence and statements gathered by the podcast hosts discredits herself as being basically insane. The positive interactions with China of people interviewed by the host are presented with a full “this can’t be right” slant. Overall one of the poorest pieces of so called journalism I’ve ever experienced.
Interesting and informative but leans toward hardline China criticism

27/10/2022

Of sjknnfsgjn4567

The hosts mostly take a neutral and objective position, as would be expected of good journalism. However, the podcast interviews many hardline China critics who receive little pushback from the hosts in interviews. For balance they have John Key, who seems biased and to be fond of China for economic reasons.
Simon Drought

03/09/2021

Simon sauce

An essential listen. Nz, like all countries, has tricky waters to navigate, especially with conflict in the South China Sea unavoidable.

Can we walk the thin line between what some see as an evil empire and others as our greatest economic opportunity? A four-part series investigating China's growing influence in New Zealand.