JCDecaux Australia defends billboards labelled as “propaganda”

14 billboard advertisements promoting the 25th anniversary of Britain's handover of Hong Kong to China on billboards across Sydney and Melbourne have come under fire , with Hongkongers, resident in Australia labelling them as “Chinese propaganda”.

JCDecaux Australia, owner of the billboards has said it displays content provided by third parties. "Before publishing, the content of the advert was reviewed by JCDecaux against the relevant industry codes and guidelines for the outdoor media industry," a spokesperson said to the ABC, adding "It meets the relevant policies in relation to outdoor advertising."

Australia Hong Kong Link and the Victoria HongKongers Association have both lodged complaints with industry self-regulatory body, Ad Standards, arguing the advertisements vilified parts of the Hong Kong community "on account of ethnicity", however Ad Standards has confirmed to the ABC that political advertising is not covered by Ad Standards.

Greens Leader, and Senator for Victoria, Adam Bandt has called for the billboards to be taken down.

The SBS has reported that similar advertisements were removed from trams in Belgium following complaints of China’s human rights record.