City Vision distances itself from similar sounding party with Chinese nationalist candidate

City Vision has distanced itself from the similar sounding party of East Vision, which is running candidates for the Howick Local Board elections.

They say it’s not “appropriate” of East Vision, one of whose candidates Morgan Xiao is known amongst Chinese New Zealanders for being a writer with searing anti-democracy and pro-Chinese Communist Party views.

“They’re trying to ride on a successful name that’s developed a profile and that stands for something,” said  City Vision chair Robert Gallagher.

“We are disappointed they are doing this, we don’t think it’s appropriate.”

City Vision has tweeted they have no affiliation with East Vision and are not standing any candidates in Howick.

“East Vision isn't afiliated [sic] with City Vision in any way and we have no City Vision afiliated [sic] candidates standing in Howick.”

East Vision doesn’t have a party leader but one of the candidates defended the naming.

“We didn’t even think of it this way, it has nothing to do with City Vision, this was mainly because of our vision for East Auckland,” said Tofik Mamedov.

“The word ’vision’ isn’t copyrighted in any way, it’s an English word.

“I don’t know where they’re coming from, I’m not sure why they’re disappointed,” said Mr Mamedov.

Another East Vision candidate Morgan Xiao, 37, a Labour Party member who is running for the Howick Local Board, said in a Facebook post that, “Some of my views have offended some people for which I have apologised.”

Referring to the Tiananmen Square massacre, he said, “let us string up these June 4^th rioters and beat them.”

In another article Mr Xiao referred to Chinese dissident Freeman Yu’s petition, that the New Zealand government should investigate Chinese interference into our political system, as an “anti-Chinese document”.

Mr Yu does not feel safe to go back to China after police there spoke to his wife asking for him to stop criticising the CCP.

According to Mr Yu, Mr Xiao is famous in the online Chinese community as a columnist and has written many articles in favour of the CCP, against democracy, and against Muslim countries.

“He always says western countries are fake democracies, not real democracies, that the communist party is another type of democracy.” The CCP is currently conducting a genocide against the Uighur Muslim group in the western province of Xinjiang.