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Hello everyone,

Please read below for the International Students' Department (ISD)'s response to the article titled 'Artworks Removed From aMBUSH Following ISD Complaint' that ANU Observer published earlier today and have since taken down of their own accord.

We are disappointed to see how the information that we provided to ANU Observer regarding the situation was presented in a misleading manner in regards to the ISD and the situation of the removal of the artworks in the...

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ANU Observer
Yesterday at 12:01 AM

Dear ANU Community,

We have removed an article that was titled 'Artworks Removed From aMBUSH Following ISD Complaint'. The Observer Editorial Board feels that t...he article unfairly characterised the information shown to us about the incident, particularly the position of the International Students Department (ISD). We apologise for any confusion and harm this may have caused. This incident is not the fault of the article's Reporter. The Editorial Board takes full responsibility for this mistake and stands by the professionalism and integrity of all of the organisation's Reporters.
We plan to release an updated version of the article in the coming days.

Kind regards,
The ANU Observer Editorial Board

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Hi everyone,

The ISD team is writing to you today with regards to one of the artworks present at the ‘Don’t Shoot the Messenger’ exhibition held at the aMBUSH Gallery in Kambri. As of this moment, the artwork, CNY #1, has been taken down permanently. aMBUSH Gallery also issued a statement of apology:

Dear ANU International Students’ Department,

...

Thank you for your email, we apologise for any hurt displaying these works have caused. In light of the feedback we have decided to remove the artworks.

As a social enterprise, we strive to present art that upholds all communities and are deeply sorry for any offence caused to members of the community.

The exhibition aims to hold a mirror up to a range of global issues affecting society today including the Religious Discrimination Bill and Black Lives Matter movement.

The artist’s objective was not to feed into destructive narratives, but to call out the racism experienced by the Chinese community and the absurdity of racist stories around the virus origin.

However, both the artist and aMBUSH understand the experience of the artwork has not reflected the artist’s intention.

Kindest,
Nicole

Precinct General Manager Kambri at ANU

We would like to extend our support and solidarity to all students who have been affected by the artwork. Being fully aware of the triggering nature of the artwork, ISD believes that the artwork should have no place in our community and should never represent our values at any point. Racism and discrimination is unacceptable and it will always be.

We fully understand how distressed students can be in situations like this and it is our responsibility to ensure all international students are safe and well studying here at the ANU.

For those affected, please reach out to Benedict Chin, our President and ANUSA International Students’ Officer, at sa.international@anu.edu.au.

Support is also available at:
Dean of Students: dean.students@anu.edu.au ANU UniSafe: (02) 6125 2249 or security@anu.edu.au
ANU Counselling: (02) 6178 0455
Lifeline (crisis support service): 13 11 14
Beyond Blue (mental wellbeing support service): 1300 22 4636

Otherwise, enjoy your weekend and take good care of yourself!

In strength and solidarity,
ISD Team 2021

*ISD is the peak representative body for all international students studying at the ANU. All international fee-paying students are automatically an ISD member. For those that have a similar experience to that of an international student, you can apply to be one of our associate members too. We are made up of international students who genuinely care about the welfare of the international community here at the ANU. We are committed to ensure that your voices get heard by the university.*

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