Australian prime minister loses control of WeChat account

By ROD McGUIRK
Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has lost control of his Chinese-owned social media platform WeChat account and a lawmaker has accused China’s leaders of political interference. Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on Monday that Morrison’s 76,000 WeChat followers were notified his page had been renamed “Australian Chinese new life” earlier this month and his photograph had been removed. The changes were made without the government’s knowledge. Joint Parliamentary Committee on Intelligence and Security Chair James Paterson accused the Chinese Communist Party of censoring the prime minister ahead of elections in May. Paterson is a member of Morrison’s conservative Liberal Party.