“We are committed to maintaining and strengthening a vibrant, inclusive and respectful campus community in which diversity is recognized, valued and celebrated,” the University of Melbourne said in a statement. Monash University confirmed on Facebook that 23 posters had been found on their Clayton campus and called “any instance of racism abhorrent.”

On Chinese social media platforms like WeChat and Weibo, news of the posters garnered significant attention. The Chinese state news media reported on the posters while highlighting a history of other anti-Chinese incidents in Australia.

An article on Australian Red Scarf, a popular website among young Chinese people in Australia, called on the Australian government to get involved in the matter. The article was viewed more than 17,000 times.

“We could have just laughed at these posters insulting China,” it said. “But this has happened in the first week of the semester, and has brought shame on our student union — will you be able to put up with this?”

Sophie Johnston, president of the National Union of Students, said the group had been in contact with student body presidents at universities across Australia to warn them in case similar episodes occurred.

“Those kinds of comments don’t have any place on university campuses,” she said, adding that most Australian students did not share such sentiment toward Chinese students.

It is not the first time the Antipodean Resistance has left racist material on campuses. In December, posters urging “Keep Australia White” were also found on buildings at the University of Melbourne.