CANBERRA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Penny Wong, foreign affairs spokesperson of Australia's opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP), has accused the fake news campaign on social media.
Wong has called on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to "rule out" any involvement on behalf of the governing Liberal Party "in the malicious false content" targeting Labor on WeChat, China's largest messaging platform, in the lead-up to the general election on May 18, according to the Guardian Australia on Tuesday.
"We have robust political debates. We don't have major political parties engaging in fake news on this media platform or any other media platform," she said.
"It is incumbent upon Scott Morrison to rule out any Liberal Party involvement in the malicious false content that is circulating on WeChat."
A Liberal party spokesman responded "These are not ads distributed by the Liberal party. All Liberal party advertising carries an official authorization."
WeChat has emerged as a key battleground in the election campaign as both parties fight for the support of Chinese-Australians in marginal seats that could be deciding factors in the result on election night.
The ALP has deployed Kevin Rudd, the Mandarin-speaking former prime minister, in those electorates in an attempt to win back Chinese support from the government.
