Conservative MP Michael Chong renewed calls for the federal government to counter foreign interference and use provisions in Bill C-70, adopted by Parliament last year, to crack down on Beijing’s intimidation of dissidents.
“We’ve had more than enough reports, public inquiries, commissions that have highlighted this transnational repression and foreign interference,” Chong told CBC News in an interview. “It’s now time for action.”
Diaspora communities also called on the Liberals to launch a foreign agent registry back in March, before the election took place, citing fears that bad actors were poised to meddle in Canada’s electoral process again.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre accused Prime Minister Mark Carney of benefiting from Chinese interference both during his leadership race and throughout the election.
“Beijing has interfered both in the Liberal leadership race—helping Mark Carney—and again in the general election to support Mr. Carney,” said Poilievre last month.
“I’m deeply concerned about the potential for foreign interference, especially given that Mr. Carney’s company—which he still has investments in—owes a quarter of a billion dollars to the Chinese government.”
However, their calls fell on deaf ears.
Chong, who was himself the victim of a Chinese smear campaign, has long been a staunch advocate in the fight against Chinese interference.
Attacks on Chinese dissidents living in Canada and around the world have continued to rise in recent years.
He called Beijing’s covert conduct a “brazen” threat to Canadian democracy.
The Chinese communist government has been known to quash dissidents with the use of online attacks, surveillance, and threats to their family members still in China.
While these crimes are on the rise, they’re not new.
CSIS officials testified during the foreign interference commission that they made former prime minister Justin Trudeau aware of foreign election interference via briefings in the lead-up to the 2019 election, but his government refused to act.
Parliament adopted legislation last summer aimed at countering foreign influence in elections and protecting dissidents living in Canada.
Bill C-70 included key provisions, such as establishing a foreign agent registry and a foreign influence commissioner’s office.
However, neither measure was ever implemented.
The response to these promises was strong amongst Canadians at the time, who were frustrated with increasing uncertainty around the validity of Canada’s elections.
A Nanos Research poll from last July found that 65 per cent of Canadians said MPs guilty of foreign interference should face a criminal charge and jail time. Another 53 per cent said that convicted MPs should be removed from caucus.
Chong noted that Prime Minister Mark Carney has yet to show that Chinese interference is a priority his government is eager to fix.
“The early signs are troubling,” said Chong. “There’s no mention in the speech from the throne. There’s been no update on the establishment of this registry, and we’ve heard little from the government about protecting Canadians from these national security threats.”
According to the Public Safety Department, it’s currently drafting the regulations to enact Bill C-70, such as setting up the commissioner’s office and creating the necessary IT infrastructure for the registry.