During a brief meeting at the APEC summit in San Francisco, Justin Trudeau told Xi Jinping that it is important that Canada and China continue to work toward constructive dialogue.
Trudeau even added: “We have made it clear for years that we have concerns about foreign interference, and we will continue to do everything necessary to keep Canadians safe.” If only this were the case in the case of China.
Although the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) had been warning about Chinese interference in Canadian politics for years, it was the media leaks that forced Trudeau to act. CSIS documents obtained by the Globe and Mail show that Beijing funded at least 11 candidates in the 2019 elections.
The evidence of Beijing’s interference in our democracy is irrefutable, as is the fact that Justin Trudeau refused to take the Chinese threat seriously.
One investigation follows another
In September, Trudeau was forced by opposition parties to appoint Quebec Court of Appeal Judge Marie-Josée Hogue to investigate foreign interference in federal electoral processes and democratic institutions by “China, Russia and other foreign states or non-state actors.”
The Chinese and Russians are not the only ones who want to manipulate our political parties. Other countries where there are influential minorities in Canada also do so. I am thinking, among other things, of India and Israel.
The first phase of Judge Hogue’s investigation will focus on interference activities in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. The Commissioner will also examine the Federal Government’s ability to detect, prevent and combat this interference.
She is, in a sense, taking over after an initial initiative by Trudeau on the foreign interference file that ended in a debacle.
He had appointed a family friend, former Governor General David Johnston, as a “special rapporteur” to investigate Chinese interference. Since he was married to a Chinese woman and had two daughters studying in China, he didn’t exactly have the profile of an impartial investigator.
Johnston also wanted his report to remain secret. Apparently to protect Trudeau and the Liberals. Indeed, Justin himself and some of his ministers must be the focus of such a public inquiry. For years he did everything he could to prevent Chinese interference in the Liberal Party and the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, of which David Johnston was a member.
Johnston was forced to resign in late May after a majority in the House of Commons approved a resignation motion citing “serious questions” about conflicts of interest.
I’ve already said it. It seems obvious to me that the Chinese Communist Party used the Trudeau Foundation as an important vehicle to place influential agents in key positions and thus steer Canadian politics in their favor.
Benefit from the Chinese’s misfortune
We need not be intimidated by possible threats of Chinese trade retaliation. The world’s second-largest economy is struggling to recover from the pandemic. The demand for Chinese products is low. Its exports are declining, as is foreign investment in China. Look at how Xi courted to attract the American business community during his visit to San Francisco.
Judge Hogue’s final report is expected before the next federal election, scheduled for fall 2025. But Trudeau is governing with the support of the New Democratic Party, which could withdraw its trust in him by then.