Canada

OTTAWA – The House of Commons has unanimously agreed that a committee should strike a study into the “intimidation campaign” allegedly orchestrated by a now-expelled Chinese diplomat against Conservative MP Michael Chong and his family.

Debate on the motion to see the Procedure and House Affairs Committee (PROC) take on this probe took priority in the House over the last few days, after House Speaker Anthony Rota found that Chong’s parliamentary privileges were breached as a result of the alleged targeting. The vote was held after question period on Wednesday, and passed with all-party support.

There has been much discussion of late about Chinese interference, both in our democratic processes and directed at specific individuals. In both cases, concern has arisen because that information came from leaked intelligence reports. While no one has seen the leaked material, however, it is clear that Chinese activity has taken place – confirmed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and by testimony before a House committee.

All three national security and intelligence advisers who served Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2021 told Global News that they do not recall receiving a top secret intelligence assessment prepared that year about Beijing targeting Conservative MP Michael Chong and his family in Hong Kong.

The development raises yet more questions about how the report from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), which was allegedly sent to the desk of the prime minister’s top national security official, somehow fell through the cracks.

“Persona non grata.” In diplomatic circles, those three words are the equivalent of excommunication. Under Article 9 of the 1963 Vienna Convention for Diplomatic Relations, to which Canada is a party, a country can declare any member of another nation’s diplomatic corps persona non grata “at any time and without having to explain its decision.” It is considered “the most damning form of censure a country can bestow on foreign diplomats.”

One would have thought that Zhao Wei, a Chinese diplomat and suspected intelligence officer, would have been sent home by the evening the news broke that he was part of an effort by Beijing to target MP Michael Chong’s family – or better still, two years ago when CSIS first learned about this.

But the expulsion came a week after The Globe and Mail brought the matter to the public’s attention. Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly had said the government was considering what economic, consular and diplomatic retaliation might be visited upon Canada if it went through with the move.

She’s really saying Justin had to look out for the best interests of Canada’s China Class, they after all have money invested with the Communist Slave State.