(Ottawa) The federal agency charged with investigating election violations has found insufficient evidence to support allegations that Beijing exerted undue influence on Vancouver-area Conservatives during the 2021 general election.
The federal elections commissioner’s recently completed review of this lingering issue was tabled Tuesday at the federal inquiry into foreign interference.
The review focused on Conservative candidate Kenny Chiu’s unsuccessful campaign in Steveston-Richmond East and the party’s broader efforts in the Vancouver area.
The agency says the evidence uncovered did not trigger the threshold to launch a formal investigation under the Canada Elections Act.
The investigators therefore recommended that the review be concluded.
A summary of the review’s findings was shared with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The review indicates that both agencies indicated that the Elections Commissioner’s findings were consistent with their own understanding of the situation.
During the exercise, the Commissioner’s investigators met with Chinese-Canadian residents of Mr. Chiu’s riding and surrounding ridings.
They were told about a vast network of Chinese-Canadian associations, businesses and media organizations that offer the diaspora a lifestyle that mirrors that of China in many ways.
“In addition, this diaspora maintains ongoing and extensive business, social and family relationships with China,” the study says.
Some interviewees reported that this “has created aspects of a parallel society involving many Chinese Canadians in the Lower Mainland, including concerted support, direction and control by individuals from or involved in the Vancouver Consulate and the United Front Work Department in China.”
Investigators were also informed of members of three Chinese-Canadian associations, as well as others, who allegedly used their positions to influence the choice of Chinese-Canadian voters in the 2021 election in a direction favorable to Beijing’s interests, the study said.
These efforts were triggered by elements of the Conservative Party’s election platform and by actions and statements by Mr. Chiu “that were exploited to reinforce allegations that the platform and Mr. Chiu were anti-Chinese and encouraged anti-Chinese discrimination and racism.”
These messages were amplified on social media, chat groups and publications, as well as in Chinese in online, print and radio media across the Vancouver area.
After review, the messages “were not found to be contrary” to the Canada Elections Actthe study says, citing the Supreme Court of Canada’s position that the concept of freedom of expression permeates all truly democratic societies and institutions.
The review said the effectiveness of the anti-conservative and anti-Chiu campaigns was enhanced by circumstances “specific to the Chinese diaspora and the assertive nature of the Chinese government’s interests.”
He notes that the election was preceded by statements by the Chinese ambassador to Canada and the consul general in Vancouver as well as articles published or broadcast in Chinese-Canadian media controlled by Beijing.
“According to Chinese-Canadian respondents, this has sparked a generalized fear among voters, described as a fear of retaliation by Chinese authorities if a government [conservateur] was elected.”
This included the possibility that Chinese authorities could interfere with travel to and from China, as well as actions taken against family members or business interests in China, the study said.
“Several Chinese Canadians surveyed believed that Chinese authorities could take such punitive measures, and this fear was particularly acute among Chinese Canadian voters from mainland China. One said that “everyone understands” the need to say only positive things about China.
However, none of the Canadians surveyed would name the voters directly affected by the anti-Conservative campaign, nor the community leaders who claimed to speak on behalf of a voter.
Several weeks of public inquiry hearings will focus on the ability of federal agencies to detect, deter and counter foreign interference.
Some MPs would have liked to have been informed earlier
In separate testimony Tuesday, Conservative MP Garnett Genuis told the Hogue commission that parliamentarians targeted by Chinese hackers could have taken immediate protective action if they had been notified sooner.
PHOTO ADRIAN WYLD, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Conservative MP Garnett Genuis
Earlier this year, it was reported that in 2021, some MPs and senators were victims of cyberattacks by hackers because of their involvement in the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, which is pushing for accountability from Beijing.
U.S. authorities apparently informed the Canadian government of the cyberattacks in 2022. Ottawa in turn informed IT officials in Parliament, but not MPs themselves.
Genuis, who is a co-chair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, told the federal inquiry into foreign interference on Tuesday that he still does not understand why he was not informed earlier about the cyberattacks.
Liberal MP John McKay, who is also co-chair of the Alliance, said there should be a clear protocol for informing parliamentarians about cyber threats.