This time finally had to be the right one. Following the short and sterile chapter of the “special rapporteur”, Justin Trudeau’s government finally agreed to the inevitable holding of a real public inquiry into foreign interference. But the partisanship, which colored all the previous stages of this saga, quickly re-intruded into this issue. At the same rate that the hope of getting to the bottom of these worrying attempts at electoral influence has evaporated. Because even before Judge Marie-Josée Hogue’s commission officially gets underway, Pierre Poilievre’s conservatives are once again exposing their lack of seriousness in this file of yet capital democratic importance.
Mr. Poilievre’s troops criticize Commissioner Hogue for not having granted them the status of “party” – but only that of “intervener” – for the first phase of the public inquiry, which will come this winter to measure the efforts of foreign interference and their repercussions during the last two federal elections. The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) will only have full party status (which will allow it to consult all documentation and cross-examine witnesses) for the second phase of the commission, which will assess the federal government’s ability to detect , to prevent and counter these attempts at influence, as well as to recommend the necessary improvements.
A decision by the commission of inquiry which “undermines the credibility of the entire process”, the conservatives are already mocking. However, their own deputy Michael Chong, himself targeted at least twice by Beijing, will participate fully in the entire work.
They also denounce the fact that the commissioner warned the PCC that she will not tolerate the public inquiry “becoming a partisan debate”. A warning which “suggests bias”, they criticize, expressly avoiding specifying that the same advice was addressed to the New Democratic Party, which was also refused full status for the first phase of the commission.
There is no justification for Pierre Poilievre to undermine from the outset the public inquiry that he himself rightly called for, along with the NDP and the Bloc Québécois, for months.
Does the Conservative leader not trust his own elected official, Michael Chong, to raise the questions and concerns of his party? Respected and well informed, Mr. Chong was able to demonstrate a welcome wisdom in this sensitive issue of democratic sovereignty (and a height that some of his colleagues, such as Leslyn Lewis, who is sponsoring a petition with conspiratorial allegations calling for Canada’s withdrawal from the United Nations and the WHO).
Pierre Poilievre’s refusal to place his initial confidence in Commissioner Hogue is equally unjustified, after having ratified her appointment and her mandate. The same goes for the one he should place in the citizens, who have also been waiting for almost a year for explanations.
The work of the commissioner and her team will be closely watched by voters, experts and members of diasporas targeted by Chinese Communist Party harassment and intimidation. The latter are concerned about seeing certain politicians, suspected of being too close to Beijing, participating in the work of the investigation. It will be up to Judge Hogue to reassure them and ensure their full freedom to testify.
The sprawling scope of foreign interference, on a scale unsuspected by many until now, has shaken the political class and society. A commission of inquiry charged with shedding light for the first time on such shadowy maneuvers will perhaps prove imperfect. If this is the case, there will still be time to denounce it loud and clear once the task is completed.
But all over the world, democracy is being undermined and doubted. It would be indefensible for Pierre Poilievre to persist in fueling this mistrust on Canadian soil, out of pure partisan blindness. His allegations that the process — not even started, it should be remembered — “benefits the Liberal Party” are unacceptable. Just like his insinuations half-heartedly accusing the Prime Minister of treason, alleging that Mr. Trudeau would have let Beijing do this knowing full well that its interference would favor China’s interests rather than those of Canada.
By delaying the holding of a public inquiry by six months, to try to avoid answering for his government’s insufficient response, Justin Trudeau has eroded public confidence. Now undermining the credibility of this commission of inquiry, as Pierre Poilievre has been doing for a month, risks undermining what remains of it.
This decisive investigation must finally be completed. Prolonging nothingness and its suspicions is no longer an option, at most 21 months before a next election once again threatened by interference, cyberattacks and disinformation.