Some foreign governments act clandestinely and maliciously to weaken Canada’s democratic institutions and influence the results of our elections. All Canadians have every right to be concerned about this growing threat.
Over the past two months, in my capacity as Independent Special Rapporteur on Foreign Interference, I have thoroughly studied top-secret documents and interviewed political leaders and public officials in order to shed light on recent allegations of interference of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in our democratic process.
We have come to the conclusion that the measures adopted by successive governments have so far succeeded in countering these threats and minimizing their effects on our democracy. However, we also found serious shortcomings in how information is relayed within the federal government. Numerous breaches of disclosure, accountability and due diligence have led to unacceptable results, such as failing to inform a federal deputy that China was seeking information about his family in Hong Kong.
Since I presented my report last Tuesday, my findings have been the subject of much debate, in part because the evidence I reviewed is strictly confidential and cannot be made public.
That is why I have invited two legally constituted watchdogs with security clearances – one made up of parliamentarians and the other of national security experts – as well as the leaders of the main federal parties to review my work and present their observations publicly to the people of Canada.
Better protect Canadian democracy from foreign interference
While my first report focused on recent events, the second part of my work focuses on the future. What can be done to better protect Canadian democracy from foreign interference? The Government of Canada must act quickly to correct the shortcomings and shortcomings identified, in order to strengthen our skills in the detection, deterrence and fight against foreign interference, the threat of which weighs more and more heavily on the country.
Before the end of my term in October, I will conduct public hearings with the public, government officials and experts. I will be particularly interested in members of the diasporas who are frequently the target of foreign interference.
In recent months, many legitimate questions have been raised and Canadians rightly expect accountability from their government.
During these hearings, Canadians will be able to hear government and intelligence officials explain how they work to counter foreign interference.
As part of this public process, I will work to determine what steps should be taken to close the gaps in Canada’s national security apparatus in terms of governance and organization, and I will not censor myself. I intend to make recommendations to the government to ensure that ill-intentioned governments, such as the PRC, cannot jeopardize the integrity of our democracy.
As mentioned in my report, several issues need to be studied. What are the particular impacts of foreign interference on diaspora communities? Do we need to put in place a more transparent process and what role does declassification play? What relationship should be established between intelligence services and law enforcement? How can security agencies better cooperate with each other and with the government to avoid having to catch up? How can intelligence tracking protocols be improved to accurately identify who saw what and when? What can be done to adequately protect Canadians against malicious interference attempts? How to deal with threats to elected officials?
At the end of this process, I will make recommendations. It will then be up to Canadians to judge them and to hold elected officials to account for the measures they put in place.
Public service in Canada has become my life’s work, and I have never accepted a mandate as ambitious as the one entrusted to me. Although I have seen serious shortcomings in our response to foreign interference, I have not finished my job. And no one can dissuade me from finishing it. This is the task I have undertaken and I feel an obligation to carry it out to the highest standards. I will then leave it to Canadians to judge this contribution to safeguarding our democracy.