The Canadian government has asked the Chinese ambassador to explain himself regarding the alleged Chinese police stations in Canada and warned of possible measures in response.
“We have asked the ambassador to come and talk to us on several occasions and we have expressed our serious concern” about this, said Weldon Epp, director general for Northeast Asia at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Beijing assured that these “posts” had nothing to do with police, but had the “main objective […] to provide free assistance to Chinese citizens.
The senior Canadian diplomat was speaking Tuesday before a parliamentary committee on the relationship between Canada and China.
“The Government of Canada has formally insisted that the Chinese government take into account, including the Ambassador and his Embassy, all activities in Canada that do not comply with the Vienna Convention [sur les relations diplomatiques] and make sure they stop,” Mr. Epp continued.
Ottawa is considering the possibility of “taking further action, depending on their response,” he said.
The statements come a month after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said it was investigating reports that China had set up police stations in Canada and harassed Chinese expats there.
The investigation was launched after a human rights group, Safeguard Defenders, revealed that there were 54 such police stations around the world, including three in the Greater Toronto Area, the largest city of the country.
According to the NGO based in Spain, some of these posts collaborate with the Chinese police to carry out “operations to maintain order on foreign soil”.
In response, Wang Wenbin, the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had described this information as “completely false” during a press briefing, assuring that Beijing “fully” respected the sovereignty of other countries.