The two organizations suspected by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) of being clandestine “Chinese police stations” in Montreal and Brossard say they are surprised to see themselves targeted in this way. They claim to be ready to cooperate with Canadian authorities and maintain that they condemn any behavior that could amount to harassment and intimidation.
Last week, the RCMP publicly confirmed an investigation into the Chinese Family Service of Greater Montreal and the Center Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud, two organizations identified by THE Montreal Journal. The two organizations, which share the same leaders, are suspected by the police of participating in a campaign of foreign interference for the benefit of the Chinese Communist Party regime.
“We are talking about pressure, veiled or not veiled threats. It even seems that there might be a climate of terror that reigns in the diaspora for some people. That’s why during the investigation, we corroborate and, above all, we ask for the public’s help. We need information from people who are under pressure,” said Sergeant Charles Poirier, RCMP spokesperson.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Entrance to Chinese Family Services of Greater Montreal on Clark Street.
This public outing under investigation, an extremely rare strategy for the federal police force, surprised the organizations targeted, according to their lawyer, Ms.e Virginie Dufresne-Lemire.
“These two organizations wish to collaborate in this investigation while respecting the exercise of their fundamental rights. They condemn behaviors that amount to harassment and intimidation and invite any victim to report these actions,” she said in a statement on Tuesday.
The leaders of the two groups did not wish to grant an interview, but they reiterated their confidence in their president, the municipal councilor of Brossard Xixi Li.
PHOTO BERNARD BRAULT, PRESS ARCHIVES
Xixi Li, director of Chinese Family Service, in 2021.
“We would like to recall the importance of the presumption of innocence. Thus, while the investigation is underway, we invite the public and the media to exercise caution and to be careful about amalgams, particularly in the context of the pandemic where the Chinese community has been strongly stigmatized. Concluding the guilt of these organizations in the current factual vacuum risks causing irreparable damage to these two organizations,” said Ms.e Dufresne-Lemire.
Chinese Family Service of Greater Montreal and the Sino-Quebec Center of the South Shore are organizations whose official mission is to promote the well-being of the Chinese and Asian community in Quebec, and to participate in the integration of newcomers to Quebec society.
Already 15 reports received from the public
On the RCMP side, Sergeant Charles Poirier confirmed to The Press that since the publication of the first articles on the investigation targeting the two organizations, the police have already received “15 serious reports” from members of the public concerning the acts which are under investigation.
“We are proceeding with the analysis stage of these reports, and we once again encourage all victims and witnesses of illegal activities, and all individuals who are subject to pressure, intimidation and threats to contact us. The RCMP reiterates once again that it will take all necessary means to counter foreign interference in Quebec and Canada,” said the spokesperson.
With Lila Dussault