(OTTAWA) Canada is ousting a Chinese diplomat from the Toronto consulate, Zhao Wei, over the campaign of threats he orchestrated against MP Michael Chong and his family in Hong Kong. The Beijing envoy will have to leave the country in five days at the latest. China’s retaliation, meanwhile, is expected soon.
What there is to know
- Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly announces the expulsion of Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei.
- “It shouldn’t have taken so long,” reacted Conservative MP Michael Chong, whose family was the target of a campaign of intimidation carried out by the diplomat.
- The Chinese Embassy in Ottawa accuses Canada of violating international law and has warned on its website that retaliatory measures will follow.
“Canada has decided to declare Mr. Zhao Wei persona non grata “, finally decided, Monday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, on whom the pressure was growing stronger so that she adopts a firm posture towards Beijing.
“I have been very clear: we will not tolerate any form of foreign interference in our internal affairs. Diplomats in Canada have been warned that if they engage in this type of behavior, they will be sent home,” the head of diplomacy added in a written statement.
The expulsion of the Chinese diplomat comes a week after the publication of information in the Globe and Mail that Zhao Wei had maneuvered to intimidate Conservative MP Michael Chong and members of his family in Hong Kong.
PHOTO SEAN KILPATRICK, THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Conservative MP Michael Chong
The main interested party appeared at the microphone of the foyer of the House of Commons to react to Minister Joly’s announcement.
It shouldn’t have taken so long. It shouldn’t have taken two years for the government to make the decision from the moment it was informed.
Conservative MP Michael Chong
The same goes for Margaret McCuaig-Johnston, from the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa. “It’s the right decision, but it comes a week too late. In fact, it comes months too late. We should have expelled him in 2021, ”she said.
The “100%” chance of retaliation
The Chinese Embassy in Ottawa was quick to show its supreme irritation on its website, warning that retaliatory measures were to follow and accusing Canada of violating international law by making the move.
“We advise the Canadian side to take a step back and not go further down the wrong path. If the Canadian side wants to act in a gratuitous and arbitrary manner, China will react to it in a firm and determined manner,” warned a spokesperson for the diplomatic mission.
The question is not so much whether, but how the Chinese regime will respond, argued in an interview the former representative of Quebec in China, Jean-François Lépine. “I think the chance of retaliation is 100%,” he said.
Now how? It is a country that is extremely unpredictable. We could decide to expel one or two diplomats from the Canadian embassy in Beijing, or from the Canadian consulate general in Shanghai, or elsewhere. But maybe it could be more serious.
The former representative of Quebec in China, Jean-François Lépine
But one thing is certain, “Canada had no choice”, because the cases of Chinese interference became so well known to the general public that it had to make “this important gesture”, argued the former great reporter, not without ” hope that the information we have [le] justify, because for the moment, they are evocations”.
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Former reporter and former Québec representative in China, Jean-Francois Lépine
The Chinese diplomat will have to pack his bags and leave the country no later than five days, according to a Canadian government source who requested anonymity because she was not authorized to discuss the issue openly.
It would be the first time that a representative of the Middle Kingdom stationed in Canada has been shown the door at least since the 1970s, according to information provided by Global Affairs Canada on Monday.
The most recent evictions in 2018
The last deportations of foreign diplomats by Ottawa date back to 2018.
Canada had then shown the door to four Russian representatives as part of a concerted action “in solidarity with the United Kingdom”, to protest against the nerve gas poisoning of ex-Russian agent Sergei Skripal on the British soil.
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress, which is calling for the expulsion of Russian diplomats, has taken note of the diplomatic punishment inflicted on China. “Representatives of a genocidal regime have no place in Canada,” the statement said.
THEY SAID
It was time for Canada to assume its responsibilities towards the people and Canadian MPs and act accordingly. Further tolerating the presence of this Chinese diplomat was a disgrace to democracy and to the protection of MPs.
René Villemure, Bloc Québécois MP
We know very well that the regime will respond. There’s no doubt about that, but we have to send a very clear message that our democracy is precious to us and that we don’t accept interference, we don’t accept intimidation from an MP, regardless of party.
NDP MP Peter Julian
I think foreign states understand, in situations like this, that there is a line that should not be crossed, and when that line is crossed, there must be actions that are taken, and that is what what we did.
François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and former Minister of Foreign Affairs