The Canadian government has ousted a Chinese diplomat living in Toronto who was allegedly engaged in a plot to persuade a Canadian lawmaker.
Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly designated Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei “persona non grata” in a statement on Monday.
After Canadian MP Michael Chong accused China of violating human rights, the Asian economic power is allegedly attempting to target him and his family in Hong Kong. In response to Chong’s outspoken criticism of China’s treatment of its Uighur minority population, a Canadian intelligence assessment was published in the Globe and Mail newspaper that accused Zhao of being involved in the information collection concerning Chong, 51. The expulsion of the Chinese diplomat was the result of this.
The report stated the Canadian intelligence agency believed that in an effort to discourage “anti-China positions,” China requested information about Chong’s relatives in Hong Kong. In 2021, the legislator introduced a bill in parliament that referred to China’s treatment of Uighurs as genocide. China has refuted the allegations and immediately after that Chong received sanctions.
The decision to remove the diplomat had “been taken after careful consideration of all factors at play,” Joly said on Monday, adding that Canada “will not tolerate any form of foreign interference in our internal affairs.” Since then, the Canadian intelligence service has been ordered to swiftly alert lawmakers and their families to any threats.
The Chinese embassy in Ottawa declared that it rejects the expulsion. It warned it “will resolutely take countermeasures” in response to the move. China last week accused Canada of “slander and defamation” in a statement over the claims Beijing targeted Chong and his family,
The claims coincide with earlier intelligence files that accuse China of seeking to sway Canadian elections and were leaked to media outlets in Canada. The investigation into the alleged influence was announced by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in March.
