(Ottawa) The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has closed all Chinese police stations that had been established without fanfare in Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia in recent years, says the Minister of Public Safety , Marco Mendicino.
Called to appear before a parliamentary committee examining foreign interference in the federal election, Minister Mendicino indicated that the police had put an end to the operations of these clandestine establishments which allegedly engaged in intimidation maneuvers members of the Chinese diaspora in Canada who are believed to have ties to the Chinese Communist Party regime.
Despite insistent questions from Conservative members of the committee, the minister declined to say whether any charges have been laid in connection with the case and whether the Canadian government expelled Chinese diplomats stationed in Canada in retaliation.
“The RCMP has taken decisive action to close these so-called police stations,” said Minister Mendicino, who has been hounded on this issue by elected Conservatives.
The two establishments in question identified by the RCMP would have installed their penates in the Sino-Quebec Center of the South Shore, in Brossard, and in the Chinese Family Service of Greater Montreal.
These two establishments were not included in the list of Chinese “police stations” on foreign soil affiliated with police organizations in China, as published by the Spanish NGO Safeguard Defenders by translating official Chinese publications. The RCMP had previously confirmed five establishments in Ontario and Western Canada after the release of its report.
During the House of Commons committee meeting, the Conservative Party sharply criticized Minister Mendicino for not expelling any Chinese diplomats following the discovery of these Chinese police stations.
The charges against Lu Jianwang, 61, and Chen Jinping, 59, stem from an investigation by the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn into the Chinatown outpost, which led police operations without jurisdiction or diplomatic approval.
“So there was no arrest and no charge. The FBI has laid charges, but not in Canada about these so-called illegal police stations. And you did not expel diplomats. […] What prevents you from taking action? “, Launched Mr. Cooper, accusing Minister Mendicino of showing “tolerance” towards Beijing.
His fellow curator Luc Berthold continued in the same vein. According to him, if no Chinese diplomat has yet been expelled after the numerous revelations about Beijing’s interference during the 2019 and 2021 federal elections, after attempts to bring the communist regime closer by donating to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. and by the revelations about the existence of Chinese police stations on Canadian soil, it demonstrates that China exerts undue influence on the Trudeau government.
“If the government is not under the influence of the regime in Beijing, how come after the closure of these illegal Chinese police stations no diplomats were expelled or anyone arrested? “, also noted the deputy Berthold.
At the end of this tight questioning, Minister Mendicino finally replied that he did not rule out any option. “We will always keep all options on the table and in consultation with the rest of my colleagues in government, we will take whatever action is necessary,” he said.
