Liberal MP Han Dong Speaks Publicly On Allegations of Receiving CCP Support

Han Dong, now a federal Liberal MP, celebrating with supporters as a provincial Liberal candidate in the Toronto area on May 22, 2014. Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press

Liberal MP Han Dong has spoken publicly for the first time on allegations that he was a “witting affiliate” of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) election interference in Canada. Dong denies the allegations, saying that he wasn’t warned in any way about Beijing’s foreign influence attempts.

“Has the People’s Republic of China played a role in your nomination, your election?” a reporter asked Dong on Parliament Hill on March 21.

“The answer is no, absolutely not,” Dong replied.

This is the first time the MP for Toronto’s Don Valley North riding spoke publicly about allegations that he was a “witting affiliate” of Beijing’s interference in Canada’s 2019 federal election. The Feb. 25 Global News report, citing national security sources, alleged Dong to be among 11 candidates in the Greater Toronto Area to have received support from Beijing in the 2019 race.

The Global News report cited the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) which raised concerns about irregularities in the Liberal Party’s nomination process in the September 2019 contest, including that Chinese international students with fake addresses were bussed into Dong’s riding and coerced to vote in his favour.

The MP last month issued a statement on social media rejecting the report’s allegations, slamming them as “anonymous and unverified.”

Global News said the leaked CSIS information was based on “surveillance and wiretap evidence as well as human-source reporting,” and was shared with allied intelligence communities including “the CIA, FBI, as well as Australian, New Zealand and British intelligence services.”

On March 21, Dong reiterated his opposition to the allegations, saying, “To my knowledge, I was not offered, I was not told, I was not informed, nor would I accept any help from a foreign country, whether during my nomination, or my election campaign.”

“I’ve never received a phone call from CSIS, I’ve never [been] made aware if there was an investigation—whether by CSIS, RCMP, or Elections Canada—pertaining to my nomination or my election campaign,” he added.

The Prime Minister’s Office reportedly received an urgent, classified briefing from national security officials about election interference attempts three weeks ahead of the 2019 election, according to Global News.

Dong told reporters on March 21 that he never received a warning from the Prime Minister’s Office, nor did he ask the office to verify the allegations in the report. He noted that he wrote a letter to CSIS in regard to the allegations and asked whether the leak was indeed from the national intelligence agency.

When pressed about why he didn’t verify the allegations with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau or his senior advisors, who would have received the security briefing, Dong said that he “has faith” in his campaign team.

“I know my team. I know who worked on my team. I know I have faith in them. I know the truth,” he said.

Dong later added that he has asked people involved with his campaign whether they were aware of the alleged Chinese interference after he was repeatedly challenged on the issue. “They said: ‘Absolutely not,’” he said.