MP Han Dong Says Allegations Made Him ‘Face of Chinese Foreign Interference’: Report

Han Dong, now a federal MP, celebrates at a rally during his campaign as a provincial Liberal candidate in a Toronto-area riding, in Toronto on May 22, 2014. The Canadian Press/Nathan Denette

Independent MP Han Dong says allegations have made him “the face of Chinese foreign interference” in Canada’s 2019 and 2021 general elections, according to a report from the Commission on Foreign Interference.

Justice Marie-Josée Hogue, who is heading the public inquiry into reported Chinese interference in Canadian elections, said Mr. Dong had a legitimate interest in attending the inquiry after being “accused of willingly participating in Chinese interference efforts.”

“In his application, Mr. Dong says these allegations have made him the face of Chinese foreign interference,” Ms. Hogue said in a Dec. 4 report, as first reported by Blacklock’s Reporter. The report explains her decisions on who has been granted standing as part of the inquiry.

The former MP for Ontario’s Don Valley North riding, Mr. Dong abruptly resigned from the Liberal caucus on March 22. His resignation came on the heels of a Global News report that said in February 2021 he had advised Han Tao, the Chinese consul general in Toronto, that Beijing should delay releasing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. National security sources reportedly told Global News that Mr. Dong said releasing the two men would benefit the opposition Conservatives.

At that time, the two Canadians had been imprisoned in China for more than two years. Their detention is widely regarded as “hostage diplomacy” by Beijing in retaliation for Ottawa’s arrest of Meng Wanzhou, a senior Huawei executive, on U.S. extradition charges.

Mr. Dong has denied the allegations against him. In April, he launched a $15 million defamation lawsuit against Global News and several journalists involved in the reporting.

In a February report, Global News cited national security officials who identified Mr. Dong as one of 11 Toronto-area candidates in the 2019 election allegedly receiving funding from agents of the Chinese Communist Party. Mr. Dong also rejected this allegation.

In her decision, Ms. Hogue described Mr. Dong as a key witness in the foreign interference inquiry, stating “Mr. Dong has a direct and substantial interest in the subject matter of the Commission.”

She also highlighted the findings in the first report published by former governor general David Johnston, previously appointed as Independent Special Rapporteur on Foreign Interference. Mr. Johnston stated in his report that Mr. Dong “continued to maintain close relationships with PRC [People’s Republic of China] consular officials at least through the 2021 Election.”

“The Independent Special Rapporteur on Foreign Interference found that several accusations against Mr. Dong constituted key allegations about foreign interference in the 43rd and 44th general elections,” Ms. Hogue wrote. She added that Mr. Dong has said he hopes the public inquiry commissioner will “make findings and recommendations that will address at least some of these allegations and will thus affect him significantly.”

Timeline

Public hearings for the Chinese interference inquiry will begin in January 2024, but an exact date has yet to be announced. An initial report, due on Feb. 19, 2024, is expected to confirm warnings to the cabinet about Chinese threats targeting mainly Conservative MPs, as indicated by Canadian Security Intelligence Service whistleblowers. A detailed report on why candidates were not informed of these threats is set for Dec. 31, 2024.

Independent MP Kevin Vuong has expressed concern about the stringent timeline for producing the reports.

“It is only two months until the long-awaited inquiry into foreign interference. Sadly, foreign operatives even remotely involved are retired and back in Beijing or Tehran,” he said in the House of Commons on Dec. 4. “The Hogue inquiry faces serious time constraints in issuing an interim report in February and a final report by the end of 2024.”

More than one-quarter of the staff assigned to the Chinese Consulate in Toronto has been recalled to Beijing since Canada’s 2021 election, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs. A July report, “Diplomatic, Consular And Other Representatives In Canada,” revealed a 26 percent reduction in the number of Chinese consulate staff, declining from 38 to 28 members, reported Blacklock’s. The report did not provide a reason for the staff reduction.