A group of Conservative MPs is calling for an emergency parliamentary meeting as the number of cases of harassment by the Chinese Communist Party against the Chinese community in Montreal surges.
“Over the past three weeks there has been a surge in attacks on Chinese Canadians in Montreal, perpetrated by representatives of the Communist Party in Beijing,” said a joint statement signed by four Conservative MPs on July 15.
“CSIS documents reveal that Canada is a ‘high priority target’ for PRC interference and intimidation of Chinese Canadian citizens, and their agents remain unconcerned about repercussions,” said MPs Michael Cooper, Blaine Calkins, Eric Duncan, and Luc Berthold, all members of the House Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs (PROC).
The letter added that the RCMP has reported six such cases, and that those targeted say they “fear for their lives and their families.”
The RCMP confirmed in an emailed statement to The Epoch Times on July 15 that over the “past weeks,” it had received “half a dozen credible reports relevant” to the issue.
Quebec RCMP last week launched a social media campaign calling for tips from the public about criminal activities connected to interference from Chinese officials. The federal police force last year had publicly announced its investigation into locations in the province that have allegedly functioned as illegal Chinese police stations.
In a July 9 video post on the platform X, the RCMP delivered a message in Chinese, alongside French and English versions, stating, “We are actively investigating allegations of criminal activity related to Chinese interference in Quebec.” The force also encouraged the public to anonymously report “any form of threats, harassment or intimidation from the Chinese Communist Party.”
Shortly after the video was posted online the RCMP received four credible tips, spokesperson Sergeant Charles Poirier told The Epoch Times in an earlier interview.
Sgt. Poirier told The Epoch Times that the police force was motivated to launch the campaign after receiving tips from victims and witnesses of Beijing’s interference.
“We want to talk to the community from East Asia, but mostly the Chinese community, to demystify what is foreign interference and what is Chinese interference,” Sgt. Poirier said.
Chinese Police Stations
In March 2023, Quebec RCMP took the unprecedented step of disclosing its investigation into two locations suspected of housing secret Chinese police stations.The two locations were identified as office buildings for Chinese community service organizations: Le Service à la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal, located in the city’s Chinatown area, and Le Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud in the nearby city of Brossard. Both organizations have denied the allegations and filed a defamation lawsuit against the RCMP in December 2023. The groups have not responded to multiple requests for comment from The Epoch Times.
The RCMP’s announcement followed 2022 reports from the human rights organization Safeguard Defenders, which suggested that several other Chinese police posts were operating in various Canadian provinces as well as globally. These Chinese outposts allegedly contributed to the Chinese regime’s forced repatriation of Chinese nationals.
In their July 15 statement, the Tory MPs noted that the recent waves of attacks in Quebec occurred in the neighbourhood where one of the alleged Chinese police posts was located, saying “Montrealers continue to live in fear.”
Testifying before PROC in June 2023, Acting RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme said that the force had taken action to shut down activities at multiple locations accused of operating as Chinese police stations.
“Our investigation into Chinese police stations is still active, there’s been no resolution,” Sgt. Poirier told The Epoch Times on July 11.
While U.S. authorities have arrested several individuals involved in the operation of secret Chinese police stations in the country, no arrests have been made in Canada thus far.
Noé Chartier contributed to this report.
