Canada can’t be ‘naive’ to China’s transnational repression threat: report

Here is the original report: Transnational Repression in Canada (pdf)

Researchers behind a new report on transnational repression are warning Canada must not be “naïve” as it seeks better relations with China, which remains a top perpetrator in intimidating and harassing dissidents abroad.

The report by the Montreal Institute for Global Security (MIGS) called transnational repression “one of the most serious yet least understood threats to security and democracy in Canada,” and said China remains a leader in such efforts.

It cited several examples, including so-called “police stations” and online influence campaigns targeting Chinese Canadian diaspora communities. Families still living in China have been threatened, the report adds, and women have been targeted with sexual AI deepfakes.

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They acknowledged India, with which Ottawa is also seeking to repair trade and diplomatic ties, as another example.

“We must not put ourselves in agreements that could put our citizens in danger,” said Kyle Matthews, executive director of MIGS.

“We have to keep our eyes open, and we can’t close our eyes to the authoritarian threat that China represents, and still is. As many of the countries around the world that deal with transnational repression will tell you, China is one of the biggest players, if not the biggest player.”

The report comes a month after Prime Minister Mark Carney travelled to China and struck agreements on trade, business and travel that he said would forge a “recalibrated” relationship after years of diplomatic strain.

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On Sunday, China announced it was dropping its visa requirement for Canadian tourists and business visitors, a move that those behind the report said must be met with caution.

“We should not for a moment think that Canadian citizens travelling to China are not under threat of being monitored,” Matthews said.

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Marie Lamensch, MIGS’ global affairs director and the report’s co-author, said it will be important for Canada to maintain its own visa requirement for Chinese travellers in order to ensure agents of the Chinese Communist Party aren’t coming to intimidate Canadians.

Co-author Phil Gurski, a former analyst for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), said the agency’s security screening branch should play a role as well.

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“If there are visitors coming from the People’s Republic of China, they should be vetted through CSIS, which has its own intelligence sources, has alliances with its counterparts around the world,” he said. “And if CSIS comes up against information that indicates somebody is not being truthful or forthcoming in their background or their intentions on coming to Canada, they should be denied entry.

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