A Canada Elections Act investigation that concluded weeks ago has revealed that Chinese consular officials in Vancouver actively directed a sophisticated, community-wide campaign during the 2021 federal election against Conservative MP Kenny Chiu.

The investigation — only initiated in December 2022 because of investigative media reports — uncovered that Chinese Canadians in British Columbia voted under an atmosphere of fear and media manipulation apparently directed by local Chinese officials and senior officials in Beijing, according to examinations Tuesday at the Hogue Commission.

It also raised concerns over the role of PRC-linked foreign ownership of Canadian media outlets, which could be in violation of Canadian broadcasting regulations.

Despite the seriousness of these findings, investigators concluded that there was insufficient legal basis under current Canadian laws to pursue charges, citing the high burden of proof required for prosecution.

“However, we are satisfied that foreign influence was exercised in the Chinese Canadian community in Greater Vancouver,” the investigation, concluded in August 2024, found.

The Commission also heard that an Elections Act investigation into allegations of potential PRC interference in Don Valley North in Toronto in 2019 continues, but no further information could be disclosed in public hearings.

These revelations came during testimony from Carmen Boucher, the new Executive Director of Enforcement at the Office of the Commissioner of Canada Elections (OCCE), who was examined on details from a just-completed 112-page report.

This report outlined how PRC consular officials, local Chinese Canadian associations, and media outlets collaborated to damage Chiu's reputation.

The OCCE’s investigation found that Chiu was targeted because of his support for Uyghur human rights, the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, and his unsuccessful attempt to establish a foreign agent registry through Bill C-282.

The investigation suggested that PRC-linked actors led a multi-pronged disinformation campaign, using Chinese-language media and social media channels to portray Chiu as a threat to the Chinese Canadian community.

The narrative cast him as anti-Chinese, accusing him of aligning with racist policies, which resonated with Chinese Canadians who had a sense of “anticipatory fear” surrounding the vote in Chiu’s riding.

However, investigators noted they couldn’t probe the funding of the disinformation campaign, and that no direct victims of intimidation were identified, making it difficult to charge anyone under existing laws.

“We need witnesses that are willing to testify,” Boucher said, emphasizing the barriers created by fear within the Chinese diaspora.

Pages from the OCCE’s 112-page report—revealed briefly on a screen during Boucher’s examination on Tuesday—showed that community witnesses believed Chinese Canadian associations and their leaders were leveraged as messengers for PRC officials, playing a role in shaping electoral outcomes through their influence in the community.

Findings included that community leaders in Vancouver were allegedly working for Beijing’s United Front Work Department to interfere in elections.

Another bombshell revelation asserted, “the Consul General, United Front Work Department personnel have, in some cases, traveled to China to participate in meetings at the presidential level in China.”

In one redacted passage of the 112-page report, an unidentified witness testified that a community leader bragged at a post-election banquet that “we”—apparently referring to the United Front networks in Vancouver—had succeeded in defeating Kenny Chiu.

Furthermore, a document tabled on Tuesday said “information suggests that officials from the PRC were involved in directing and influencing an anti-Conservative Party of Canada campaign." Specific instances of this interference include:

• A Consul General's interview in June 2020, which focused on combating anti-Asian racism, positioning Chinese citizens as primary targets.

• A Chinese Ambassador’s interview published in The Hill Times in August 2021, which may have contributed to the campaign.

• Articles from Global Times and Today Commercial News in September 2021 that also pushed anti-CPC messaging.

Structural limitations in the OCCE’s enforcement capacity were also brought to light during Boucher’s testimony. Despite the complexity of the investigation, her team, consisting of two investigators and an OSINT analyst, struggled to manage the scale of the task. Both Boucher and her boss — Commissioner Caroline Simard — stressed the need for more resources and potential legal reforms to address foreign interference in future elections effectively.

The OCCE needs $10 million to function effectively but currently operates with a $4.4 million budget, they said.

They added that fines of $5,000 under the Election Act are much too small to deter the potential interference of foreign entities in Canadian elections.

Simard described how her office first began receiving interference complaints after media reports surfaced in fall 2022, prompting a re-examination of past cases. The OCCE was later reorganized, creating a specialized task force to handle foreign interference investigations in areas like Vancouver, which is seen as particularly vulnerable to PRC influence.

sam@thebureau.news