Foreign interference commissioner Marie-Josée Hogue has denied the Conservatives’ appeal regarding participation in an upcoming public inquiry aimed at examining China’s election interference in Canada. She also dismissed concerns from a human rights coalition about granting standing to three individuals accused of ties to the Chinese regime. Justice Hogue maintained her earlier decision to grant limited standing to the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC), rejecting their protests against their “Intervener” status. The commissioner has effectively granted full standing, or “full participation rights,” to the governing Liberals as these rights were granted to the Government of Canada in the inquiry.
Facing Conservative protests of being “unfair,” Justice Hogue defended her decision, noting a distinction between the government of the day and the political party controlling the House of Commons. The public inquiry will unfold in two phases. The hearings are expected to be held over five days and will take place in the Library and Archives Canada building, located at 395 Wellington Street in Ottawa. The second phase of the inquiry is slated to take place in fall 2024. The commission now requests an extension to May 3, 2024 to conduct the second stage concurrently with the first, allowing an extension for the first report without affecting the ultimate deadline of Dec. 31, 2024, for the second report.
The foreign interference commissioner has extended full standing to MP Han Dong and Michael Chan, deputy mayor of Markham, Ont. Both individuals are central to allegations surrounding China’s interference in Canada’s 2019 and 2021 federal elections, which led to the initiation of the public inquiry. A coalition of human rights advocacy groups has urged Justice Hogue to reconsider her decision to grant full standing to Mr. Dong and Mr. Chan and Intervener status to Sen. Yuen Pau Woo. Mehmet Tohti, executive director of the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project, said that individuals accused of affiliations with the CCP “should be at the hot seat to be questioned,” not the other way around.
In March, Mr. Dong resigned from the Liberal caucus to sit as an Independent MP after a Global News report, citing anonymous national security sources, accused him of inappropriate ties to the Chinese Consulate. Mr. Chan faces allegations of engaging in improper activities related to the 2019 and 2021 general elections. Sen. Yuen Pau Woo also has allegations brought against him, and these actions have brought concern to the human rights coalition. Mr. Dong and Mr. Chan didn’t respond to inquiries from The Epoch Times. In a Dec. 13 response to inquiries regarding concerns raised by the human rights advocacy group, Mr. Woo told The Epoch Times, “Those who have expressed concern about my participation should spell out publicly what specifically they object to.”