Beijing supported Liberal candidate that echoed disinformation against Conservatives: Document Analysis
https://www.thebureau.news/p/beijing-supported-liberal-candidate
Key NSICOP allegation of foreign state supporting a witting politician apparently stems from defeat of MP Kenny Chiu and September 2021 CSIS brief
Ten days before Canada’s 2021 election, Justin Trudeau’s candidate in Richmond — former B.C. government staffer Parm Bains — was interviewed for Rise Media, a media platform with alleged ties to Chinese Communist Party foreign influence and intelligence arms.
The rookie Liberal was asked about the Foreign Influence Registry, a bill tabled that year by his opponent, Conservative MP Kenny Chiu.
“If you are elected as MP, will you support this bill?” a Chinese community activist asked Bains in a video segment for Rise Media.
“The simple answer is I’m not supporting that bill,” Bains answered. “I don’t believe that I can support any bill that is viewed as discriminatory against any community. A registry like this, to me looks like a very discriminatory policy.”
The same day, September 10, Bains got a front-page election ad from Rise Weekly and a glowing endorsement article inside the magazine.
Titled “Should Chinese people support him?” the piece urged citizens of Richmond — a riding of about 50 percent Chinese ethnic voters — to vote for Bains and Justin Trudeau on September 20th.
It argued that Trudeau “and Bains himself have promised to introduce legislation within 100 days of taking office to combat online violence, especially to severely punish online hate speech.”
Days later Chinese Canadians Goto Vote Association (CCGV), a group started by Rise Media journalists during the 2021 campaign, pounded the pavement for Bains as he stumped near Kenny Chiu’s constituency office alongside several of Beijing’s top proxies in British Columbia.
Social media videos showed Bains apparently echoing insinuations of racism against Conservative leader Erin O’Toole and Kenny Chiu that were proliferating during the campaign on China-linked media in Toronto and Vancouver.
It had all the appearances of a reciprocal relationship involving Chinese media and political foot soldiers guided and funded by the United Front Work Department, Beijing’s foreign-influence arm.
What’s the evidence of this? Continue…