MP Han Dong says he has retained a lawyer, plans to take legal action against Global News
CBC
MP Han Dong says he has retained a lawyer and plans to sue Global News after it published a story alleging he advised a senior Chinese diplomat in February 2021 that Beijing should hold off on freeing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor — the two Canadians being held by China at the time.
Dong, who left Liberal caucus last week, confirmed to Global that he had a discussion with Consul General Han Tao but emphatically denied that he had advised Beijing to delay releasing the two Canadians.
On Friday, the Globe and Mail reported that the government received a CSIS transcript of Dong's conversation with the consul and concluded that there was no "actionable evidence," adding that it could not be determined that Dong asked the Chinese government to keep the two Canadians in prison for political reasons.
In a statement posted to Twitter Monday, Dong said he has a lawyer to "begin legal action to its fullest extent."
Dong writes that his father was shaped by the time he spent at the May Seventh Cadre School re-education camp in 1970 during China's cultural revolution, where he was "subjected to forced labour and 24-hour surveillance" for a year.
"From that experience my father knew there was no future left for him in China," Dong wrote.
He said his father came to Canada two months after the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 and brought the rest of family over the next year.
"The trauma left on my father is one of the compelling reasons why, as co-chair of the Canada-China Legislative Association and a Member of Parliament, I took every available opportunity to advocate on behalf of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor and to call for their immediate release," he wrote.
"It is inconceivable that I would ever suggest a falsely accused individual should spend an extra minute in jail."
CBC News has reached out to Global and Corus Entertainment for comment.
The Don Valley North MP said he supports a public inquiry into Chinese government interference and said he is willing to meet with former governor general David Johnston, the government's recently appointed special rapporteur on foreign interference, and provide him with information.
"Despite the abuse and shame my family has suffered over the last few weeks, I truly believe that my parents made the right decision to come to Canada," Dong wrote.
"I can look at myself in the mirror and know, with full certainty, that I have the truth on my side. My anonymous false accusers and their enablers cannot say the same."
During a news conference Friday, Trudeau was asked if he believed Dong advocated for the delayed release of Kovrig and Spavor.
In advance of what is expected to be a hot summer, the City of Kamloops is encouraging homeowners to request a free assessment of their properties to make sure they are resilient in the face of wildfire.
Friday may have been the first day of spring, but winter storms are not over yet for Newfoundland.
Daniel Doody says his trip to the Yukon earlier this month was ruined when he learned his luggage wouldn't arrive with him.
The future of a national historic site in Fredericton is up for discussion at meetings across New Brunswick in the next few weeks as the Anglican diocese considers what to do about costly repairs needed at Christ Church Cathedral.
EDITOR'S NOTE: CBC has removed the names and photo from this story. Now that the people are no longer missing, their identity is no longer in the public interest.
Brandon’s firefighter-paramedic union is sounding the alarm about a new provincial directive it says could leave the city without local ambulances when residents need them most.
CBC's road trip series Land of Living Stories explores inspiring stories of community spirit from across Saskatchewan. In our latest visit, CBC-Radio Canada hit the road to La Ronge. This is the fifth of a multi-part series from that community.
Wildfire season has officially started in Alberta. As the snow starts to melt, people are starting to wonder: Will I have to evacuate this year?
Cassandra Lee is getting ready to pack up her home and family to move more than 3,200 kilometres across the Canada-U.S. border, in search of more "support" and "stability."
To earn the title of master sake sommelier, Yoshi Takaoka says it's not just about knowledge, "we need to demonstrate how to serve the sake perfectly."
Over 115 years ago, more than 150 members of Calgary’s Black community gathered at a venue called Eagle Hall on First Street S.W. for what a local newspaper called “one of the most successful balls of the season.”
Spring is heralded by the return of geese, but to many in Alberta's poultry industry, migration means something different.
Ontario's legislature is set to resume sitting Monday after a 14-week break that ended in a veritable deluge of news, partial proposals and headline-grabbing musings from Premier Doug Ford and his government.