Ottawa seeking talks with China’s ambassador over alleged secret police stations
Global News
On Tuesday, a senior foreign-affairs official said that in recent weeks, his department has called in Chinese ambassador Cong Peiwu multiple times over the issue.
A Global Affairs Canada official says the department has called in China’s ambassador numerous times over allegations that secret police stations are targeting that country’s diaspora in Canada.
A human-rights group has reported that China operates secret overseas police stations in more than 50 locations around the globe to keep tabs on its citizens abroad.
The Spain-based group Safeguard Defenders said three such locations operate in Toronto, but the Chinese embassy in Canada has described them as volunteer-run service stations to process things like driver’s licences.
The RCMP said in early November that it is investigating the issue, and officials told MPs in early October that they were aware of the claims.
On Tuesday, a senior foreign-affairs official said that in recent weeks, his department has called in Chinese ambassador Cong Peiwu multiple times over the issue.
Opposition parties say Ottawa should have been more forthcoming with that information.
“We’ve had several engagements. We’ve called the ambassador in on multiple occasions and we have conveyed our deep concern,” said Weldon Epp, the director general for North East Asia.
He offered that confirmation while speaking to MPs at the House committee on relations with China.