During the public hearing on foreign interference in Canadian elections, it was revealed that Defence Minister Bill Blair, then Public Safety Minister, was made aware of possible foreign interference in the 2019 election of MP Han Dong but was “not concerned” at the time.
In his pre-hearing interview summary, it was stated that Defence Minister Blair was “not concerned” about intelligence given to him by CSIS related to Chinese foreign interference in the 2019 Liberal nomination in the Don Valley North riding because “it was not firmly substantiated; it did not suggest MP Dong was aware of the irregularities; and it did not suggest that the Don Valley North election results had been compromised.”
It has now been shown that all three points are false, as Dong testified he was aware of irregularities, i.e., of foreign students being bused in en masse to vote for him, and the election results were influenced.
On this point, CSIS provided more information yesterday, specifically that many students didn’t even live in the riding, had fake IDs, and some may have been coerced into voting.
According to a summary, “Some intelligence reporting also indicated that the students were provided with falsified documents to allow them to vote, despite not being residents of DVN (Don Valley North). The documents were provided by individuals associated with a known proxy agent.”
“Intelligence reported after the election indicated that veiled threats were issued by the PRC Consulate to the Chinese international students, implying their visas would be in jeopardy and that there could be consequences for their families back in the PRC if they did not support Han Dong.”
Han Dong, who admitted to knowing of the busing in of foreign students to vote for him, pleaded ignorance on allegations that students were coerced. It has now also been revealed that a Liberal Party member allegedly tipped off Han Dong that he was being surveiled by CSIS, adding yet another layer to this scandal.
During today’s public inquiry, Blair said that part of the reason he dismissed concerns that the election was being influenced by foreign actors was that “intelligence isn’t effectual evidence that something took place” and that the source may not have been “reliable” and not “corroborated”, and thus, not worth taking seriously.
