Canada: Practitioners Hold Press Conference Exposing CCP Attempts to Manipulate Canadian Officials

On July 5th, 2010, Falun Gong practitioners held a press conference in front of the Chinese Consulate in Vancouver and disclosed how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) interferes with Canadian government affairs to extend the persecution of Falun Gong overseas.

Richard Fadden, director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, told the CBC on June 22nd that some officials in certain provinces and cities "have developed quite an attachment to foreign countries." As a result, "decisions aren't taken on the basis of the public good but on the basis of another country's preoccupations," said Fadden. Fadden mentioned Chinese authorities in his conversation.

The CBC also reported that the Chinese authorities restrict the Falun Gong group's protest activities through their influence with Canadian officials.

A report from The Globe and Mail, one of Canada's most influential news media, stated "(Chinese diplomats) wine and dine Canadian officials. Former Vancouver mayor Sam Sullivan (who speaks Cantonese) and Ottawa Mayor Larry O'Brien both visited China and later blocked Falun Gong demonstrations, citing diplomatic and economic interests.

News media report the rally

Zhang Su, spokesperson for the Vancouver Falun Dafa Association, confirmed what Mr. Fadden said. Zhang listed many true stories exposing how the Chinese regime uses many methods to cozy up with and apply pressure to Canadian officials in order to get them to cooperate with the Communist regime's policies.

Chinese Regime Pressured Former Vancouver Mayor to Terminate Falun Gong's Legal Protest in Front of the Chinese Consulate

Ms. Zhang said that the practitioners had been holding an around the clock protest in front of the Chinese Consulate since 2001. On August 7th, 2008, Yang Qiang, former director of the Chinese Consulate, said in public that that he had requested many times that the City of Vancouver remove Falun Gong practitioners protests in front of the Consulate but did not succeed.

But after former Mayor Sam Sullivan was invited to China, things changed. In an interview with the Vancouver Sun, Sullivan told the newspaper "When I go to China, they treat me like an emperor. And we don't have that tradition of that red-carpet thing, so it's a little embarrassing for me in a way." Sullivan later stated in court that removing the protest site in front of the Chinese Consulate was his obligation when he was mayor.

Pressuring Officials Not to Offer Proclamations to Falun Gong

Every May in the past, Ottawa Mayor Larry O'Brian, representing the City Council, issued proclamations for Falun Dafa Day. After his business trip to China, he refused to do so in May 2010. He explained that he had "made a commitment" in China.

The Mayor of Port Alberni decided to issue a Falun Dafa Day Proclamation in 2007. Yang Qiang from the Vancouver Chinese Consulate exerted pressure on him, and the proclamation was later repealed.

Defector: "The Number One Task of Chinese Consulates Is To Suppress Falun Gong"

Chen Yonglin, a former Chinese diplomat who defected in Sydney, disclosed in 2005 that the top mission of overseas Chinese Consulates was to suppress Falun Gong. The strategy was to "pressure local government officials with economic interests in exchange for the political agenda," according to Chen. The easiest way is to offer political leaders free tours to China and entertain them with luxurious services after they get there.

The manpower, time and expense incurred by the Chinese Consulates in monitoring and suppressing local dissidents is far more than the sum of everything else they are supposed to do, according to Chen. "For example, the Chinese Embassy and Chinese Consulate in Sydney offer scholarships for the local officials' children in the name of cultural exchange."

"Controlling overseas Chinese is part of the Chinese regime's strategy to infiltrate mainstream society. It's not just in Australia, it is the same in the US, Canada and other countries," said Chen.

Zhang called the government officials in Canada to be alert when facing Chinese diplomats and to stop the Chinese regime's infiltration. The officials should make decisions based on Canada's interests and values.