China, Hong Kong and Foreign Interference

Born in Hong Kong, Jenny immigrated to Canada at a young age. She has been outspoken against human rights violations by the Chinese Communist Party, and is heartbroken to see the enactment of the draconian National Security Law and the Article 23 national security legislation leading to the demise of Hong Kong's One Country Two Systems. Jenny also advocates for the Uyghur Muslim minority. In 2023, Jenny was informed by CSIS that she is an "evergreen" target of the Chinese government. She has declared that she will not bend to foreign interference.

ASIAN PACIFIC POST: FOREIGN INTERFERENCE FEARS GROW IN CANADA

Gloria Fung, past-president of Canada-Hong Kong Link, voiced her concerns recently, stating that a significant gap remains because Ottawa has yet to appoint a commissioner or clearly outline the registry’s operational framework.

Fung, alongside representatives from other cultural organizations, participated in a news conference to highlight the persistent threats of foreign interference, including intimidation and coercion directed at diaspora communities.

New Democrat MP, Jenny Kwan, who also attended the event, criticized the government’s delay in launching the registry.

“Where is that registry? What does it entail, and what are the obligations for those affected? We have no clarity on any of these issues,” she said.

Canadian Press: Groups call on Ottawa to activate foreign influence registry as election approaches

Gloria Fung, past-president of Canada-Hong Kong Link, said Thursday there’s “still a vacuum” because Ottawa has yet to appoint a commissioner or explain exactly how the registry will work.

Fung appeared at a news conference Thursday with several other representatives of cultural communities concerned about meddling, intimidation and threats from abroad.

New Democrat MP Jenny Kwan, who also took part in the event, accused the government of moving too slowly on the foreign influence registry.

“Where is that registry? What does that registry look like, and what are the requirements for people to follow the law?” she said. “We have none of that information.”

Neither the office of Public Safety Minister David McGuinty nor his department had immediate responses to questions Thursday about progress on implementing the foreign influence registry.

Global News VIDEO: UBC under fire after renting space to Hong Kong

Global NEWS: UBC criticized for renting room to Hong Kong government for recruitment exam

“UBC, of course, can rent their space to anybody. However, from my perspective, I think that you should be looking at some ethical standards that should apply,” she said.

“In the very minimum, one would think that any organization, any institution that’s going to rent out a space to a government that is a regular, persistent, violent human rights violators, that they would apply some standards to it.”

Kwan suggested the university should have warned those taking the exam about the concerns regarding the NSL.

Kwan called UBC’s response “completely inadequate.”

“It’s just basically saying, well, it doesn’t matter. We’re blind to all of these issues,” she said.

“As a global institution, which is what UBC is, you would think that they would have a little bit more thought than to say, ‘We will just follow the regulations of basic rental requirements.’ That’s not good enough.”

Global NEWS: Sen. Woo downplays evidence that China ‘targeted’ MPs Chong, Kwan

In a statement, Kwan’s lawyer, Sujit Choudhry, said Woo’s allegation that the MP’s testimony was “flimsy” is “false and misleading.”

“It was CSIS who informed MP Kwan in a classified briefing that she was a long-time target of (Chinese Communist Party) interference and will remain an ‘evergreen target.’ MP Kwan testified and brought to the commissioner’s attention that she believed she had been de-platformed by Chinese community organizations,” Choudhry wrote in a statement to Global News.

Choudhry noted that CSIS officials testified that Beijing works through proxy agents in Canada’s Chinese diaspora and that Kwan is concerned the Chinese government used those proxies to target her for her advocacy on human rights issues in China.

“Senator Woo has every right to turn a blind eye to foreign interference actors and activities. MP Kwan chooses to use her voice to speak up and speak out to protect and defend Canada’s democratic institutions and processes.”

Click this link to read the news story - https://globalnews.ca/news/10888952/woo-downplays-china-targeting-chong-kwan/

HANSARD: Petition to release Jimmy Lai and other political prisoners and stop according special rights to HK Trade Office

TADC Media Release: MP Jenny Kwan tabled petition e-5137 in solidarity with Hong Kong political prisoners and pro-democracy movement

In response to Hong Kong’s sentencing of 45 of the Hong Kong 47 pro-democracy activists, a coalition of community groups presented a petition yesterday at the Parliament calling on the Canadian government to demand the immediate release of Hong Kong 47, Jimmy Lai, and others.

"The verdict for the Hong Kong 47 is one of the darkest chapters in Hong Kong's history,” said Jenny Kwan, MP Vancouver East, the petition sponsor. “It's just astonishing that pro-democracy activists are jailed and former legislators are sentenced up to 10 years for simply exercising their basic right to participate in elections under Hong Kong's Basic Law.”

“In 2020, 610,000 Hong Kong citizens participated in the democratic primary elections, clearly demonstrating their will for political reform,” said Cheuk Kwan, co-chair of Toronto Association for Democracy in China and the petition’s initiator. “Their only ‘crime’ was to exercise their rights and freedoms as prescribed by the UN Human Rights Declaration.”

“The International community must stand united to condemn this gross violation of international human rights and demand accountability from Hong Kong and China in their broken promise to the ‘One Country, Two Systems’," Jenny Kwan said.

HANSARD: Petition to release Hong Kong political prisoners and stop according special rights to HK Trade Office

Parliament VIDEO: Jenny tables a petition in solidarity with Hong Kong political prisoners and pro-democracy movement

CIMM#113: Pension Transferability and Access to Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF), and Delays in Permanent Residence and Visas for Hong Kongers

Jenny Kwan Vancouver East, BC

All right. Thank you.
Hence, we have this problem. You have the Canadian government, which created this lifeboat scheme for Hong Kongers who are fleeing persecution in Hong Kong as a result of the national security law. The government, in its wisdom or lack thereof, created this lifeboat scheme that only provides for temporary residence by way of a work permit or a study permit. Then these people have to go to the queue to make an application for permanent residence, and we know that there is a huge backlog and delay in processing.

In the beginning, there was swift action, but as time has passed, it's been lengthened by way of the delay, to the point where the former minister even made an announcement to further extend people's work permits and study permits for another three years. That is to say, a person could be here for six years—as long as six years—under this current scheme without getting permanent residence. This is because the minister anticipated that people would not be able to swiftly get their permanent resident status. That is the reality.

As a result of that, people are not able to provide proof of permanent residence, because the application is in process. To make it even worse, the government—the minister—just made an announcement about the levels plan, cutting levels to the tune of 105,000 permanent resident status applications.
You can imagine how long the wait-list is for Hong Kongers as they continue to wait. Now, these Hong Kongers have zero intention of returning to Hong Kong, because they know that they would be persecuted if they did. People know that. I think the Canadian government knows that.

This is my question, then, to you as the manager of their pension, which, because of this rule, they're unable to access: Would your organization be willing to write to the regulator to ask for consideration for these applicants who are in a prolonged period of waiting for permanent resident status, to ask that their declaration indicating that they do not intend to return to Hong Kong be accepted as proof that they intend to leave Hong Kong permanently so that they can access their pensions? Is that something that your organization would consider doing?

Maryscott Greenwood, Global Head, Government Relations, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

I think I understand the question.
The basic premise of your question has to do with the period of time it takes for the Government of Canada to determine and provide permanent residency or citizenship. It seems to me that this is a function of the Government of Canada, as opposed to a regulated entity. That's how I would answer that.

Laura Hewitt, Senior Vice-President and Head, Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc.

Yes. I would say that it's not within our authority to change the criteria.

However, our numbers show that once that permanent residency does come through, we're able to process the applications and approve Canadian permanent residents.