Judge rejects appeals by Conservatives, human rights groups on foreign interference probe

Foreign interference inquiry commissioner Justice Marie-Josée Hogue has rejected the Conservative Party’s request for full standing in upcoming public hearings, and has turned down a plea by a coalition of human-rights groups to limit the standing of three men accused of ties to the Chinese government.

In her nine-page decision, posted online, Hogue noted the Human Rights Coalition opposed granting full standing to independent MP Han Dong — a former Liberal MP — Markham’s deputy mayor Michael Chan and Sen. Yuen Pau Woo, because of their “possible links and support for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).”

“They argue that the participation of these three individuals in hearings and their access to sensitive information shared by witnesses or victims will deter witnesses from speaking freely about their firsthand experience and information regarding foreign interference and transnational repression by the CCP,” she said.

She said the coalition asked that standing for Chan and Dong be limited to the issue of their alleged participation in Chinese interference in the general elections of 2019 and 2021, and that they be barred from accessing other witnesses’ testimony or documents from other parties.

She said the coalition “does not specifically explain what recourse it seeks with respect to the standing of Senator Woo.” 

Hogue argued the commission is an independent and impartial body and she “cannot make findings of fact or jump to conclusions before hearing the evidence.”

The commission also announced its first public hearings will take place over a period of five days starting January 29, 2024, and it will hear from both factual witnesses and recognized experts.

“These hearings are preliminary in that they will serve to prepare the next public hearings, at which the Commission will examine the substantive issues arising from its mandate.” Hogue wrote.

The commission also has requested a later deadline for the release of its first public report — May 3 instead of of February, to give itself enough time for public hearings.

Dong left the Liberal caucus in March to sit as an Independent after a story published by Global News alleged that he advised a senior Chinese diplomat in February 2021 that Beijing should delay freeing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, two Canadians China was holding prisoner at the time. He has denied the allegations and said he wants to rejoin the Liberal Party.

Global also alleged in a prior story that the Liberal government received warnings from CSIS about Dong’s proximity to Beijing, and that Chan, a former Ontario MPP and cabinet minister, was a CSIS target.

Both men have denied all allegations. Dong also has said he wants to rejoin the Liberal Party and is also suing Global News.

CBC News has reached out to both men for comment.

Critics have accused Sen. Woo of taking pro-Beijing stances on various issues, including his vote in the Senate against labelling China’s treatment of Uyghurs as an act of genocide.

Reached for comment by CBC News before the decision on the appeal landed, he said the “wild allegations underscore the importance for the inquiry to hear from voices that are concerned about the stigmatization of Canadians based on little or no evidence.”

Conservatives denied full standing again

The commissioner’s decision shows the federal Conservative Party applied for full standing a second time after initially being rejected at the beginning of December.

At the time, Hogue argued the Conservatives could participate through intervener status, which gives them the right to make submissions based on what she called a more “general interest” in foreign interference.

She also warned of the danger of politicizing the process by granting an opposition party full standing — status she still gave to the federal government.

“There is a distinction between the government of the day and the political party that controls the House of Commons,” she wrote.

“It is important that a Commission of Inquiry remain an independent forum, distinct from the political process.”

In a statement, the Conservative Party called Hogue’s latest decision “deeply concerning” and said it “undermines the credibility of the entire process.”

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s director of media relations Sebastian Skamski wrote that “the Trudeau government is not a neutral, non-partisan entity and will naturally represent the interests of the Liberal Party.”

He also wrote that “preemptively singling out Conservatives for a warning about partisanship suggests bias.”

Hogue has granted Conservative MP Michael Chong full standing, citing a separate application in which he mentioned “several disinformation campaigns” and a Globe and Mail story from last May that alleged a Chinese diplomat sought information about him and his family in Hong Kong due to his public statements condemning human rights violations by Beijing.

The commission has said it will release a list of specific witnesses for its public hearings shortly.

The executive director of the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project, Mehmet Tohti, said he was disappointed by the commission’s decision.

URAP is one of the groups that form the Human Rights Coalition that launched the appeal.

“This process is dead for me,” Tohti told CBC News.

“If those people are given full access to all confidential information, and the privilege to cross-examine the witnesses, that has crossed the line already because we did not give that privilege to opposition party members.”

“We are gravely concerned about the decision of the Commissioner granting standing to the three individuals,” said Gloria Fung, president of Canada-Hong Kong Link. She said the public hearings are supposed to be a “safe space” for witnesses.