New “anti-exclusion” non-profit led by senators accused of Chinese interference

Two Canadian senators have launched a new organization to fight against what they call the “exclusion” experienced by those accused of foreign government ties.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Facing allegations of foreign interference on behalf of the People’s Republic of China, two Canadian senators have launched a new organization to fight against what they call the “exclusion” experienced by those accused of foreign government ties.

Senators Yuen Pau Woo and Victor Oh, along with others, James Ho and David Tam, have announced the launch of a new non-profit organization, Canadians United Against Modern Exclusion.

Woo and Oh were among five elected officials named by journalist Sam Cooper as allegedly being the unidentified elected officials mentioned in a foreign interference report for “wittingly” working in favour of the Chinese Communist Party.

Woo has denied the allegations, though Oh has not made any public statements rejecting the accusations and did not respond when asked by True North last October.

Oh visited China several times to meet with PRC officials through the Canada-China Legislative Association to promote the sharing of information and deepening relationships between the two countries. The controversial trip to China included interim NDP leader Don Davies and former MP Han Dong, who resigned in March 2023 following media reports of alleged connections to the CCP.

The new entity, CUAME is billed as a non-partisan group bent on defending Canadians whose rights and freedoms are allegedly compromised by “false or exaggerated claims” of foreign interference.

Woo told True North that rights are violated “if they are accused of foreign interference simply because of the views they hold or the groups/people they associate with.”

CUAME warns that by accusing someone of acting on behalf of a foreign entity “simply because” of their ties to foreign entities such as the PRC, Canadians are excluding the accused and engaging in racism.

“New forms of exclusion directed at Chinese Canadians and Canadians with links to the PRC are becoming accepted as social and political norms,” the group’s website reads. “This modern “Sinophobia” does not target all Chinese in Canada but seeks to categorize Chinese Canadians into those who are acceptable and those who aren’t.”

It said “In this sense,” noting an individual (such as an elected Canadian official) having ties to a regime such as the PRC is “not only a modern version of ‘exclusion’ but also a new kind of racism – one that is both more subtle and more dangerous.”

During a press conference announcing the new organization, Woo said those caught up in allegations of foreign interference could face “ostracization, stigmatization and even criminal prosecution.”

While answering a question from a reporter about examples of such “Sinophobic attacks” leading to unfair criminal prosecution, Woo refused to comment on specifics but raised issue with Bill C-70, Foreign Interference and Security of Information Act.

He said Bill C-70, which created a foreign agent registry, has “very severe penalties” for individuals who are involved in a “political process, and doing so on behalf of a foreign government, covertly or deceptively.”

“The criteria are very, very broad, and in my opinion, can be abused and at the same time, acts as a deterrent for individuals who do, in fact, have benign ties with foreign countries from participating in Canadian civic land,” Woo said during the press conference.

The group’s site claims fears over foreign interference have been “weaponized” and foster suspicions about Chinese Canadians.

“The presumption of disloyalty among Canadians who are involved in improving relations with the PRC or who simply do not accept prevailing narratives about a ‘China Threat’ has resulted in stigmatization, with adverse consequences for their personal lives and careers,” the website reads. “Police and national security and intelligence agencies, acting on cues from the political class and on their own biases, are suppressing the basic rights and freedoms of Canadians on the grounds of national security.”

Woo told True North that each of the founding directors are “longtime Canadians” who are “committed to the betterment of our country,” when asked whether the group had ties to the PRC.

“Mr Ho is originally from Taiwan; Mr Tam is from Guyana; The Honourable Victor Oh is from Singapore; and I was born in Malaysia,” he said. “We are ethnic Chinese who are part of a diverse global Chinese community with ties to many different parts of the world.”

When Cooper, a journalist and founder of The Bureau, learned of the new organization, he posted on X indicating that he would like to share information about the group with the U.S. Congress CCP Select Committee.

“Mr Cooper has proven my point about stigmatization and discrimination due to foreign interference hysteria in Canada while exposing his willingness to invite foreign interference from the United States,” Woo told True North in response.

Cooper stood by his comments and previous reporting on Woo, saying he views the new group as “an extension” of Woo’s alleged support of Beijing’s foreign interference network, the United Front in Canada.

“That goes for Victor Oh as well,” Cooper said. “And I think both of these men should be of concern to the U.S. government, which is asking Ottawa to cooperate to counteract the coercive acts of the CCP in North America.”