Canadian minister flags potential presence of more 'Chinese outposts' in country

Ottawa, Canada

A Canadian minister has flagged there could be a presence of more 'Chinese outposts' in the country, as per Reuters. Months after the Canadian police said they were looking into whether two community centres in Montreal were being used to intimidate Canadians of Chinese origin, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino told a Canadian TV station on Sunday that there may be more of these facilities operating in the country.

Chinese police outposts are often under the radar by the authorities in countries such as the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, or the US for allegedly instilling fear into Chinese citizens living overseas and stomping its control to throttle criticism of the ruling Communist Party. 

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All of these countries have opened investigations into these allegations. Canada adds to the list with its apprehensions over the presence of these police outposts. 

In an interview with CTV’s Question Period Marco Mendicino said, "I am confident that the [Royal Canadian Mounted Police] have taken concrete action to disrupt any foreign interference in relation to those so-called police stations, and that if new police stations are popping up and so on, that they will continue to take decisive action going forward." 

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These Chinese outpost facilities are allegedly run under the directions of China in locations outside its mainland territory. Though Chinese people running these establishments claim that these outposts are to cater to the issues faced by the Chinese community living in the country, it is still unclear as to what purposes these outposts really serve. 

As per a few reports, these facilities are intimidating Chinese activists living abroad who speak out against the CCP led by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

It's important to note that the establishment of Chinese outposts is a complex geopolitical issue, often subject to territorial disputes, criticism, and concerns from other countries in the regions where they are located.

In Canada, the police in the month of March said they were investigating the centres in Montreal. This month, the Canadian press reported that these centres were operating normally. This is despite the fact that the statements by the minister that all of these 'secret' stations in Canada have been closed down. As far as China is concerned, the country has refuted all claims made in connection to these police outposts. 

Showdown over diplomat expulsion  

China expelled a Canadian diplomat on 9 May. This came after claims of Chinese diplomats targeting a Canadian MP for his anti-Beijing stances. Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said earlier that she will consider expelling Chinese diplomats.

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A Canadian intelligence report had indicated that one of these Chinese diplomats tried to intimidate a Canadian lawmaker's relatives living in Hong Kong. As per reports, a Chinese diplomat is allegedly involved in targeting the Canadian lawmaker and his family for his anti-China stance. China criticised Canada for mulling over the options of expelling Chinese diplomats.