that is affiliated with the ruling Communist Party’s foreign-influence operations compiled extensive profiles of members of Parliament with Chinese ethnicity, two sources say.to create detailed profiles in 2022. There are fewer than 10 MPs of Chinese descent in Canada’s House of Commons.
“The United Front Work Department is the arm and vehicle for the security and ideological apparatus,” said Alan Jones, a former CSIS assistant director and executive adviser to the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute. CSIS spokesman Eric Balsam said the public inquiry has access to “all CSIS holdings related to foreign interference.” He added that CSIS has been directed since May, 2023, to give the “highest level of attention” to foreign interference directed at “Parliament and parliamentarians,” and their families.
China’s interest in using data mining and artificial intelligence to monitor and surveil people has generated concern for years. The Globe reached out to Mr. Chong, Ms. Kwan, Independent MP Han Dong, elected as a Liberal in the 2019 and 2021 elections, and Liberal MPs Jean Yip, Wilson Miao, Shaun Chen, Paul Chiang and International Trade Minister Mary Ng for comment.
“It would not surprise me if the PRC were collecting data on its Canadian critics to generate profiles on them,” she added.