OTTAWA: The Canadian government has expelled a Chinese diplomat accusing him of intimidating a member of its parliament and his relatives in Hong Kong.
Canada has accused China of seeking to target its member of parliament Michael Chong and his relatives in Hong Kong after the lawmaker accused China of human rights violations, the BBC said.
In a statement on Monday, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly declared Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei a “persona non grata”, the BBC said.
The Chinese embassy in Ottawa has condemned the expulsion.
The move by Ottawa comes after reports of the Canadian intelligence emerged in the World and The Mail that said Zhao was involved in gathering information about Chong, 51, following his vocal criticism of China’s treatment of its Uighur minority population.
It said that Canada’s spy agency believes China sought details about Chong’s relatives in Hong Kong to deter “anti-China positions”.
The lawmaker put forward a motion in Canadian parliament in 2021, declaring China’s treatment of Uighurs a genocide. China rejected the accusations and sanctioned Chong shortly afterwards.
Joly said that Canada “will not tolerate any kind of external interference in our internal affairs” and the decision to oust the diplomat had “been taken after careful consideration of factors at play”.
Canada has asked its spy agency to immediately pass on details about threats to Canadian lawmakers and their families.
Reuters reported that the Chinese embassy in Ottawa said it “would absolutely take countermeasures” over the expulsion.
The previous week, China accused Canada of “slander and defamation” over the claims that
Beijing targeted Chong and his family.
Chong, a Conservative, has criticised governing Liberals for mishandling the matter and said: “It should not have taken two years for the Canadian government to make this decision.”
The allegations come amid other spy intelligence reports, leaked to Canadian media outlets, that accused China of attempting to interfere in Canadian elections.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in March that an independent special rapporteur will probe the Chinese interference claims.
