A third Chinese spy, who defected in Australia last week, has confirmed Canadian suspicions from eight years ago.
A recent series of articles, by Toronto Sun columnist Peter Worthington, and U of T professor Wesley K. Wark published in the Globe and Mail focused on three Chinese defecting to Australia and telling of espionage by China in Australia, Canada and the United States. What is remarkable is that the stories they tell are similar to what had been told to - and then disregarded - by Canadian officials eight years ago.
Chen Yonglin, a former first secretary in the Chinese consulate in Sydney, Hao Fengjun, a former police officer the Chinese Public Security Bureau and Yuan Hongbing, a professor who had spent time in prison for supporting dissidents, all speak of Chinese espionage targeting dissidents (Falun Gong), industries and politics.
Eight years ago an immigration control officer in Hong Kong, Brian MacAdam, broke open the story, which involved Triads (Chinese underworld), and entrepreneurs led by the Chinese Intelligence Service buying up businesses, influencing political parties, setting up front organizations, intimidation and intelligence gathering.
This was then investigated by Cpl. Robert Reed of the RCMP and CSIS and called Project Sidewinder, originally secret, but soon blown wide open. The issue became a conflict between the RCMP, who went along with MacAdam's theory and CSIS, who did not.
This project ended up being investigated by the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC). The SIRC, which is a civilian-run oversight committee of CSIS came on the side of CSIS and gave the project what some call a whitewash - influenced by then Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. The authorities didn't cancel the project but simply shelved it. However, MacAdam was forced into retirement and Reed was fired.
More is added by former Toronto Sun columnist, Judi MacLeod, one of the few journalists who stood up for Eastern Europe against Communism, and now edits the website
www.Canadafreepress.com. MacLeod suggests that one of the problems is Prime Minister Paul Martin's mentor Maurice Strong, an anti-American, who now has a pied à-terre residence in China. Strong wields a great deal of influence in the UN under General Secretary Kofi Annan.
MacLeod goes into detail about how Strong has used his considerable clout promoting Chinese influence in Canada. One such example is to be seen in China's attempts to purchase Noranda Mines - with Canadian money. The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) gives China more money than to any other nation yet Martin refers to China as "a major world power".
I wonder, if now that MacAdam and Reed have been exonerated, will they be reinstated to their positions?
