BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s Toronto consulate-general said on Thursday that a report of consular officers “coercing” a Canadian lawmaker and his family have “no factual basis and is purely baseless”, adding that Canadian media and politicians have ulterior motives.
“We express strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to this,” the consulate-general spokesperson said in a statement, urging the media and politicians concerned to “stop spreading rumours and smearing”.
The consulate said Canadian media and politicians were “intentionally damaging the reputation and image” of the consulate, and “maliciously interfering with normal communication and cooperation between both parties”.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday that Canada’s spy agency withheld information about Chinese threats against Michael Chong, a member of parliament with Canada’s main opposition Conservative party, and his family in 2021.
Trudeau said he had told the agency that such threats must be revealed immediately in the future.
(This story has been corrected to say ‘lawmaker,’ not ‘congressman,’ in the headline)
(Reporting by Liz Lee and Shanghai newsroom; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Gerry Doyle)
