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Canadian Intelligence Director Repeats Claims of Foreign Influence
By IAN AUSTEN
Published: July 5, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/06/wo.../06canada.html
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OTTAWA — The director of Canada’s intelligence service told a committee in Parliament on Monday that he thinks two provincial cabinet ministers, as well as some municipal politicians and public servants, are under the influence of foreign governments.
Richard B. Fadden, the director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, was summoned to an unusual summer hearing after making similar accusations during an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that was broadcast two weeks ago. Those comments provoked widespread criticism, particularly from the Chinese-Canadians.
While Mr. Fadden had initially issued a statement in which he appeared to backtrack from his claim, he repeated the accusation on Monday and said that his agency planned to file a report with the government about the situation “within weeks.”
As he had before, Mr. Fadden cited national security laws in declining to identify the elected officials who he thought were under the influence of foreign governments. And while he did not explicitly name a country, he again broadly suggested that it was China.
While some members of the committee on public safety and national security asked Mr. Fadden to resign and questioned his judgment in making the remarks, he offered no apologies.
“This is not quite as extraordinary as everyone is making it out to be,” he told the committee, noting that past annual reports by the intelligence service have included general accusations about foreign nations’ influence in Canada.
Appearing to contradict himself at times, Mr. Fadden said he only regretted “the level of detail” in his earlier remarks. But, he said, they were part of a effort by the agency to publicize its concerns about foreign influence in Canada.
“We are dealing here with a spectrum of behavior by foreign entities that often start out innocently, but later veer toward something that actually harms Canadian interests,” he said. ”This is a very subtle process.”
Critics of Mr. Fadden’s remarks include Gordon Campbell, the premier of British Columbia, a province with a large population of Chinese immigrants several of whom are active in politics.
In a statement issued last week, the Chinese Canadian National Council said that Mr. Fadden’s comments “serve to stigmatize our entire community and specifically cast a shadow over public servants, municipal officials and provincial cabinet ministers.”
Several state-owned companies in China are investing in Canadian natural resource companies, particularly those involved in developing Alberta’s oil sands.
In 2004, an attempt by a Chinese company to acquire Canada’s largest mining companycollapsed because of a political backlash in Canada. That and other factors have caused several intelligence analysts to speculate that China has been working to build a base of support in Canada.
By IAN AUSTEN
Published: July 5, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/06/wo.../06canada.html
o
OTTAWA — The director of Canada’s intelligence service told a committee in Parliament on Monday that he thinks two provincial cabinet ministers, as well as some municipal politicians and public servants, are under the influence of foreign governments.
Richard B. Fadden, the director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, was summoned to an unusual summer hearing after making similar accusations during an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that was broadcast two weeks ago. Those comments provoked widespread criticism, particularly from the Chinese-Canadians.
While Mr. Fadden had initially issued a statement in which he appeared to backtrack from his claim, he repeated the accusation on Monday and said that his agency planned to file a report with the government about the situation “within weeks.”
As he had before, Mr. Fadden cited national security laws in declining to identify the elected officials who he thought were under the influence of foreign governments. And while he did not explicitly name a country, he again broadly suggested that it was China.
While some members of the committee on public safety and national security asked Mr. Fadden to resign and questioned his judgment in making the remarks, he offered no apologies.
“This is not quite as extraordinary as everyone is making it out to be,” he told the committee, noting that past annual reports by the intelligence service have included general accusations about foreign nations’ influence in Canada.
Appearing to contradict himself at times, Mr. Fadden said he only regretted “the level of detail” in his earlier remarks. But, he said, they were part of a effort by the agency to publicize its concerns about foreign influence in Canada.
“We are dealing here with a spectrum of behavior by foreign entities that often start out innocently, but later veer toward something that actually harms Canadian interests,” he said. ”This is a very subtle process.”
Critics of Mr. Fadden’s remarks include Gordon Campbell, the premier of British Columbia, a province with a large population of Chinese immigrants several of whom are active in politics.
In a statement issued last week, the Chinese Canadian National Council said that Mr. Fadden’s comments “serve to stigmatize our entire community and specifically cast a shadow over public servants, municipal officials and provincial cabinet ministers.”
Several state-owned companies in China are investing in Canadian natural resource companies, particularly those involved in developing Alberta’s oil sands.
In 2004, an attempt by a Chinese company to acquire Canada’s largest mining companycollapsed because of a political backlash in Canada. That and other factors have caused several intelligence analysts to speculate that China has been working to build a base of support in Canada.