At least 2 more Chinese 'police stations' found in Canada: Report

By Barry Ellsworth

TRENTON, Canada (AA) - At least two more Chinese '"police stations" run by Beijing and used to intimate people have been found in Canada, according to a new report released Monday.

The Spain-based human rights group Safeguard Defenders said in its report, entitled “Patrol and Persuade,” that it has also uncovered dozens of the stations in other countries.

This is in addition to three other stations found in the Toronto area, as reported by Anadolu Agency in October.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in October that it is investigating criminal activity at the stations. The stations are used to coerce Chinese nationals in Canada to return to China, sometimes to face prosecution.

The report found that the Chinese police station personnel "persuaded" about 230,000 people in the April 2021 to July 2022 period they claimed were fugitives to go home to China.

Tactics used to coerce them include denying suspects' children in China a chance to get an education and punishing relatives, CTV News reported.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Canadian lawmakers in the House of Commons in November that he is aware of interference in Canada by the Chinese.

"We've known for many years that there are consistent engagements by representatives of the Chinese government into Canadian communities, with local media, reports of illicit Chinese police stations," Trudeau said.

He also said he raised the issue with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 Summit last month.

The Chinese government has denied the accusations, saying the stations help Chinese citizens with issues like renewing their driver's licenses because many were unable to return to China due to COVID restrictions.

But Safeguard Defenders said the majority of the stations were set up in 2016, well before the COVID outbreaks.