dragon

Wednesday September 13, 2023

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday September 13, 2023

Canada’s Wake-Up Call: Confronting the Fierce Dragon of Chinese Interference

May 5, 2023

Canada’s government’s sluggish and inadequate response to Chinese foreign interference has come under scrutiny following the recent testimony of Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong in Washington. Chong, who himself has been targeted by the Chinese government, emphasized the necessity of a coordinated approach between Canada and the United States to counter Beijing’s meddling in Western democracies and its harassment of diaspora communities.

Chong’s subtle revelation that the Liberal government did not promptly inform him about Chinese targeting, despite their prior knowledge, raises doubts about the government’s commitment to addressing this issue. The delayed response and reluctance to take decisive action suggest a lack of urgency in safeguarding Canadian sovereignty and democratic principles.

News: MP Michael Chong urges U.S. lawmakers to work with Canada to combat Chinese meddling  

August 1, 2023

Chong’s account of China’s repressive tactics, including the establishment of unlawful police stations in Canada, coercion of individuals to return to China, and offering rewards for those on “wanted” lists, underscores the gravity of the threat. It is evident that such tactics are incompatible with the values of a free and sovereign nation like Canada.

While Chong advocated for Canada to collaborate closely with the United States and other democracies to counter China’s actions, the challenge lies in Canada’s reliability as a partner. Canada’s failure to seize shipments suspected of exploiting forced Uyghur labor, in contrast to the United States, raises concerns about its commitment to combating human rights abuses.

June 2, 2023

Canada’s potential to become a more robust partner to the U.S. in countering Chinese interference hinges on implementing regulatory reforms and expediting natural resource projects to facilitate the export of critical minerals and natural gas. The government must follow through on these commitments to effectively support its allies in the battle against foreign interference.

News: Meet the Canadian lawmaker targeted by China  

Senator Jeff Merkley’s proposed legislation, aimed at combating transnational repression, underscores the need for a comprehensive and well-coordinated response to foreign interference. Canada must step up its efforts to safeguard its national sovereignty and protect the rights of its citizens from Beijing’s interference, acknowledging the seriousness of the threat and taking substantive action to address it. (AI)

 

Saturday May 6, 2023

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 6, 2023

King Charles III the Dragon Slayer? 

September 30, 2022

Today’s coronation of King Charles III has led to a debate about the relevance of monarchy in the modern world. While some call for the abolishment of the monarchy, evidence suggests that the institution has adapted well to the 21st century and has contributed to the prosperity, equality, and democracy of many countries. In fact, many monarchies dominate the lists of the best countries to live in. However, to remain relevant, the monarchy must adapt to modern realities. One way to do this is to ensure that newcomers to Canada swear allegiance first and foremost to their adopted country, instead of the monarchy. Another way is to change the $20 bill to not feature King Charles III’s image, but rather a more representative image of Canada. These changes can help the monarchy continue to be a fundamental part of Canada’s system of government and laws, while adapting to the realities of the 21st century.

Opinion: Can a monarchy sit easy in modern Britain? 

September 9, 2022

King Charles III slaying dragons is not entirely appropriate, as the challenges he faces are far more complex than mere dragons. His reign comes at a time of significant global challenges, such as climate change, colonialism, inclusivity, and… to a lesser extent, bad architecture, his well known pet peeve. These are issues that his predecessors, including his mother, mostly stayed clear of due to the times in which they lived. However, if King Charles III is to use his reign to speak on these issues, he must first adapt the monarchy to modern realities.

Many critics of the monarchy argue that it is undemocratic, colonialist, and racist. While there is some truth to these criticisms, they are not the whole story. The fact is that, as a general rule, monarchies in today’s world are more prosperous, more equal, and even more democratic than the alternatives. Countries like Sweden and Denmark are prosperous, stable, and fair not because they are monarchies, but because they have figured out how to combine tradition with change, how to adapt what they have to the demands of modernity. Constitutional monarchy, as Mauro Guillén, a professor at the Wharton School of Business, explains, “works as a mechanism preserving what deserves to remain while incorporating what the circumstances call for.” It is a beautiful solution to a wide array of governance problems.

BBC: Your complete guide to the King’s coronation  

2023 Coronation Design

To ensure that the monarchy continues to be relevant, we must adapt it to modern realities. One way to do this is to ensure that newcomers to Canada swear allegiance first and foremost to their adopted country, instead of the monarchy. Another way is to change the $20 bill to not feature King Charles III’s image, but rather a more representative image of Canada. These changes can help the monarchy continue to be a fundamental part of Canada’s system of government and laws, while adapting to the realities of the 21st century.

King Charles III has a unique opportunity to speak to the pressing issues of our time. However, to do so, he must first adapt the monarchy to modern realities. The monarchy has survived for centuries precisely because it has been adaptable, and if we have learned anything, it is to build on that success rather than breaking the system that allowed it to flourish. (AI)

 

Saturday February 25, 2023

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday February 25, 2023

Ottawa should get serious about Chinese meddling in elections

November 16, 2022

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau presumably meant to be reassuring when he commented on the latest revelations about Chinese interference in Canada’s last two federal elections. He failed in at least a couple of ways.

After it was reported last week that the Chinese government orchestrated an extensive campaign of disinformation, undeclared cash donations and string-pulling in an attempt to influence public opinion and limit the Liberals to another minority 

government, the prime minister had this to say:

“All Canadians can have confidence that the outcomes of the 2019 and 2021 elections were determined by Canadians, and Canadians alone, at the voting booth.”

The first problem with that statement is that no one is claiming that non-Canadians, and certainly not Chinese agents, actually showed up at the polls to vote. Nor is anyone claiming that Chinese-orchestrated interference was extensive or effective enough to affect the overall result of the elections.

That’s a classic straw man — an argument no one is making and that can be brushed aside with ease. The concern is quite different but still worrisome: that China has been meddling in a host of indirect ways designed to swing public opinion in its favour and affect the outcome in some specific places. Oh, and that are often illegal to boot.

February 20, 2021

To that the government has offered no convincing reply. On the contrary, it seems remarkably complacent about the latest information, contained in internal documents prepared by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and reported by the Globe and Mail.

The government’s response to these revelations, and other ones last fall concerning the 2019 election, can be summed up as: we know all about this, nothing new here, it’s under control, please move on. That wasn’t working very well before (a Commons committee has been looking into the 2019 vote) and it certainly isn’t going to work now after the latest dump of CSIS documents.

Even if the overall result of the elections wasn’t at stake, it’s impossible to tell what effect the Chinese operation might have had in the 11 ridings it reportedly targeted in 2019, involving nine Liberal and two Conservative MPs. One former Conservative MP, Kenny Chiu, claims he lost his Vancouver-area seat in 2021 because Beijing used Chinese social media to paint him as “anti-Chinese” in a riding with many Chinese-heritage voters. Isn’t that serious all by itself?

We don’t need to accept everything in the CSIS information at face value to be concerned. For example, a former Chinese consul-general in Vancouver, Tong Xiaoling, reportedly boasted about defeating two Conservative MPs. She may well have been just puffing herself up in front of her bosses — people do that sort of thing — but who knows?

November 20, 2020

What’s missing from the government’s response isn’t just stronger words, though those would be welcome. What’s missing is any sign of concrete action to stop and indeed punish this kind of meddlesome behaviour by a foreign power that has shown it doesn’t respect our country or our government.

One of the actions reportedly orchestrated through China’s “diplomats” in Canada involved persuading sympathetic or intimidated people to donate to a candidate that Beijing wanted to see elected. The donor got a partial tax refund, and the embassy or consulate then kicked back the rest.

If that’s really been going on, it would be entirely illegal under Canada’s election laws. But there’s no sign that the RCMP or any other body has been unleashed to investigate and punish such activity. If it was really organized by Chinese representatives, they should be ordered out of the country pronto.

Canada has toughened its stance toward China in some other areas — notably in cracking down on university research funded by Chinese military or security entities. That makes the government’s continuing complacency on election interference even harder to explain. (Toronto Star editorial) 

From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro …

 

Tuesday November 29, 2022

Trudeau government unveils long-awaited plan to confront an ‘increasingly disruptive’ China

Canada’s long-awaited Indo-Pacific strategy describes China as “an increasingly disruptive global power” on the world stage — a social and economic force that’s too big to ignore but is also increasingly focused on bending international rules to suit its own interests.

November 16, 2022

Using some surprisingly blunt language, the strategy says the Canadian government needs to be “clear-eyed” about China’s objectives in the Far East and elsewhere. It promises to spend almost half a billion dollars over five years on improving military and intelligence co-operation with allies in the region.

“China’s rise, enabled by the same international rules and norms that it now increasingly disregards, has had an enormous impact on the Indo-Pacific, and it has ambitions to become the leading power in the region,” says the 26-page document, which was provided to the media in advance of its formal release in Vancouver on Sunday.

Friday November 20, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday November 20, 2020

China’s meddling inside Canada must stop

The Chinese state is sending covert agents into Canada to intimidate Canadians. But the federal Liberal government is doing next to nothing to stop it.

January 30, 2020

Chinese tech giant Huawei is itching to get its fingers on Canada’s 5G wireless networks. But the federal government refuses to say it can’t — despite the undeniable risks such a partnership would carry for national security.

It is past time for Justin Trudeau’s Liberals to stand up to the bullies in Beijing and the threats they pose to Canada. And if it takes a firm push from the opposition parties in the House of Commons to make them show some backbone, so be it.

Led by the Conservatives, the opposition parties passed a motion Wednesday calling on the Liberal government to do two things within the next 30 days to protect Canada and Canadians from this increasingly aggressive superpower.

July 16, 2020

First, the Liberals are supposed to announce how they’ll prevent China from sending its operatives to this country to harass and threaten Canadians. While this outrageous and frightening behaviour has been long known, it acquired new urgency last week when the Canadian Security Intelligence Service spoke up to denounce it.

According to CSIS, undercover Chinese state security officials and others routinely attempt to silence China’s critics in Canada by using tactics that include threats of retribution against people’s families in China.

December 12, 2019

That assessment was consistent with an Amnesty International report earlier this year that said Hong Kong Canadians, Tibetan Canadians and Uighur Canadians are all being targeted by China. And it said Ottawa’s response to the rising number of complaints about China’s bullying of Canadians was ineffective.

June 24, 2020

The second part of the opposition parties’ motion is just as crucial to Canada’s future. It says the Liberals must finally announce whether equipment made by China’s Huawei Technologies Co. will be allowed in Canada’s 5G wireless network.

There are legitimate concerns that ceding vast power over a major piece of Canadian infrastructure to a company so closely tied to the Chinese state would pose a major threat to national security. The federal government knows this. Yet it continues to hem and haw over making a decision, despite spending two years supposedly studying the matter.

To be fair to the Liberals, China is a formidable opponent. It has illegally and immorally jailed Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor for the past 711 days in blatant retaliation for Canada’s entirely legal house arrest of a Huawei executive facing charges in the U.S. It blocked exports of Canadian canola, pork and beef, too, in an effort to bend Canada to its will. For Canada to take it on is like a featherweight jumping into the ring with a super-heavyweight.

June 17, 2017

But Canada does have friends to stand beside it and show it a way forward. The United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and the United States — our Five Eyes intelligence allies — have all blocked Huawei from being part of their 5G wireless networks. In addition, Australia recently took effective action to stop the Chinese state from harassing people in Australia.

Canada can do the same — and remain secure. Although the opposition motion passed in Ottawa this week is not binding on the government, the Liberals should take it seriously. The opposition parties speak for a majority of Canadians, many of whom are convinced Canada must face down the Chinese bully.

No country that calls itself sovereign should tolerate the way China is interfering within Canadian borders. No country that values the rights and well-being of its citizens should refuse to defend them. (Hamilton Spectator Editorial)