Chinese Canadian scientists face racist portrayal as Chinese Spies, by CSIS and ad hoc parliament committee
Part One
Written By: Marthad Shingiro Umucyaba
A 600-page report, inadvertently revealing the political and racial persecution of Dr. Xiangguo Qiu and Dr. Keding Cheng, was released in February by an ad hoc committee in the House of Commons. It was sold as an analysis on the “security vulnerabilities” of scientific research and technology in Canada. The focus was on Dr. Xiangguo Qiu and Dr. Keding Cheng’s workplace, the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg (NML). Dog whistles for the far-right were abundant in the report, such as “gain of function” and the “Wuhan Institute of Virology”.
In the entire 600-page report, there is not a single corroborating piece of evidence linking Dr. Qiu to any of the Chinese “Top Talent” programs that she was accused of participating in. This will be detailed in full, in a follow-up investigation released tomorrow.
In the report, as usual, we’re told about “benign foreign interference”, “national security”, and the “China Challenge”. Scientific cooperation with China is seen as a “vulnerability” and is portrayed as an opportunity for China to “steal technology”. Dr. Xiangguo Qiu and Dr. Keding Cheng are supposedly the “agents”.
The Intentional use of “Dog Whistles” that are in fact irrelevant
The two most outrageous dog whistles used in this report were “gain of function” and “Wuhan Institute of Virology” (Page 273). “Gain of function” (Page 279) was mentioned against Dr. Xiangguo Qiu and was mentioned as a program that she might have participated in at the “Wuhan Institute of Virology” under the “Top Talent” program, which CSIS alleged was a program built for the sake of espionage, bio-warfare, and “stealing technology”.
The irony of this accusation was that the “gain of function” research conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) was actually financed by the United States, a NATO ally. CSIS also admitted to that fact in this report (Pages 279-280). The program, specifically concerning SARS, a precursor strain to Covid-19, in 2014, years before the Covid-19 pandemic actually started. It continued in Ukraine, and continued in WIV under the supervision of the US, while the countries that got hit the hardest in the early days of the pandemic were Italy, Iran, and China.
Even if Dr. Qiu was involved in the “gain of function” program, as is alleged by CSIS, she would have been serving NATO interests. But this is used against her, because NATO wants to pin the blame for COVID-19 on China.
Racial persecution at PHAC
Both Dr. Xiangguo Qiu (Pages 152-153) and Dr. Keding Cheng (Pages 154-155) filed human rights discrimination claims through their union as a result of this investigation, and according to Dr. Keding Cheng, previous mistreatment before the politically motivated “investigation” was launched. The main point of contention in the union represented claim was that there was “selective enforcement” and “discrimination on the basis of nationality”.
The pro-colonial press highlights the fact that Dr. Qiu and Dr. Cheng “resurfaced” in China. In reality, they had to flee racial and political persecution in Canada and return to China in order to have any chance of maintaining a viable career or livelihood.
The attempt at fighting against discrimination through union representation failed, and they did not pursue a federal human rights claim through the Canadian Human Rights Commission, which CSIS concerned themselves about as a possible move (Pages 298-299, Pages 303-304). CSIS themselves acknowledged that those were viable steps that Dr. Qiu and Dr. Cheng could take after the human rights claims were rejected via union representation and after they were administratively terminated. Dr. Qiu and Dr. Cheng, understandably, seemed to have lost faith in Canadian “Human Rights” and their institutions.
The lack of evidence
CSIS begins their “impartial security” evaluation of Dr. Qiu and Dr. Cheng by claiming that they “continued to deny participation in Chinese programs despite being shown evidence to the contrary”. This accusation is made against both scientists.
Their rebuttal: “I did not see any of the evidence that CSIS is saying that they showed me” (Pages 191, 220). In one case, CSIS tried to manipulate Cheng into thinking he’d said that he assisted his wife to apply to talent programs, something Cheng firmly denied when the manipulation attempt occurred (Page221).
And as it turns out, none of that so-called evidence is even presented in the entire 600-page report. As for why, well, it’s actually not possible for either Dr. Qiu or Dr. Cheng to have been eligible for any of the “Top Talent” programs that they were accused of being in, as mentioned earlier – to be explained in tomorrow’s follow-up investigation.
A Prelude
This first installment was about exposing the racial epithets that CSIS shamelessly used throughout this report. It shows the red meat they were deliberately feeding to far-right conspiracy theorists for the sake of anti-China and anti-Asian incitement. It shows the complicity of the Ad Hoc Committee members, namely Liberal MP Iqra Khalid, Conservative MP John Williamson, Bloc Québécois MP Rene Villemure, and Heather McPherson of the NDP, who presented this narrative as a “national security” issue.
Before Dr. Qiu and Dr. Cheng’s rebuttals, they were never actually shown any of the “corroborating evidence” that CSIS claimed to show them. There’s not a single piece of said evidence throughout the report. The only email chains used in the report are in fact clear examples showing that Dr. Cheng and Dr. Qiu complied with PHAC policy, as admitted to in the Q & A that the PHAC did with the press (Pages 439-623).
The follow-up investigation explores the so-called pretext for CSIS’ investigation, dissecting the “Top Talent” programs that Dr. Xiangguo Qiu allegedly joined with Dr. Keding Cheng’s help, and showing how she couldn’t have been qualified for these “malign Chinese foreign interference” programs.
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Marthad Shingiro Umucyaba (formerly referred to as Christian Shingiro) is a Rwandan-born naturalized Canadian expat. He is known for his participation in Communist/anti-imperialist national and international politics and is the radio show host of The Socially Radical Guitarist.
He is also a freelance web developer in Hong Kong, China, striving to provide “Socially Radical Web Design at a socially reasonable price”.
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