His statement came just hours after National Post reported the RCMP was probing Chiang’s comments in January about his Conservative rival, Joe Tay
His statement came just hours after National Post reported the RCMP was probing Chiang’s comments in January about his Conservative rival, Joe Tay
His statement came just hours after National Post reported the RCMP was probing Chiang’s comments in January about his Conservative rival, Joe Tay
OTTAWA — Liberal Leader Mark Carney said he accepted embattled Toronto candidate Paul Chiang’s resignation Monday night, but would not say if the controversy was a “teachable moment” for him as a novice politician.
Carney had previously used the term “teachable moment” in explaining why he had decided to keep Chiang as a candidate, despite his suggestion to Chinese media that people in his riding turn over a rival Conservative candidate to Chinese authorities.
Carney amounted his candidate’s unfortunate comments to a lesson which underscored “the respect with which we treat human rights in this country.”
He nonetheless stood by his candidate, running for re-election in Markham–Unionville, citing his nearly three decades of service as a police officer in the community.
“He’s made his apology. He’s made it to the public, he’s made it to the individual concerned, he’s made it directly to me, and he’s going to continue with his candidacy.”
“He has my confidence.”
By Monday evening, the RCMP told the National Post that it was probing Chiang’s comments. This came after pro-democracy group Hong Kong Watch urged the federal police to launch an investigation to see if the candidate has breached any laws.
“The RCMP is looking into the matter, however no specific details can be provided at this time,” said RCMP spokeswoman Kristine Kelly in a statement.
Chiang put out a statement hours later, announcing that he was stepping down because he did not want to derail the Liberal campaign.
“As the prime minister and Team Canada work to stand up to President [Donald] Trump and protect our economy, I do not want there to be distractions in this critical moment,” Chiang wrote on X.
“That’s why I’m standing aside as our 2025 candidate in our community of Markham–Unionville.”
In comparison, the Conservatives dropped their candidate for Windsor-Tecumseh-Lakeshore, Mark McKenzie, on Tuesday after they learned that he had expressed support for the death penalty in a podcast from February 2022.
Tuesday morning, Carney faced reporters again and was asked why he did not do the same with Chiang. He was also asked if this was “a teachable moment” for him.
“Mr. Chiang offered his resignation last night. I accepted it. As I said yesterday, his comments were deeply, deeply troubling and regrettable. We will move on with looking for a new candidate for Markham. I’ll leave it at that,” said Carney.
During a news conference with Chinese-language media in January, Chiang told people that they could cash in on a HK$1 million bounty (CAN$184,000) if they turned over Joe Tay — who was vying for the Conservative nomination Markham–Unionville but is now running in Don Valley North instead — to Chinese authorities.
Canada believes the bounties are a form of transnational repression against critics of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Tay, a former resident of Hong Kong, had been charged under Hong Kong’s widely condemned national security law for running a YouTube channel in Canada that was critical of its Beijing-dominated government.
Tay put out a statement on Monday saying that the situation has left him fearing for his safety, adding that he had been in touch with the RCMP regarding his personal protection.
“I want to be clear: no apology is sufficient. Threats like these are the tradecraft of the Chinese Communist Party to interfere in Canada,” he said.
Carney’s decision to maintain Chiang was panned by CCP critics, human rights groups and opposition parties.
Monday, 40 Hong Kong diaspora organizations based in Canada, the U.S., the UK, Australia, and Germany issued a statement saying that Chiang’s comments are “alarming and represent a dangerous endorsement of transnational repression.”
“We call on the Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to affirm its commitment to human rights and stand in solidarity with all those who resist oppression,” they wrote.
Tuesday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre suggested that Carney’s decision not to kick out Chiang immediately means he is unable to stand up to foreign opponents like China and the United States.
“Mr. Carney never stands up for Canada. We saw yesterday that he supported his MP, Paul Chiang, who asked for a Canadian citizen to be handed over to the Chinese government to be incarcerated or killed,” Poilievre said in French.
“If he can’t defend Canada against a dictatorship, how can he never defend Canada against other threats, including the U.S. tariffs. He is a weak, disconnected leader,” he added.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Carney demonstrated a “failure of leadership.”
“What his candidate did was egregious, and it was to embolden foreign interference,” he said. “Instead of saying, I’m going to stand up and say that is wrong, he failed to show leadership, and I think that was a failure in that case.”
National Post
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