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Tuesday, May 30, 2000

Marina Jimenez
National Post

The Canadian government has hired "Chinese spies" at the Canadian embassy in Beijing, according to an internal government document.

The embassy is forced to hire these employees from the Chinese Diplomatic Service, who are identified in an internal survey as "by definition spies."

The survey, conducted in 1998 by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada to assess staffing levels at Canadian missions overseas, asked whether an expanded role for locally hired staff was appropriate. At several missions, including Beijing, Damascus and Dhaka, officials concluded that it would not be "in keeping with sound risk management" to delegate signing authority to locals, which would give them the ability to sign off on visa applications.

An official at the Canadian embassy in Beijing wrote:

"At one time this post was not considered a likely place for immigration program officers ... because of the security concerns ... a communist country [presents], and an inability to hire employees from outside the Chinese Diplomatic Service bureau who by definition were all 'spies.'

"However, things have changed considerably in recent years ... we have attracted several Canadian citizen employees," he continued.

Richard Kurland, a Vancouver-based immigration lawyer who obtained the documents under the Access to Information Act, says the survey proves that local culture requires Canada to hire Chinese nationals whose real employer is the Chinese government.

"They may not be signing off on decisions, but they are likely making recommendations and they can control whether files go quickly or slowly through the system," Mr. Kurland said.

Lorna Tessier, spokeswoman for Immigration Canada, acknowledged the embassy does hire individuals from the Chinese Diplomatic Bureau who are "beholden to the Chinese government."