To the Commissioner, Public Inquiry on Foreign Interference SUBMISSIONS BY XIXI LI

Foreign Interference Commission, thank you for receiving the truthful information from the community.

I submit this statement on the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) made an irresponsible public announcement in 2023 that the Service à la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal and the Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud were under investigation by the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (EISN) and were allegedly operating as illegal Chinese “police stations.”

 

I am Xixi Li, the Executive Director of two community organizations, the Service à la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal (SFCGM) and the Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud (Centre Sino-Québec), as noted in the organizational records dated July 25, 2023, from the Registraire des entreprises.

In November 2021, I was elected as city councillor of Brossard. There are 10 city councillors, eight of them were from the same party as the mayor, one is an independent councillor, and the other is me. I am the only elected opposition councillor.

The cascade of events began on March 9, 2023, when the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) made an irresponsible public announcement that the Service à la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal and the Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud were under investigation by the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (EISN) and were allegedly operating as illegal Chinese “police stations.” This unsubstantiated claim thrust these organizations and me, as their Executive Director, into the public eye, creating a storm of media coverage across Quebec.

Due to my role in these organizations, I was directly named in numerous media publications. For example, an article in the *Journal de Montréal* featured a photo of me and mentioned my title as a municipal councillor in the article “La GRC enquête sur deux présumés « postes de police » chinois au Québec,” dated March 9, 2023. This media storm not only affected me as the Executive Director of the organizations under investigation but also as a municipal councillor for the city of Brossard.

 

Facts

On March 9, 2023, the media reported that the RCMP named the Chinese Family Services of Greater Montreal and Centre Sino Québec as subjects of investigations on the pretext of being ‘Chinese police stations.’ Although the RCMP has never publicly mentioned my name, the Mayor of Brossard Ms. Doreen Assaad jumped on media insinuations of my guilt through multiple public statements and calls for my resignation. Numerous times, without citing any evidence, Ms. Assaad questioned the legitimacy of my election and my integrity as an elected official of Brossard. She also attacked the credibility of Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud as a presumed Chinese police station.

On March 10, 2023, following the allegations against me in the media, the mayor of Brossard Doreen Assaad sent me an email, urging me to resign from my position as a municipal councillor for the city of Brossard, as seen in the email from Doreen Assaad to me dated March 10, 2023.

On the same day, Doreen Assaad, in her capacity as Mayor of Brossard, made a public statement about me on her Facebook page, “Doreen Assaad – Mairesse de Brossard,” as seen in a screenshot of the post dated March 10, 2023, on the Doreen Assaad – Mairesse de Brossard Facebook profile.

“I learned at the same time as you yesterday from the media that Sino-Québec, located on Taschereau Boulevard in Brossard, possibly operates an illegal Chinese police station, led by its Executive Director, who is also an opposition municipal councillor in the city of Brossard, Ms. Xixi Li.

Although unconfirmed, the alleged facts are troubling. The RCMP is investigating, which is significant and sad for Brossard. Although this municipal councillor is not on my team but rather a political opponent, it tarnishes the reputation of the city of Brossard.

From what I understand, Chinese police stations are linked to the Chinese Communist Party to control its citizens abroad through threats against their families and their safety. They interfere in our democratic institutions.

If this is indeed what is happening in Brossard, if the investigation confirms it, it is not only unacceptable, but it is imperative to act to protect the citizens of Brossard of Chinese origin who are victims of these organizations. We must also protect the democratic life of Brossard from any interference. I am still waiting for the results of a complaint filed in November 2021 with the Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec (DGEQ). Finally, we must protect our exemplary coexistence in Brossard, which is not forced by threat or interference, but rather forged by our desire to live together in harmony and according to the democratic values of Quebec.

I call on all Brossard citizens to remain in solidarity with our residents of Chinese origin who have nothing to do with the actions of their country’s government. This is not a time for division, but rather for solidarity to defend our values together.

If you have witnessed or been a victim of threats, blackmail, and retaliation from one of the organizations in question, it is important to contact the Royal Canadian Mounted Police at (514) 939-8301 to help end this practice.

In conclusion, I recommended that Ms. Li step down during the investigation. I do not have the legal authority to force her suspension, but in the interest of the city of Brossard, I ask her to step down.”

Thank you,

Doreen Assaad – Mayor of Brossard

To support her statement, Ms. Assaad attached to her post a photo of the cover page of the *Journal de Montréal* article written by Ms. Camille Payant titled “La conseillère Li devrait-elle se retirer?”

As of this date, this Facebook post had received 130 reactions and 121 shares.

Ms. Assaad gave more than a dozen interviews to various media outlets in Quebec.

Throughout these interviews, Ms. Assaad made several comments about my integrity and transparency as a municipal councillor for the city of Brossard.

In the days that followed, articles about me multiplied.

Ten days later, on March 21, 2023, a city council meeting was held in Brossard, the first since the allegations against me.

I decided not to attend this meeting, as noted in the minutes of the hearing on March 21, 2023, primarily due to the mental and physical exhaustion I experienced as a result of the allegations against me.

In anticipation of this council meeting, Ms. Assaad made a statement on her Facebook profile, dated March 21, 2023, on the profile “Doreen Assaad – Mairesse de Brossard.”

“Tonight’s Public Assembly will be the first Public Assembly since allegations of a possible Chinese police station in Brossard have been widely published in the media. This issue doubly affects us in Brossard since the director of the two alleged organizations is also an ‘elected’ opposition City Councillor.”

On March 23, 2023, a Brossard resident contacted me by email, requesting my resignation following my absence from the city council meeting, primarily related to the investigation into the “Chinese police stations”.

I was also absent from the following city council meeting for somewhat different reasons.

On May 16, 2023, after my two absences from the city council, I returned to the hearings as an independent councillor.

 

Defamation

  1. i) On Facebook

Ms. Assaad used her position as Mayor of Brossard to make statements that could objectively discredit my reputation as a municipal councillor. She questioned my sincerity and transparency in the context of the elections that elected me as a municipal councillor in 2021, mentioning, among other things, on Facebook that “This issue doubly affects us in Brossard since the director of the two alleged organizations is also an ‘elected’ opposition City Councillor.”

The use of quotation marks in the English version of the post to cast doubt on the validity of my election as a municipal councillor is not only a serious and unfounded accusation but also an unlawful and intentional attack on my reputation.

Ms. Assaad also referred to a complaint she had filed with the Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec against me.

The complaint to which Ms. Assaad referred on several occasions, was a complaint against me with the Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec, which has not only been resolved but found me not guilty of any wrongdoing.

Ms. Assaad lacked caution and diligence in the statements she made about me, in violation of the *Règlement relatif au Code d’éthique et de déontologie des élus de la Ville de Brossard* (REG-414):

Ms. Assaad, by posting her opinions and doubts about me on her Facebook page “Doreen Assaad – Mairesse de Brossard” in her capacity as mayor, also implied that these opinions were shared by the city of Brossard, contrary to REG-414.

Ms. Assaad also failed in her obligations as mayor under REG-414 concerning maintaining high standards of honesty, transparency, and impartiality and expressing her opinion cautiously and measuredly.

The comments made by the Mayor of Brossard undoubtedly influence public perception and can be mistaken for the city’s official position regarding me.

Thus, the statements made by Ms. Assaad on Facebook are not only considered defamatory but also violate REG-414, which governs the conduct of municipal elected officials in Brossard.

  1. ii) In her media interviews

During the interviews she gave to the media, Ms. Assaad made highly defamatory remarks about me:

– *Journal de Montréal,* “Présumés « postes de police »: la conseillère municipale dans l’embarras,” March 9, 2023: Ms. Assaad expressed her concern about the reputation of the city of Brossard following the media revelations.

– *The Gazette,* “Investigators looking into claims of Chinese police stations in Brossard,” March 9, 2023: Ms. Assaad expressed concern about the alleged “Chinese police stations” and their link to me, who is also an opposition municipal councillor in the city of Brossard.

*Radio-Canada,* “Deux organismes de la Rive-Sud sont liés à de présumés postes de police chinois,” March 10, 2023: Ms. Assaad.

As a Chinese community leader with decades of unwavering community service under my belt, and as someone who has witnessed Centre Sino-Québec de la Rive-Sud provide social services to the Chinese community in the South Shore for almost 30 years, It is not easy for racialized women to fulfill multiple roles in family, community, and public service.  I have suffered great harm to my dignity and reputation due to the actions of RCMP and Ms. Assaad.

We have the following questions here:

  1. The RCMP said they have ‘credible information’ about the so-called ‘police stations’ in Quebec. Is this information from Safeguard in Spain? Isn’t it a form of foreign interference?
  2. We also want to know what the definition of a ‘Chinese police station’ is?

I want to conclude my submission with my declaration that I made at the city council meeting On May 16, 2023:

“In November 2021, I was elected by the sectors O, N, and I of the City. I fully assume my duties toward my constituents.

First, I urge you to exercise caution and avoid jumping to conclusions. Contrary to the statements made by the mayor, there has never been any “confirmation” that Chinese police stations exist here in Quebec. Moreover, I have not been accused of any crime and it is my right to be presumed innocent. We are also eager to learn the results of this investigation.

I have been careful and consulted a lawyer referred by the City, who confirmed that I have not violated any ethical rules.

The allegations circulating about me in the media are false.

I want to remind you that I was legally elected by the citizens of Brossard and I am committed to fulfilling my role in representing their interests on the city council.

To conclude, in 1991, when I chose Canada and Quebec, it was precisely to live in a state of law. It is here in Brossard that I founded my family, and for the past 25 years as a community worker, I have helped thousands of Chinese and immigrants from other communities integrate, striving for an inclusive world. I am also a former immigrant who successfully integrated into Quebec society and the job market, in French. I find it unfortunate that as an elected municipal councilor of Chinese origin, I have to face such a situation.

Finally, I want to inform you that I have received many messages of encouragement from the citizens of my district during this difficult period, and I thank them for it”.

Thank you again for the Commission’s willingness to listen to the voices of the victims of the expanded “foreign interference” investigation. I hope that the information we provide will help the Commission to more comprehensively examine foreign interference in Canada.