CSIS report on Liberal nomination race recalled after meeting with PM's top security adviser

The head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Ser‐ vice (CSIS) issued a burn notice for an intelligence assessment about possible foreign interference in a Toronto Liberal nomination race, according to a docu‐ ment tabled in the public inquiry into foreign inter‐ ference.

The commission's lawyers wrote that CSIS director David Vigneault told them that he "has no recollection" why the document was re‐ called, but was confident the only reason why he would've agreed to do so would be "because there was an issue with it; he had never and would never recall a docu‐ ment because it was too sen‐ sitive."

Documents tabled during the inquiry say the top secret intelligence document noted irregularities with the federal Liberal Party nomination of Han Dong in the Toronto rid‐ ing of Don Valley North.

It was prepared in Octo‐ ber 2019 and disseminated to senior government offi‐ cials, including Canada's na‐ tional security and intelli‐ gence advisor (NSIA), who is tasked with advising the prime minister on national security issues.

Documents filed in the in‐ quiry say an internal CSIS email shows Vigneault asked for the document to be re‐ called after speaking with the NSIA.

Vigneault repeatedly told the commission on Thursday he could not recall why that decision was made, but insis‐ ted that throughout his ca‐ reer, he has never recalled anything due to external pressure.

The commission has not heard what was wrong with the report. The commission is tasked with examining what effect, if any, foreign states had on influencing the 2019 and 2021 federal elec‐ tions.

Dong, who won his seat in Don Valley North in the 2019 election and again in 2021, quit the Liberal caucus last year following a report from Global News, which alleged he had advised a senior Chi‐ nese diplomat that Beijing should hold off on freeing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, two Canadians be‐ hind held by China at the time.

Dong accused Global of publishing "a series of false, malicious, irresponsible and defamatory" stories about the MP, and sued the news organization for $15 million in damages.

Former special rapporteur on foreign interference David Johnston investigated the claim and concluded in a re‐ port released in May 2023 that the allegation was "false." Similarly, documents made public in the inquiry in‐ to foreign interference do not back up the claim.

However, interviews and documents made public as part of the inquiry show au‐ thorities probed the nomina‐ tion race. An intelligence as‐ sessment says there were "ir‐ regularities in the nomina‐ tion that may have included activities undertaken by indi‐ viduals close to PRC officials."

The CSIS document warned that not all intelli‐ gence was substantiated and national security experts have repeatedly warned that intelligence cannot be taken as fact - but said some re‐ porting indicated that buses were used to bring interna‐ tional students to the nomi‐ nation event in support of

Dong, and that students may have been provided with fal‐ sified documents allowing them to vote, despite not liv‐ ing in the riding.

Further intelligence re‐ ports tabled at the inquiry al‐ lege that veiled threats were issued by the People's Re‐ public of China (PRC) Con‐ sulate to the Chinese interna‐ tional students, implying their student visas would be in jeopardy and that there could be consequences for their families back in the PRC if they did not support Dong.

In a statement provided to the commission, Dong said some Mandarin-speak‐ ing students from a private high school voted in the 2019 nomination contest in Don

Valley North, and that they likely voted for him, but be‐ lieves they did it because he visited the school as part of his nomination campaign.

Dong's campaign manag‐ er, Ted Lojko, told the com‐ mission's lawyers that the campaign did not target in‐ ternational students, empha‐ sizing that it is difficult to mo‐ tivate young people to attend a nomination meeting.

He also said that this nomination was heavily scru‐ tinized by the Liberal Party as it was taking place after the 2019 election had already be‐ gun. He told lawyers that party brass "wanted to know whether there was anything the media could pick up on to tarnish the campaign."

Dong has expressed in‐ terest in rejoining the Liberal caucus, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednes‐ day and Thursday declined to answer questions about whether he'd be welcomed back.