Tim Cheung (@TimCheung)

Fighting against Chinese Communist Authoritarianism is at $UBC $RobsonSquare. · $Vancouver, $BC · " $Humanrights $activists are angry with the $University of $BritishColumbia for renting out one of its $classrooms to the Government of $HongKong for a $recruitment $exam earlier this month. In a $Dec22 letter to UBC President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Benoit-Antoine Bacon, Chinese Canadian Concern Group on the $Chinese $Communist Party’s Human Rights Violations wrote to express its disapproval of the university allowing the $HKETO Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office to use a room at the Robson Square campus to conduct an exam related to its 2020 National Security Law ($NSL) on Dec. 7. 'Successful candidates for this examination are required to swear allegiance to the Hong Kong and, by extension, $Beijing governments', the letter from spokesperson $GabrielYiu reads. 'Allowing this recruitment activity on UBC's campus raises serious national security concerns for Canada, especially in the context of potential conflicts between the two governments. Such actions could pave the way for the infiltration of foreign authoritarian influence into our society'...The organization called the NSL a 'draconian law that suppresses fundamental rights, including free speech, freedom of the press, and other $freedoms'. 'This law has been used to persecute dissent not only within Hong Kong but also within the global Chinese diaspora', the letter states. 'Hosting this examination on $Canadian soil risks enabling the further implementation of the NSL, which is fundamentally at odds with Canada’s democratic values'. Vancouver East MP $JennyKwan says the Chinese government is trying to recruit people to work in Hong Kong and China. Applicants, she says, are required to show their understanding of the NSL. 'UBC, of course, can rent their space to anybody. However, from my perspective, I think that you should be looking at some #ethical standards that should apply. In the very minimum, one would think that any organization, any institution that's going to rent out a space to a government that is a regular, persistent, violent human rights #violators, that they would apply some standards to it'. Kwan suggested the university should have warned those taking the exam about the concerns regarding the NSL...While the reasons behind recruiting Canadians remains unclear, Kwan is concerned the Chinese government may be doing it in an attempt to enforce the NSL in other countries such as Canada. Yiu wrote that UBC should commit to ensure no such exam happens on the university's property in the future. 'Canada is under increasing threat from foreign #authoritarian influence, and it is imperative for #institutions like UBC to stand firm in uphold democratic values and protecting Canadian #sovereignty'." https://www.facebook.com/ChinaCreepingAuthoritarianism/posts/pfbid0rFL3Jw9TkJqyNLMN3FjePPPrTuxWojf3RVkQB2qKyxvx46ff37oegucddp1tTVTUl