Anti-China Motion in the House of Commons

"Yellow Peril" Hysteria All Over Again

- Pauline Easton -

The House of Commons is addressing a motion that exudes hostility towards the People's Republic of China. The cartel parties are espousing the ill-advised cause of opposing alleged Chinese attempts to undermine Canada's "democratic institutions." In the name of "eliminating foreign interference in Canada's political process" the resolution will criminalize Canadians and permanent residents of Chinese national origin and generally foment a hysterical racist anti-Chinese climate. It is, again, the racist, colonialist approach which, at the turn of the 20th century, accused people from Asia of constituting a "Yellow Peril." A dictionary definition describes "Yellow Peril" as the power or alleged power of Asiatic peoples "to threaten or destroy the supremacy of White or Western civilization."[1]

According to Wikipedia it is "a colour-metaphor that represents the peoples of East Asia as an existential danger to the Western world."[2]

The motion also deserves the attention of Canadians for its insidious modus operandi. The right of citizens and residents to express their opinion on international affairs is being turned into a matter of people being "dupes for a foreign power." The international practice -- and right -- of countries to promote their economic interests, as Canada does all over the world, is considered proper for Canada and the U.S. but not for China. In the name of national security, when Canada, the U.S., and the other countries of the "Five Eyes" intelligence agencies can empower corporations such as Google, Twitter, Facebook and others to comply with surveillance of citizens it is considered democratic, but if China does it, it is considered dictatorial. Similarly, the domination of the cartel parties, all of which serve the international financial oligarchy, over governance in Canada is considered democratic, while the domination of the Communist Party of China over governance in China is considered a dictatorship.

The power of the private interests dominates this discourse, used to determine Canada's national interest. These private interests have taken over the U.S. state, to which they have subordinated the Canadian state. They use their apparatus of disinformation and budgets to put the full weight of their states behind wiping out their competition. The peoples of the countries which comprise the imperialist system of states are supposed to take sides.

According to David Vigneault, Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), "As the world becomes smaller and more competitive, nation states are naturally seeking every advantage to position themselves as leaders in a lucrative global economy. As a result of this competitive thirst, hostile state actors seek to leverage all elements of state power to advance their national interests. This threat represents the greatest danger to Canada's national security and can have a tremendous impact on our economic growth, ability to innovate, sovereignty and national interest. That is why CSIS is now routinely engaging with a variety of stakeholders across the Government of Canada and the private and research sectors, to learn from and advise on the nature of potential threats so that they are better prepared and can protect their important work."[3]

This candid admission that Canada's "national interests" are served by the security services advancing the interests of the financial and economic oligarchs in their rivalries to dominate markets and spheres of influence confirms the extent to which they themselves are providing justification "to leverage all elements of state power" to the advantage of their side of the "competitive thirst." It confirms the profound danger posed to the peoples. According to their modus operandi, this rivalry can only lead to aggression, war and interference abroad, while suppressing the movements of the people at home and abroad. The peoples are fighting for a new world where economies are organized to fulfill the needs of the people, and international relations, including trade, are based on mutual benefit and conflicting interests are resolved peacefully.

Vigneault praises the Government for passing the National Security Act, 2017 which received Royal Assent in June 2019. This Act was broadly opposed by Canadians when it was first introduced by the Harper government and then adopted by the Trudeau government with fraudulent amendments to make it appear that rights were being protected. Vigneault says that while the new police powers have provided "some new modern authorities, there is still work to be done." More explicitly, he calls for increased police powers, stating that "the threat environment we face today and in the future requires further reflection to ensure that we have the tools required of a modern intelligence agency."

One of the examples of "threat environment today" the security establishment is promoting as hysterically as it possibly can, is alleged interference in delivery of COVID vaccines.[4]

Of note is the dominant role in decision-making given to the so-called Five Eyes intelligence agencies which, by definition, are covert. They march to their own tune without the citizenry ever being privy to what they do and how. The decision-makers in government also march to their tune.

Imposing conceptions of security, peace and democracy dragged out of the Cold War period merely underscores the fact that what they mean is self-serving. The interests they serve and those who serve these interests do not recognize, let alone represent, the members of the polity whose voices are not heard; nay more, whose voices are missing altogether in what is called the discussion.

All of the parties in the House of Commons are in cahoots with the motion. They have been bickering over minor details related to it, such as whether or not it should be adopted before it is reviewed by the Special Committee on Canada-China Relations, itself an instrument for anti-China propaganda whose aim is to hide how desperate they are to wipe out China as a competitor.[5]

Notes

1. Collins Dictionary.

2. The term "Yellow Peril" was coined in Europe following Japan's military defeat of China in 1895 and was initially applied to Japan to create fear of invasion from rising powers in East Asia.

The fear of invasion continued into the 20th century and was bolstered by various racist portrayals of "sinister Orientals" in books and films. Prominent amongst these was the English writer Sax Rohmer's creation, the insidious and diabolical genius Dr. Fu Manchu.

By the outbreak of WWI, the lack of any actual invasion usage of the term "Yellow Peril" began to fade, although in practice, fearmongering about China and immigrants from East Asia continued, couched in other derogatory terms, in support of racist immigration policies at home and imperialist aggression abroad.

3.  CSIS Public Report 2019, “Our Vision: A Safe, Secure and Prosperous Canada through Trusted Intelligence and Advance,” May 2020.

4. "CSIS warns of threats to vaccine distribution chain," Catharine Tunney, CBC News, December 17, 2020.

5. According to its website, the Special Committee on Canada-China Relations says its mandate is "to conduct hearings to examine and review all aspects of the Canada-China relationship, including, but not limited to, consular, economic, legal, security and diplomatic relations." Its website further states:

"The ties between Canada and Hong Kong are long standing and well known, notably due to the many Canadian soldiers who participated and lost their lives in the war effort to prevent the Japanese invasion during the Second World War. Today, an estimated 300,000 Canadians live in Hong Kong.

"Hong Kong's freedoms and high degree of autonomy were enshrined in the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration, a treaty registered with the United Nations. As the Special Committee has been told, the international community was asked to support the 'one country, two systems' framework and cooperate toward its successful implementation. The Special Committee notes that, while the framework is obliged to endure until 2047, serious questions have been raised by the National Security Law that was enacted on June 30, 2020. Furthermore, the Special Committee reiterates that the freedoms enshrined in the Joint Declaration and Hong Kong's Basic Law, including freedom of expression and assembly, are guaranteed by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which applies in Hong Kong."

Individuals and organizations that have appeared before the committee this year include the following:

December 8, 2020 (Meeting 12)
Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
- Shawn Steil, Executive Director, Greater China Policy and Coordination

Embassy of Canada to the People's Republic of China
- Dominic Barton, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada to the People's Republic of China

November 24, 2020 (Meeting 8)
As an individual
- Hon. John McCallum, Former Ambassador of Canada to the People's Republic of China
- Robert Wright, Former Ambassador of Canada to the People's Republic of China

November 23, 2020 (Meeting 7)
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
- Marta Morgan, Deputy Minister, Foreign Affairs
- Weldon Epp, Director General, North Asia and Oceania Bureau

House of Commons
- Hon. François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Foreign Affairs

November 17, 2020 (Meeting 6)
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
- Shawn Steil, Executive Director, Greater China Policy and Coordination

November 16, 2020 (Meeting 5)
Department of Citizenship and Immigration
- Natasha Kim, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic and Program Policy
- Dr. Nicole Giles, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Operations

House of Commons
- Hon. Marco Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

November 9, 2020 (Meeting 4)
As an individual
- Bill Chu, Founder, Canadians for Reconciliation
- Steve Tsang, Director, SOAS China Institute, University of London
- Victor Ho, Retired Editor-in-Chief, Sing Tao Daily, British Columbia Edition

National Democratic Institute
- Adam Nelson, Senior Advisor for Asia-Pacific

Vancouver Society in Support of Democratic Movement
- Mabel Tung, Chair

November 2, 2020 (Meeting 3)
Consulate General of Canada in Hong Kong and Macao
- Jeff Nankivell, Consul General of Canada in Hong Kong and Macao, Global Affairs Canada

October 26, 2020 (Meeting 2)
As an individual
- Angela Gui
- Nathan Law, Hong Kong Activist, Former Legislator 

This article was published in

Volume 50 Number 49 - December 19, 2020

Article Link:
Anti-China Motion in the House of Commons: "Yellow Peril" Hysteria All Over Again - Pauline Easton

    

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