The Chinese attempt to influence, blackmail and seduce politicians of every nation is not new

BY STEVEN KASZAB

27% of Canadians trust David Johnson (Rapporteur) to carry out an investigation into Chinese Influence on Canadian elections. These past months various politicians have been pointing out that the Liberal administration of Justin Trudeau had not warned the legislature and various MP’s that they were targets of Chinese spy craft. Can we look at this without all the politicking going on in our capital?

When someone becomes a MP, they go through an extensive protocol warning them of real and possible present-day dangers coming from both international spy craft organizations and the corporate world. They are warned about the responsibilities of being a member of parliament explained fully by both CSIS and the RCMP. Not knowing is not an option for these people. Audits are carried out by Parliament and security systems regularly also.

If you thought about it, you, the average citizen, could probably recognize the seriousness of foreign nations spying upon each of us, let alone for those who work for and with governmental agencies, departments and Crown corporations. All this blustering and calls for special investigations are nothing more than adding per diems’ payments to elected officials pay checks, and also giving the oppositions a chance to shine in front of their followers and the media. Many politicians are truly mercenary, offering little that can help make the nation safe, while demanding public investigations and selfish financial benefit to the investigation’s membership.

What is really happening: security systems work in the shadows, quietly acquiring information, analysing and contemplating this information and finally sharing it with the appropriate minister of authority. The Chinese attempt to influence, blackmail and seduce politicians of every nation is not new, but a known practice. Our politicians, bureaucrats and international businesspeople know this since time began.

Check out “The Art of War,” an interesting book. Also “The Prince,” a Machiavellian testament to achieving power and maintaining it at all costs. Ottawa is today, filled with spies all looking for hidden dirt regarding any elected officials or employee of the government, or some large corporation giant. Canadian Parliamentarians want a directory for all spies, and foreign government influencers. Does not work. Every foreign consulate, embassy and satellite office is full of spies. Consider even Ambassadors as foreign tools of engagement. Every Russian, Chinese, EU, British and Banana Republic Citizen is a potential lobbyist, spy or agent provocateur.

Living in Canada, America and beyond has kept us safe from foreign violence, spy craft and that uneasy feeling we are being watched. Guess we all need to wake up.

You want to know who within our government has been approached, and recruited by a foreign government? How about annual audits of their secured and hidden bank accounts? Foreign and Domestic threats to our elected officials, our election process and way of life can be defended against, but the privacy of elected officials and those bureaucrats who work for them need to be investigated, transparent and should there be elements of: fraud, espionage, favours given, financial irregularities, or something hidden, the public and our security systems need to know. Only this way, can we feel certain that our regular functions in life are not being manipulated.

The system is riddled with hidden elements that make true transparency difficult, if not impossible. Either our security system needs to be managed better, more secretly while providing true in time reports to those in the government, or we make the system a closed organization, where MP’s, government bureaucrats and multinational corporations toe the thin security centred line. If we know what each of these people are going through, their weaknesses, their desires and financial realities, our security agencies can help prevent foreign agents from: manipulating, threatening, blackmailing or harming extended family members. It is their job, but the so-called “Privacy” of those who are targets does not allow our security professionals to do their jobs.

If you know there is a threat, you can take those threats out of the equation temporarily and defend against any assault with all appropriate knowledgeable actions.