Toronto: While a government task force monitoring the April federal election in Canada kept tabs on potential foreign interference by India, no incident of that nature was mentioned in its report released on Thursday. However, China and Russia were cited as having attempted to interfere in the poll.
The Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force (SITE TF) “actively monitored for potential foreign interference related activities by the Government of India during GE45 (45th General Election)”. However, no incident was mentioned in that regard.
However, examples of activities “observed” by the task force included transnational repression efforts, particularly by the People’s Republic of China, efforts by China-linked actors to amplify contrasting narratives about political candidates across a variety of social media platforms where Chinese-speaking users in Canada are active and efforts by Russia to undertake foreign information manipulation and interference activities online.
Among the specific incidents mentioned was the targeting of Conservative Party candidate Joe Tay by China. SITE “observed digital transnational repression directed” at the candidate for the riding (constituency) of Don Valley North in Toronto.
Meanwhile it also said there were “efforts by the Russian Federation to leverage its foreign information manipulation and interference networks online. This consists of a network of websites that launder and amplify Russian government-controlled media outlets’ aggregated items about Canadian candidates and the election throughout the election period”. Most of that content focused on “various narratives regarding” Prime Minister and Liberal Party leader Mark Carney.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile it also said there were “efforts by the Russian Federation to leverage its foreign information manipulation and interference networks online. This consists of a network of websites that launder and amplify Russian government-controlled media outlets’ aggregated items about Canadian candidates and the election throughout the election period”. Most of that content focused on “various narratives regarding” Prime Minister and Liberal Party leader Mark Carney.
{{/usCountry}}Overall, none of the incidents were determined to have “impacted Canada’s ability to have a free and fair election”.
The final report of a foreign interference inquiry, released in January, had alleged India was the “second most active country engaging in electoral foreign interference in Canada”. Only China, the report stated, had a greater impact on the country’s democratic processes.
The final report of the Public Inquiry into Foreign Interference in Federal Electoral Processes and Democratic Institutions, headed by Justice Marie-Josee Hogue, stated, “India is the second most active country engaging in electoral foreign interference in Canada. Like the PRC (People’s Republic of China), India is a critical actor on the world stage.”
“India perceives Canada as not taking India’s national security concerns about Khalistani separatism (the goal of an independent Sikh homeland in northern India called “Khalistan”) sufficiently seriously,” it noted, adding that India “focuses its foreign interference activities on the Indo-Canadian community and on prominent non-Indo-Canadians to achieve its objectives”, adding that New Delhi “has targeted all levels of government”.