Legitimizing China's Global Influence

"He told me about how the Confucius Institute had nothing at all to do with [the] Chinese government, then very strongly expressed concerns this might adversely impact trade relationships with China and the Chinese government."
"It also turned out his translator was someone who was a teacher for the Confucius Institute."
"I was concerned when I saw that same playbook being operated here in Canada, and our school system being used as a conduit for extending that influence."
"It gets to a point where we in Canada and in New Brunswick, we have to start playing hardball back. The world is getting to be a much rougher place and if we don't stand up in it, we get pushed over."
"In this case we stood up, and we're still standing."
Dominic Cardy, New Brunswick Education Minister

"We hope New Brunswick could grasp the opportunity of pragmatic cooperation with China instead of letting it slip from hands, meet each other half way and make joint efforts to promote the healthy development of the bilateral exchanges and cooperation in various fields."
"[New Brunswick could be imperilling the] rapid development [in trade and educational coooperation that New Brunswick and China have seen in recent years]."
Embassy of China, Ottawa

Musicians with the Confucius Institute play dulcimers during Global Confucius Institute Day at the Centre for Education in Edmonton on Sept. 27, 2014. The Edmonton school board recently renewed its Confucius contract for another five years.  Codie McLachlan/Postmedia/File

Dominic Cardy once was associated with the National Democratic Institute, a democracy-promotion agency based in the United States where, in the early 2000s, he was a close witness in Nepal and Cambodia to China's escalating influence. That experience echoed more recent events involving him as provincial minister of education in New Brunswick, where reports have been received from parents respecting the Confucius Institute currently installed in the provincial school system, ostensibly to deliver Chinese language lessons and cultural lessons in elementary and middle schools.

The province through its ministry of education was preparing itself not to renew the contract to permit the extra curricular Mandarin and Chinese cultural lessons after a decade of contract renewals. It is a commonplace contract subsidized by the Communist Party of China, installed in universities, colleges and other institutes of education throughout Canada -- and just incidentally throughout the world at large. Mr. Cardy was surprised when in his official capacity as his province's education minister he was confronted by a Chinese diplomat stationed in eastern Canada.

Without so much as a heads-up, his unannounced visitor, the Chinese consul-general in Montreal sought out Mr. Cardy to urge him in his capacity as education minister to refrain from releasing the Confucius Institute and its programs from the New Brunswick school system. With that urging came dire warning that should he chose to proceed with contract non-renewal he would be responsible for placing in peril the province's growing and remunerative trade with China.

Typically, a Liberal-appointed Canadian ambassador to Beijing forced to resign his position after he appeared to support Beijing's position in its outrage over the detention of Huawei's CFO last December by the RCMP at Vancouver's international airport -- on an extradition request from the U.S. State Department for interference in U.S. sanctions against Iran which led to the arrest of two Canadians under bogus charges of espionage, a death sentence imposed on another Canadian and an embargo of Canadian Canola products to China -- attempted to intervene, to no avail.

Singers from Meyonohk School perform during Global Confucius Institute Day at the Centre for Education in Edmonton on Sept. 27, 2014. Codie McLachlan/Postmedia/File

Neither the advice of the former ambassador nor the strenuously threatening lobbying of the Chinese diplomat served to change New Brunswick's position. The Liberal opposition in the province also criticized the decision but the announcement proceeded that the province is prepared to end the school system's contract with the Confucius Institute, cancelling cultural lessons in elementary and middle schools, while permitting the continuation of language courses in high school until the current contract runs out.

Reports from parents complain that the Institute restricts or distorts discussions of China; its teachers bar discussions about Tiananmen Square, and insist Taiwan is part of the People's Republic. Maps showing China includes Taiwan have also been used as Chinese propaganda. Now Mr. Cardy,  his government a progressive conservative one, faces ongoing criticism from the opposition Liberals claiming $137 million in export business has been endangered as a result of geopolitical dabbling.

It is no secret that the Confucius Institute has an agenda as an arm of the Chinese government, to strike partnerships with educational institutions abroad, offering funding to support extra-curricular Mandarin instruction and cultural courses to students. Establishing a base, in other words, among an emerging population demographic, sympathetic to and supportive of the government of China. In the final analysis seeking to buy recognition and support from the international community through outreach and indebtedness.

This stealth infiltration is a distant but distinct partner of the "one road, one belt" initiative where China invests hugely in countries abroad, lending out impressive sums for national building projects of roads, bridges and other communication infrastructures to benefit the loan nation and make it indebted to China whose benefit is control and command and enhanced trade opportunities. Chinese infiltration of other nations' business with establishing contacts at all levels of government, of persuading Chinese expatriates living abroad of their duty to support the government is devious.

Its expertise in subterfuge and espionage and its aggressive policies of embedding its communications industries' technologies in those of other countries gives it entry to state, military and industrial secrets meant to be shielded from unsanctioned eyes. While the Chinese Communist Party excels at portraying itself as a neutral, non-threatening bridge between societies, its assertive campaign for influence and command  has been well recognized globally.

In Canada, some agencies are beginning finally to respond; shutting out the Chinese overtures to protect themselves from undue influence and certain surveillance.