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Floor-crossing MP Michael Ma casts doubt on reports of forced labour in China
Michael Ma challenged the credibility of forced labour evidence amid committee review of easing Chinese electric vehicle restrictions, citing lack of firsthand proof, officials said.
- On Thursday, Liberal MP Michael Ma questioned expert testimony regarding human rights abuses in China's Xinjiang region during a House industry committee meeting, describing reports of forced labor as "hearsay."
- Prime Minister Mark Carney's decision to lower Canadian restrictions on Chinese electric vehicles during a January trip to Beijing is currently under review by the House industry committee.
- Margaret McCuaig-Johnston, a senior fellow at the University of Ottawa, testified that Chinese vehicles are manufactured using products from slave labor by the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang.
- Ma's comments prompted immediate outrage from Conservatives on the committee; his office stated he will release a response shortly, while the Prime Minister's Office has not clarified Ottawa's stance on Beijing's labor practices.
- The ongoing parliamentary review scrutinizes the intersection of trade policy and human rights, as lawmakers continue to debate whether to uphold existing restrictions on Chinese goods amid conflicting government narratives about Beijing's labor practices.
48 Articles
48 Articles
GOLDSTEIN: Liberals' kid gloves treatment of China is nothing new
While Liberal MP Michael Ma has belatedly apologized for questioning the veracity of expert testimony at a Commons committee hearing that China uses forced labour — claiming that was not his intent — cozying up to China has been mainstream Liberal thinking in a line stretching from Justin Trudeau to Mark Carney.
Minister distances party from Liberal MP's comments on forced labour in China
Energy Minister Tim Hodgson suggested his colleague Michael Ma's views do not reflect those of the Liberal party, the day after the floor-crossing MP apologized for comments casting doubt on reports of China's human rights abuses against Uyghurs.
Floor-Crossing MP Michael Ma’s Downplaying of Forced Labour in China Draws Strong Reactions
Liberal MP Michael Ma is facing criticism for casting doubt on reports of China’s forced labour practices in the Xinjiang region. In a series of rapid-fire questions during a House of Commons committee meeting on March 26, Ma, who defected from the Conservative Party in December, asked an expert questions that suggested skepticism about the practice, but didn’t give her time to elaborate. The exchange with Margaret McCuaig-Johnston, a China expe…
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