The World Police and Fire Games is an independent organization responsible for its own decisions, Global Affairs Canada says.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Global Affairs Canada said it wasn’t consulted and did not provide advice on those participating in the World Police and Fire Games in Winnipeg this week, after the presence of a Hong Kong Police Force team sparked an outcry among dissidents who fled the Chinese-controlled territory.
The event, taking place between July 28 and Aug. 6, welcomed some 8,500 athletes from around the world, including hundreds of participants from the former British colony. The force’s social-media posts suggest its chief Raymond Siu was also in Winnipeg.
Members from the Hong Konger community in Canada are aghast that the team and its officials have been invited to the Games. They said the force’s presence would stir fear and anxiety among those who left the city after a police crackdown on anti-Beijing protests in 2019 and the passage of the National Security Law in 2020. More than 200 individuals have been arrested under the law.
Organizers of the Games have not confirmed if teams from China are participating.
Mike Edwards, the chief operating officer of this year’s Games, said earlier this week that the organization relies on the direction of its federal partners when it comes to identifying which countries should be excluded.
But the federal government said the World Police and Fire Games is an independent organization responsible for its own decisions, and that Ottawa was not consulted, and did not provide advice, on participating countries and regions.
“Global Affairs Canada maintains a publicly available webpage that contains all information related to Canada’s sanctions regimes,” spokesperson Charlotte MacLeod said in an e-mail.
“This includes a consolidated autonomous sanctions list, which identifies all individuals and entities subject to Canadian sanctions. It is possible that the World Police and Fire Games referred to this information when making their decisions on participation.”
Mr. Edwards didn’t respond to to requests for comments on the communication with the federal government.
In support of Ukraine, the event did bar athletes from Russia, Belarus and Iran.
Chad Swayze, chair of the board of directors for the 2023 World Police and Fire Games Host Organizing Committee, said in a letter in the Games’ entry book that the unanimous decision exclude those countries was made in consultation with the World Police and Fire Games Federation.
“Collectively, we condemn the violence and express our deepest sympathies to the victims and hope that peace will prevail very soon,” he wrote in a November, 2022, letter.
Mr. Swayze and the federation’s president, Larry Collins, didn’t respond to requests for comments.
An unattributed statement from the public-relations wing of the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) said it sent 287 members to the games. The athletes would compete in 20 events, including archery, badminton, basketball, cycling and dragon boat. The statement didn’t address concerns of the Hong Kongers in Canada.
Katherine Leung, Canadian policy adviser for Britain-based advocacy group Hong Kong Watch, said no matter who decided on the participant list, it does not take away the fact that Hong Kong police are here on Canadian soil, which poses a threat to Hong Kongers who have come to Canada to seek safety. She said the presence of the police chief is especially unacceptable.
“He is not only a perpetrator of the brutality that Hong Kongers have faced, but rather he’s part of the orchestration of it too,” Ms. Leung said in an interview.
“I want to think it’s an oversight, that it’s not on purpose that they invited him and they simply didn’t do a background check.”
The force has been criticized internationally for its actions in 2019. In September of that year, Amnesty International accused Hong Kong police of torture and other abuses during the protests.
Former Conservative member of Parliament Kenny Chiu said he understands the repugnant feeling that some of the Hong Kongers have experienced; however, he noted, it would be unrealistic for the federal government and organizer of the Games to exclude the region, where it is still considered by many to have autonomy despite its deterioration in recent years.
Mr. Chiu lost the 2021 federal election to Liberal candidate Parm Bains and is widely believed to be a victim of a Beijing-led online disinformation campaign.
He said it is right to demand that the organizers and governments ensure that these Hong Kong participants accept the Canadian way of expressing dissent and disapproval. A handful of protesters showed up at the opening ceremony last Friday. Hong Konger advocacy groups in Canada are organizing demonstrations in Winnipeg and Vancouver this weekend.
The federal government, the province of Manitoba and the City of Winnipeg were among the funding partners of the event. A spokesperson for the provincial government, who declined to provide a name, said the province provided $4.9-million to help hold the Games. The statement referred questions around Hong Kongers’ concerns to Games’ spokespeople.
The City of Winnipeg didn’t respond to a request for comment.
With reports from Xiao Xu