Montreal university weighing options for donation linked to Beijing

By Staff The Canadian Press

Posted April 13, 2023 3:35 pm

Updated April 13, 2023 3:37 pm

1 min read

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Click to play video: 'Fears of backlash following RCMP investigation into suspected Chinese police stations in Quebec' — WATCH: With the number of recent reports about alleged Chinese government interference in Canadian affairs, some member of the Chinese communities in Montreal have concerns about a possible backlash. They fear being profiled or becoming the target of hate, similar to what happened during the pandemic. Global's Phil Carpenter reports. – Mar 10, 2023

The Université de Montreal says in a statement that it is considering all options in light of new information about a $750,000 donation it received in 2016 that reportedly had ties to Beijing.

The Globe and Mail had reported in February, citing an unnamed source, that the Chinese government orchestrated donations to the university and to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation in hopes of influencing Justin Trudeau.

In response, the foundation promised to return a $200,000 donation that came from two Chinese businessmen.

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But on Tuesday, the foundation’s board of directors and president resigned, saying the politicization of the charity made it “impossible to continue with the status quo.”

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Montreal-based La Presse reported Wednesday that the charity was not able to return the money it received from Zhang Bin’s Golden Eagle International Media Co. Ltd., which ultimately amounted to $140,000.