It sounds like Canada is freaking out about consular offices doing consular office stuff. Wtf is going on?

    • Infamousblt [any]@hexbear.net
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      5 days ago

      I have one of these in my area except it’s for Vietnamese immigrants. And yep. It provides language classes, job help services, financial planning, childcare, housing services, help navigating the systems and services of my city, etc. Its completely normal and I know that it’s one of the first stops for many immigrants and / or refugees as they get acquainted to a new place.

      There’s nothing secret about it. If anything it helps people assimilate into their neighborhood. Ridiculous that people think that somehow helping immigrants get comfortable with a new country is somehow a fucking evil plot.

  • Dolores [love/loves]@hexbear.net
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    5 days ago

    that was basically it as far as i’d heard. canadian gov’t has lacklustre language accessibility so chinese citizens need more help navigating it

  • PKMKII [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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    5 days ago

    From what I understand, Chinese consulates in the West have programs to try to convince ex-pats, namely well off ones, to repatriate. Basically, it’s a way to mitigate capital flight. Western media, of course, spin this as “China man has secret police arresting people in our country!”

  • hexaflexagonbear [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    5 days ago

    I love shit like this. When it’s something so banal that people aren’t aware of its existence, so they perceive it as completely unprecedented. But yeah, as far as I’m aware it’s just normal consular office stuff as you say.

  • itappearsthat [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    5 days ago

    the lens through which I view all the China scare shit in Canada is that it’s 100% just CSIS being jealous that they don’t run the fuckin government as much as the CIA does down here, so they’re stirring up shit to set up a power grab

    there’s this CSIS “foreign influence report” being circulated now about some members of government allegedly being assisted by or assisting foreign enemies (read China), and all CBC can report is who has read it and what they think. The Trudeau government to their credit seemed to recognize it as a naked made-up CSIS power grab and didn’t immediately cave then name/expel everybody on the list, so now CSIS is trying to stir up shit that this means the Trudeau government is weak and unwilling to take decisive action to expel the communist infiltration. Trudeau for his part seems unwilling to just come out and accuse CSIS leadership of lying for political points.

  • axont [she/her, comrade/them]@hexbear.net
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    4 days ago

    I think Canada has just gotten weasely with their legal language to define consulates as police stations. Texas did the same thing by defining spying as “embassy record keeping while being Chinese.”

  • ComradePlatypus [fae/faer]@hexbear.net
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    4 days ago

    My understanding is to assist Chinese citizens working abroad (and those eligible for Chinese citizenship) who couldn’t attend embassies and consulates they set up pop centres in areas with high Chinese diaspora populations, in restaurants, corner stores etc. There’s some connection between their civilian police and their immigration services that handle passports etc. Hence the conspiracy tin foil stuff.

    But it’s basically just a country making things easier for its population even those overseas especially with covid19 etc.

    • PolandIsAStateOfMind@lemmygrad.ml
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      4 days ago

      There’s some connection between their civilian police and their immigration services that handle passports etc.

      That’s pretty common in socialist countries, in Poland for example all passport stuff were handled by militia before 1989, and afaik those militia passport departments employed mostly civilians.

      • ComradePlatypus [fae/faer]@hexbear.net
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        4 days ago

        Yeah it’s something like that. They aren’t the same people but they have the same ministry, share offices etc.

        Also it’s their majority unarmed civilian police, not their miltarized police who are kind of like carabinieri/gendarmarie etc

  • SkingradGuard [he/him, comrade/them]@hexbear.net
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    4 days ago

    It’s a common fascist/lib lie at the moment, claiming the PRC sends “secret police” in foreign nations to heckle “critics” of the CPC.

    It’s unfounded and bullshit, but people believe it religously.