A Quebec-based YouTuber says she's been the victim of an online harassment campaign by the Chinese Communist Party over the pro-democracy views she expresses.

“I’m with Taiwan, I’m with the Uyghurs, I’m with Hong Kong. I’m against the Chinese government,” Yao Zhang told the CBC. The activist said in her opinion, there was no doubt the Chinese regime was behind the circulation of explicit deepfake images of her — a belief that Global Affairs Canada later confirmed.

On Monday's Rebel Roundup livestream, hosts Sheila Gunn Reid and David Menzies slammed the Chinese Communist Party for its attacks on overseas dissidents.

“Should she go back to China, it's curtains for her,” David cautioned. “If the Chinese government will go to this length to attack her while she's a resident of Quebec, can you imagine if they actually physically had her in their clammy hands?”

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David added it was “gross” of the Chinese regime to circulate fake pornography of Zhang.

Zhang is just the latest in a long line of dissidents living in Canada who have been targeted, said Sheila, pointing to former Conservative MP Kenny Chiu, who was defeated in an election following a campaign organized against him over Chinese-language social media app WeChat.

“It goes across all parties — as long as you are critical of the Chinese government, they're going to come for you,” she continued, noting NDP MP Jenny Kwan was also targeted.

If the Liberals take action to address it, they'll attempt to create new laws, warned Sheila.

“We have a law for this,” she said, citing existing revenge porn legislation. “Use that law and deal with this — but if they do that, they're going to have an international incident on their hands.”