A Montreal-area Liberal candidate invited the head of two organizations suspected of being a secret Chinese police station to a campaign event.

Alexandra Mendès, the Liberal incumbent in Brossard—Saint-Lambert, caused consternation within the Liberal party due to an invitation that raised concerns about ties to the Chinese government.

Xixi Li attended a private dinner hosted by Mendès, who faced pushback from Liberals for her ties to the executive. Li heads two organizations under RCMP investigation for allegedly housing a secret Chinese "police station" to silence critics of China's communist regime.

Li and her organizations, the Service à la Famille Chinoise du Grand Montréal (SFCGM) and Centre Sino-Québec (CSQRS), haven't been charged as of writing.

The RCMP investigated illegal police activity supported by a foreign state to protect Canadians. They shut down these operations in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia.

According to a 2022 document by Safeguard Defenders, more than 50 secret Chinese police stations exist worldwide. A parliamentary report titled Overseas Police Service Stations later doubled that number.

The director of the two Montreal area stations, Xixi Li, a Brossard city councillor, denied any wrongdoing, claiming that there is 'no connection' between her organizations to the Chinese Communist Party.

READ MORE: https://t.co/mmbUVeF0NR pic.twitter.com/kTXSBNDV0h

— Rebel News Canada (@RebelNews_CA) June 22, 2023

Last year, the office of now-Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne expressed discomfort after the Journal de Montréal revealed that Mendès had invited Champagne to an event where he met Li.

Champagne and then-Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc also disagreed with Mendès after she criticized the RCMP for its investigation into the two organizations headed by Li.  At the time, Mendès told the publication that she met frequently with Li and supported her “100 per cent.”

The Liberal Party denied formal ties with the SFCGM, stating that the executive's attendance at the event was related to the local candidate.

“I was invited in my role as a citizen of Brossard and a sitting city councillor,” Li told the National Post when asked about the private dinner.

Two anonymous Liberal sources revealed internal discontent after Mendès invited Li to her event.

MONTREAL: Xixi Li, a Brossard city councillor, received the King Charles III Coronation Medal on February 7 for her contributions to Canada.

However, since February 2023, the RCMP has been investigating two organizations she leads—the Chinese Family Service of Greater Montreal… pic.twitter.com/BR880Vnf8C

— Alexandra Lavoie (@ThevoiceAlexa) February 20, 2025

Chinese media reported in 2016 that the SFCGM was designated as an Overseas Chinese Service Centre by China’s Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (OCAO), which merged with China’s United Front Work Department in 2018. This designation usually comes with funding from the Chinese government.

In 2017, Li was pictured with directors of OCAO, a Chinese organization accused of silencing critics abroad. The Canadian government has warned that Beijing uses this system to “stifle criticism and infiltrate foreign political parties” and other institutions.

Meanwhile, Li received the King Charles III Coronation Medal on February 7 for her “outstanding achievements”. 

The medal was awarded despite ongoing investigations into the organizations for allegedly monitoring, intimidating and silencing critics of Beijing. Li's peers and fellow Canadians, including Brossard Mayor Doreen Assaad and former Canadian ambassador to China Guy Saint-Jacques, criticized the decision. 

Senator Yuen Pau Woo, who nominated Li for the medal, has previously downplayed concerns about Chinese interference and defended the organizations under investigation. Li is currently suing the RCMP and the mayor of Brossard for $4.9 million in damages.

PETITION: Kick Them Out

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