Tory MP Michael Chong in Washington to testify about foreign interference

Chong, whose tale of Chinese meddling has been a political headache for the federal Liberal government, is testifying before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China.

The Conservative MP at the centre of Canada’s foreign interference saga is telling his story Tuesday to U.S. lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

Michael Chong, whose tale of Chinese meddling has been a political headache for the federal Liberal government, is testifying before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China.

The commission, established in 2000 to keep tabs on Beijing’s human rights record, is a bipartisan committee of U.S. senators, House members and administration officials.

Chong says one of his main goals is to make clear just how widespread Chinese foreign interference is, both in North America and around the world.

He says he’ll be calling for closer U.S.-Canada alignment on presenting a united front to China.

Chong says he remains undaunted by the risk that his testimony ends up making him an even more prominent target for Beijing, particularly in the U.S.

“They’re targeting me because I’m being effective, and so I feel an obligation to continue to speak up, to give voice to the voiceless,” he said in an interview.

“There are people across the country who have been targeted for years, whose stories go untold and who suffer in silence…. That’s what keeps me going.”