China expels Canadian diplomat in retaliation for consular dispute

China has expelled a Canadian diplomat as a response to Ottawa’s decision in expelling a Chinese diplomat over allegations of threats made against a Canadian lawmaker and his family.

China’s Foreign Ministry announced early Tuesday morning that Jennifer Lynn Lalonde, who works at the Consulate General of Canada in Shanghai, has been ordered to leave the country before May 13th.

The Canadian Embassy in Beijing has not issued an immediate statement regarding the order of expulsion.

Trudeau’s government is expelling a Toronto-based Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei, who was accused by Canada’ spy agency of being involved in a plot to intimidate conservative MP Michael Chong and his family in Hong Kong.

READ MORE: Canada calls Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei ‘persona non grata’

A senior government official said Zhao Wei has five days to leave Canada. It was not immediately clear if Zhao was still in the country.

On Monday, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said in a statement that Canada has declared the Toronto-based diplomat as persona non grata due to “foreign interference in our internal affairs.”

“Diplomats in Canada have been warned that if they engage in this type of behaviour, they will be sent home,” Joly said.

Canada’s spy agency found that in 2021, Michael Chong and his relatives in Hong Kong were targeted after Chong criticized Beijing’s human rights record. The agency has not released details publicly.

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Chong has expressed criticism of Beijing’s treatment of Turkic Muslim Uyghur ethnic group in China’s Xinjiang region, where hundreds of thousands of individuals have been detained in political reeducation camps.

Chong said Zhao’s expulsion should have happened sooner.

The Chinese Embassy in Ottawa released a statement saying that Zhao’s expulsion was “based on rumors of the so-called ‘China Interference’ hyped up by some politicians and media.”