Canada denies plan to pull NGO funding over proposed award to Taiwan leader – Focus Taiwan News Channel

Toronto, April 12 (CNA) The Canadian government said Monday there was no truth to a news report that it was planning to withhold funding from a United States-based non-profit organization, which reportedly has proposed giving an award to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen ().

The Halifax International Security Forum (HFX), which holds its signature forum in the Canadian city of Halifax each year, is planning to present its "2020 John McCain Prize for Leadership in Public Service" to Tsai, according to the American publication Politico.

Upon learning of the decision, however, the Canadian government threatened to withdraw its financial support of the HFX if it went through with the plan to give the award to Tsai, Politico reported, saying that Canada feared such a decision would provoke China.

At a meeting Monday of the Canadian Parliament's Special Committee on Canada-China Relations, Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan strongly denied the Politico report, according to Canadian media.

"That is absolutely false," Sajjan was reported as saying. "The Halifax International Security Forum is an independent organization and they make their own choices with regards to the awards."

He said that when the funding request comes to him, as it does every year, he will "take a look at it," according to the media reports.

Sajit spokesman Todd Lane told CNA that the Canadian government had provided funding for the forum in 2020 under a contribution agreement but had no part in the forum's decisions.

"While financial support has been provided, the (Canadian) Department of National Defense and the Canadian Armed Forces are not involved in the planning of the Forum," Lane said in an email response to CNA on the issue. "The organizers reach out to us, as well as many other organizations, for panelists on various topics and we try to support when appropriate."

According to the Politico report, the situation remains at an impasse, as HFX's has "not yet announced the winner" of the prize since the November 2020 forum but it has said Tsai would be "an ideal fit."

The John McCain Prize, named after the late U.S. senator, is awarded annually by the HFX to individuals from any country, who have demonstrated uncommon leadership in the pursuit of human justice. The award in 2018 was made to the people of Lesbos, Greece, for their "valiant actions to rescue refugees fleeing conflict in the Middle East," while in 2019 it was given to the people of Hong Kong for their "brave fight for their rights in the face of oppression from the government of China."

Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said that if Tsai received the award, it would be an affirmation of the Taiwanese people's democratic achievements and efforts against COVID-19, but the ministry also stressed that it would respect whatever decision the HFX reached.

According to Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper, 2019-2020 federal budget documents show that the Canadian Department of National Defense's annual contributions to the forum are around CA$3 million (US$2.38 million).

The newspaper also reported that two Taiwan government ministers took part in the 2020 HFX forum, which was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Foreign Minister Joseph Wu () spoke during an off-the-record session, while Minister without Portfolio Audrey Tang () joined the discussions on intellectual property in one of the sessions, it said.

(By Hu Yu-li, Emerson Lim and Matthew Mazzetta)

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Canada denies plan to pull NGO funding over proposed award to Taiwan leader - Focus Taiwan News Channel