Former Trudeau Foundation president says Canada, China had better relationship at time of donation
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The charity was given $200,000 by Zhang Bin, a political adviser to the Chinese government, and another wealthy Chinese businessman
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Published Mar 02, 2023 • Last updated 1 hour ago • 2 minute read
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Morris Rosenberg, the former head of the Trudeau Foundation, says the relationship between Canada and China was different when the organization accepted a $200,000 donation from a Chinese billionaire. Photo by Darryl Dyck /The Canadian Press Article content
OTTAWA — The former head of the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation says the level of caution Canadian institutions must now take when dealing with China was not top of mind when the charitable organization accepted a pledge from a Chinese billionaire.
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Morris Rosenberg was president of the Trudeau Foundation from 2014 to 2018, which is when the charity was given $200,000 by Zhang Bin, a political adviser to the Chinese government, and another wealthy Chinese businessman.
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The charity set up to honour the legacy of the former prime minister announced Wednesday it is returning the donation after the Globe and Mail alleged it was linked to a Chinese government plot to influence Justin Trudeau after he became Liberal leader.
Citing an unnamed national security source, the newspaper reported Zhang was instructed by Beijing to donate $1 million in honour of the elder Trudeau in 2014, two years before the $200,000 donation to the Trudeau Foundation was made.
Rosenberg, who says talks about the donation were already underway when he assumed his role, recalls at the time that Canada had a more positive, hopeful and trusting relationship with China.
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The former senior public servant, who authored an independent report on how a federal panel monitored foreign interference in the 2021 election, says the situation had changed since then and Canadian institutions need to question China’s motivations for such a relationship.
The Canadian Press could not immediately reach Zhang regarding the allegations in the Globe and Mail, which said Tuesday he did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
John Ivison: Whether the Liberals winked at China’s helpful election meddling is the lingering question 
Trudeau was regularly briefed on foreign interference in elections, national security adviser says Meanwhile, the Montreal university that was promised an $800,000 donation as part of the alleged plot to influence Justin Trudeau also says the pledge came at a different time in Canada-China relations.
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Universite de Montreal spokesman Jeff Heinrich says that when the donation was announced in 2016, scientific and economic relations between the two countries were more open and there was no suggestion of possible links to political interference.
The Globe and Mail, citing an unnamed national security source, published a report alleging that Chinese billionaire Zhang Bin was instructed in 2014 to donate $1 million in honour of Pierre Elliott Trudeau as part of a plan to influence his son.
The Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation said yesterday it will return the $200,000 donation received from the billionaire and another Chinese businessman, Niu Gensheng.
Heinrich says the university received $550,000 to create a scholarship named on behalf of the two Chinese businessmen, adding that a final payment of $250,000 was never received.
He did not immediately return a request for comment today on whether the university would also return the money.
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