MP Michael Ma, who left the Conservatives to join the Liberals, has apologized after appearing to cast doubt on reports of human rights abuses in China.
Ma said he regretted making a mistake with his remarks, while pointing out that he had referred to the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, and not Xinjiang, where the Communist government has been accused of widespread abuses.
The misunderstanding about where Ma had been talking about lasted hours, consuming the rest of the parliamentary committee hearing where he made the remarks, spilling into question period and dogging Ma around Parliament Hill.
He had asked an expert during the hearing on Thursday whether she’d seen forced labour with her own eyes.
“Have you witnessed forced labour in Shenzhen? Have you witnessed forced labour? Just a short answer — have you witnessed forced labour in Shenzhen, yes or no?” Ma said while questioning Margaret McCuaig-Johnston, a senior fellow at the University of Ottawa.
“So did you get that from hearsay?” he added.
Ma’s remarks were misreported by media including The Canadian Press as referring to the western province of Xinjiang, which had been the subject of much of the hearing.
The misunderstanding continued in question period, where Conservative Michael Chong said Ma intimated there was “no Uyghur forced labour,” referring to the Muslim ethnic group in Xinjiang.
In response, MP Yasir Naqvi did not mention Uyghurs, Xinjiang, Shenzhen or China but said the government sees forced labour as “unacceptable.”
Ma was seen walking away from reporters and did not answer questions about his views on the matter.
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In his apology, issued several hours after his original remarks, Ma said he “inadvertently came across as dismissive of the serious issue of forced labour.”
“To be clear, my line of questioning referred to auto manufacturing in Shenzhen, China, and not in Xinjiang,” said Ma in the statement.
“I regret this mistake and apologize to Ms. McCuaig-Johnston and my fellow committee members.”
He said he condemned forced labour “in all its forms.”
Ma crossed the floor to the Liberals in December and joined Prime Minister Mark Carney’s caucus and his official trip to Beijing in January.
The House industry committee is examining a decision Carney made during that trip to lower Canadian restrictions on Chinese electric vehicles and clear some of those cars for sale in Canada.
McCuaig-Johnston told the committee Thursday that Chinese vehicles are made with products that come from slave labour performed by members of the Uyghur minority.
Ma’s suggestion that reports of forced labour amounted to “hearsay” prompted outrage from Conservatives on the committee, one of whom apologized on Ma’s behalf.
Ma, in turn, demanded an apology from the MP who offered the apology.
Ma told the committee he had asked “very legitimate questions” and had not expressed an opinion.
“I had made no assertion of either support or deny it — I just asked whether she had witnessed it,” Ma said.
Tory MP Michael Guglielmin moved a motion at the committee to condemn forced labour practices in China.
“It’s just unclear if MP Ma’s remarks are at odds with the Liberal party’s position and the government’s position, or if he’s soft-launching for the prime minister’s new position on the Communist Party of China and their permissive view on enslavement,” Guglielmin said.
The Prime Minister’s Office referred queries to Ma’s statement, when asked whether Ottawa no longer believes Beijing uses slave labour in Xinjiang.
The meeting was almost entirely occupied by debate about Ma’s questions and MPs from all parties lamented the fact that they had to dismiss the witnesses to debate the committee’s own behaviour.
McCuaig-Johnston, who is a former senior public servant, told The Canadian Press in an interview she was “kind of dumbfounded” by Ma’s line of questioning, but is glad the issue is getting more attention.
“I looked around the committee as if to say, ‘Is he kidding?’ Because no westerner can go to China and see forced labour. They would never let you anywhere close to that,” she said.
She said Ma seemed to be employing a tactic meant to downplay the issue of forced labour.
“Certainly he was trying to undermine my credibility,” she said. “I think he failed at that.”
McCuaig-Johnston said after the meeting wrapped, she offered Ma her copy of the Human Rights Watch report on forced labour.
“And he said, ‘I don’t believe in reports, I only believe in things that I can see with my own eyes,'” she said, adding that Ma suggested the two of them could take a trip to China to see if there is forced labour in Xinjiang.
Ma did not address McCuaig-Johnston’s account of their conversation, when The Canadian Press asked his office for comment.
She noted that she has been sanctioned by China and will not travel to the country.
The United Nations reported in 2022 that China had committed serious human rights violations in Xinjiang against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities that “may constitute international crimes, in particular crimes against humanity.”
A report issued that same year by Global Affairs Canada found China “is using otherwise legitimate programs for retraining and relocation of unemployed workers as instruments of a broader campaign of oppression, exploitation and indoctrination of the Uyghur Muslim population into Han (majority) Chinese culture.”
Beijing vehemently disputes those claims, arguing it has addressed terrorism threats while offering economic opportunities to minority populations.
Canada has repeatedly rejected Beijing’s framing. A June 2021 government response to a committee report decried “the mass, arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in internment camps” in Xinjiang.
On Monday, Carney’s office said public servants “submitted in error” a report to Parliament that suggested Carney did not raise human rights with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his January visit to Beijing.
The Privy Council Office, which serves the prime minister, wrote this month that “human rights and foreign interference were not brought up proactively” by Carney when he met with Xi. His office later said a corrected document has been sent to Parliament.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 26, 2026.
— With files from Sarah Ritchie and Nono Shen in Vancouver
MP Ma’s question was entirely appropriate, and her disbelief and outrage were absurd. Accusations of egregious human rights abuses MUST be accompanied by more than hearsay. The story should be about the witness’s lack of evidence, not about an MP doing his job. Ma stated later to a reporter that he believes forced labour to be used in every country. At no point did he make any claims that forced labour is not found in China, which he is what CTV and CBC are trying to make this story about.
Try it this way :
“Everybody knows” that you’re a drug dealer with ties to Iran.
Aren’t you glad that our judicial system requires more than rumours and hearsay to convict someone? MP Ma’s question was both obvious and necessary.
“I regret this mistake and apologize to Ms. McCuaig-Johnston and my fellow committee members.”
His “fellow committee members” are all CCP
Ma is not a Canadian politician but a Chinese politician sitting in the liberal party. Denying forced labor in China is part of his job as an infiltrator proven by crossing to the libs 9(no doubt instructed to do so by Xi) 7 months after himself being elected to better infiltrate. Brookfield was fined 800k in Brazil for forced labour and attempted eviction of the amazon indigenous so Carney is no stranger of the practice
Oh, so that’s why Carney took him to China… so he could learn the anti-Canadian China-Speak regarding Human Rights! After all, Brookfield (Carney-directed, actually) has US$23 billion in assets under management in China… any connection?… hmmmm?
Maple maga is Bologna. Maple Mao is the real threat to Canada.
The China phobia on this site is dripping with unacceptable views.I admire the basic dictatorship of the CCP and modeled my time in office after it.I will be calling Frau Freeland to freeze the back accounts of everyone here and will be ordering Egg Foo Yung for dinner tonight to show my support for Michael Ma and the Liberal/ CCP coalition.
I watched the complete exchange. Global, your editors should resign and just go work for the liberals directly. There was no confusion.
The guy is a garbage now anyways. Owned by China
He’s sorry after something like that oh my God. The Liberals are just all idiots and just think for themselves and don’t care about the general people who electThe Liberals are just all idiots and just think for themselves and don’t care about the general people who elected them.
Man, our Canadian politicians are beginning to look as dumb as the USA senators – opening their mouths, saying whatever is in their head without thinking for at least 2 seconds and causing further mayhem in a world that needs nothing but. just shut the F**** up you absolute morons, or get out of office to let someone else do your job BETTER. start focusing on doing your job, working for the public, and being better and smarter, not some moron piece next in line of the headline news
He’s a f *ucking chink spy and the Liberals are owned by China. Shoot him
Ironically, attacking this man for asking for evidence of a presumed truth will create the sort of fear of questioning things that precisely leads to the sort of society of fear and repression that is riling people with this question. As a professional and an academic, it’s clear that there is NEVER anything wrong with asking for sources. We cannot ever presume something to be true without questioning, even if it is “common knowledge”, or for fear of being labeled. Making decisions based upon “common knowledge” is the most dangerous thing a society can do. I don’t know if there is forced labor or not, but asking for evidence is the right thing to do before we establish policies and have debates based upon that presumption.
Can you imagine if Ma said those things while still a Con? At least as a Liberal he has Carney and the paid Media running cover for him. I wonder if being ruled by Xi Jinping will be better than being ruled by Carney? I guess we will find out!
Best that he joined the liberals. Only a true Marxist-Leninist at heart would hear a report of forced labour and dismiss it so easily. To them, it is acceptable, and the collective working class struggle and forced labour denial is strategic in a Marxist communist society to prevent people from attaining a bourgeois lifestyle, which is viewed as the enemy of the people. He could have just joined the communist party, but the liberal party gradually accomplishes the same goals while guaranteeing a better retirement for him.
This chink Ma is owned by China, and so is the Liberal party.
“Confusion”, nice try at getting out of hot water. He knew exactly what he was saying and meant it.
Doesn’t matter what he says, his true allegiance was on full display, he sounds be removed from cabinet, assets seized, citizenship revoked, and deported back to China and he should be happy that’s all that happens to him, else I’m wondering what the sentence is for treason in Canada, because he is clearly one, and not canadian at all
Ma,
If it walks like a duck, if it quacks like a duck, …. Maybe now we know why the duck changed teams maybe the duck is being paid by the ducks
Damn it! I’m so fed up! Our own country can’t even protect its jewelry stores from being robbed and forced to close down, yet they keep discussing things about a country thousands of miles away every day. The taxpayers’ money is thus wasted.
The members of the parliament are simply a bunch of jerks.
Wow. Shocking to say the least. Clearly an absolute bozo
more lies from a Liberal. wow so many dishonest immoral people in that party….
Is everyone missing the fact that they wasted an entire day debating this instead of trying to find ways to make lives better for Canadians?
Conservatives are probably happy now that Ma, a Chinese Government supporter, crossed the floor to the Liberals
No, he’s only sorry that we noticed what a dirty traitor he is. The Carney Government are Communists that are owned by China. Michael Ma has proven what many already knew. I hope Trump takes notice, he has the enemy on America’s doorstep. Shame on Canada.
And of course carney stands by his man. No matter the racist quality no matter the corruption, the Liberals are always right. F*ck u Carney. Gee maybe I got CDS too.
Unreal people voted because they hated Trump now you see the true liberal party money and power and an ideology that will bankrupt and destroy Canada so that Carney will get rich joint China. If you buy or support EV’s from China your car will always be known as slave made car. China is evil!!
The forced labour stuff is old news and forced labour in China happened in the past. Conservatives always try to use this issue to discredit China. I have lived in Canada since 1974 when I came to Montreal for graduate studies and have been following Canadian politics since then. I believe in Mr. Ma’s statements made more than the others on the committee. Way to go Mr. Ma!
He knew exactly what he was saying. He kept arguing and got angry. These foreigners or people of recent foreign decent will always be loyal to their ancestral homes. If you’re not born in Canada and show loyalty to Canada first you shouldn’t be allowed to serve in any form of government on any level.
I assume after he changed his story after a call from China…..
How much does he get paid to represent CCP??
Excellent !
Everything going as planned !
Standing up for the CCP.
He has achieved full Liberal status and will be an excellent addition to the Party.
Who believe’s this t r a i t o r ? He would sell his mother if the price was right.
bro defected and instantly sold his soul to the CCP lol