‘There are diplomatic issues currently between China and Canada, and these are being worked on through foreign affairs’, UBCM President Arjun Singh noted. ‘The focus of the reception is trade and economic development’

Here is just a bit of the beginning of a June 22^nd story in the Province newspaper:

British Columbia’s mayors and councillors will gather once again this fall at the annual Union of B.C. Municipalities convention.

And, when they do, they will once again be wined and dined at a fancy reception put on by the People’s Republic of China.

Meanwhile, as municipal politicians mingle with Chinese power players, the UBCM will be cashing a cheque from the Chinese consulate in Vancouver.

None of it sits well with Brad West, the outspoken mayor of Port Coquitlam, who thinks mayors and councillors should not be accepting hospitality and money from China.

Indeed, it sat so poorly with him that he sent a letter to the Executive of the Union of BC Municipalities, along with all BC Mayors about that Government of China reception held during the convention.  Here’s just a few quotes:

I am writing to state my strong opposition to your decision to allow the Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in Vancouver to host a reception for local government elected officials at the upcoming UBCM convention and to implore you to reconsider.

I am proud of the good work that is undertaken by the UBCM on behalf of its member municipalities. The UBCM has built a positive reputation as a place where elected officials come together to advocate on behalf of their constituents and work with the provincial government to find solutions, however, I believe your decision brings the UBCM into disrepute and reflects horribly on all members.

To state it plainly: The Government of China is engaged in a number of actions that are hostile to our country's interests and the interests of every Canadian, and are completely at odds with our values, the rule of law and the very principles that we were all elected to uphold ...

West then went on to list a number of well-know issues Canada is having with China, and which have been labelled as phoney and manufactured. This includes the arrest of two Canadians being held in detention with little to no access to lawyers ... Pork-gate ... Canola-gate ...

The letter also reminds the members of the UBCM of ... a brutal crackdown on peaceful, legitimate protests in Hong Kong ... the internment of in excess of one million ethnic Uyghurs and other Muslims in China in camps who are subject to gross human rights violations, physical and psychological abuse and death ... all of which have been confirmed and condemned by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, respected scholars, writers and governments from all over the world...

As far as he is concerned, Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad west wants to know ... “What line does the Chinese Government have to cross before the UBCM says no more? Is there a line?”

UBCM President Arjun Singh

I spoke with Kamloops City Councillor, and UBCM President Arjun Singh, about the letter from West, and the response it has been generating.

“There are diplomatic issues currently between China and Canada, and these are being worked on through foreign affairs”, Singh noted before continuing.

“China is BC’s second largest trading partner. BC exports nearly $7 billion of goods and services to China every year, impacting communities across the province. The focus of the reception is trade and economic development”.

I spoke to my nephew Steve Forseth, a Cariboo Regional District Director, and he seemed to be in agreement with what UBCM President Singh had told ne”

“Generally speaking, though, sponsored wine and cheese events at local government conventions are quite routine otherwise what local government pays to attend these conventions would be considerably more. 

I asked ... So, you don't feel having the Chinese govt sponsor a UBCM event, while busy attacking our economy, is questionable?

“I definitely can understand the argument about accepting money from the Chinese while the Chinese government makes determinations about the Canadian economy and about Canadians held abroad in China”, Forseth commented.

When I spoke with a source who had been involved in local politics for many years, about the sponsorship debate, indicated to me:

I’ve been pondering this, and can see both sides. If the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) starts filtering sponsors, then some will try and shut out the resource companies (again). Yet if they don’t, China can pretend it’s business as usual, or even promote their propaganda vs our federal government”.

Williams Lake Mayor Walt Cobb was more succinct as he commented, “It appears someone has their nickers in a knot for an issue that is non existent”.

Cobb continued, “Chinese have played a large part in the development of Canada with the railroad and during the Gold Rush days in the mid 1800’s. Without Chinese investment BC would be much poorer.

I would assume that anyone or any country if they so wished could do the same, and since we have signed many agreements with China, I have to assume this is why they are participating. 

I have been to a number of these receptions and it is all about building relationships not about cohesion.  Sometimes politicians get in the way of common sense, and our disagreements with senior governments proves that”. 

And then there is the issue of costs to fastened. Without sponsorships it’s likely the costs of going would have to increase.  With increased costs would there then be a lot of small communities that would not be able to attend.   

Let’s use the Cariboo, where I grew up, as an example. You’ve got 100 Mile House, Quesnel, and Williams Lake, and they may not be able to afford sending their Mayors and council to the UBCM.

On the other hand, communities in Metro Vancouver for example, could afford it.  All they have to do is jump on the sky train and go on home -- they don’t have to worry about transportation, they don’t have to worry about accommodations.

Now you have the entire mayors and councils from all of the metro Vancouver communities at the resolution sessions making the decisions.

Communities from the interior of BC, Northern BC, the Rockies and Kootenays, and Northern Vancouver would send a few people down, but the reality is the resolutions would be entirely urban focused

In terms of attendance, my nephew Steve Forseth indicated that around 2,000 attend the UBCM event. 

“Usually about 1,000 are from local governments and to break that down further, the majority are from larger urban centres.  The he remaining 1,000 are support staff from local, provincial, federal governments, spouses or trade show delegates”. 

He continued, “Some also attend that have a special interest in local government; for example, CUPE”

And what about costs if sponsorship, which some might consider controversial with the be eliminated?

Again, speaking with my nephew, “If the UBCM charged more to attend – then you definitely would see less of the smaller local governments attend (ie: Wells, Hope, Silverton, etc)”. 

“In terms of sponsorships”, he stated, “Generally speaking, you should see sponsorships from law firms specializing in local government law, local government consulting companies, mining companies (ie: Teck, Taseko)”.

As the UBCM President Arjun Singh’s thoughts on that?

“The convention has included a broad range of sponsors over the years. We have confidence that our delegates will choose which they want to attend.  This has been an annual event since 2012 and has generally been well attended”

Given though that the UBCM conventions take place in a very small list that includes only Vancouver (held in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017) ... Whistler (held 2010, 2014, and 2018) and Victoria (2in 012 and 2016), one would have to wonder if moving them around to at least the interior of BC might improve attendance of Mayors and councillors in community’s beyond Hope.

Apparently, there was one held in Penticton in / around 2009 ... and there has been some discussion about moving a UBCM Convention to either Kamloops or Prince George but I have been led to believe this is just discussion for now.

Singh stated to me that, “The convention has included a broad range of sponsors over the years. We have confidence that our delegates will choose which they want to attend.”

Others have told me ... law firms specializing in local government law, local government, consulting companies, mining companies.

And as Regional Director Steve Forseth told me, “As far as the China sponsorship discussion goes – I don’t believe it will affect sponsorships in general and the China discussion relates to one “wine and cheese event” held on a Wednesday evening.”

Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West

Still, in his letter to the UBCM, Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West has raised a question(s) that perhaps others may be wondering about:

“Would the UBCM accept a financial contribution and arrange a reception for the Government of North Korea?  If not, what actions have they undertaken that have disqualified them that the Government of China has not?

When the UBCM makes a decision about who they accept financial contributions from in exchange for receptions with locally elected officials, they are also making a statement about themselves.

I remain thoroughly unconvinced that there is any value in this relationship ... while it no doubt benefits the Government of China in their quest to grow their soft power and influence and is something of a propaganda victory for them, the cost to our organization's standing is immeasurable”.

To that end, UBCM President Arjun Singh concluded by telling me that, “Mayor West's letter is on the agenda for our next UBCM exec meeting in July”.