The brutality shouldn’t be ignored.

Shane Miller | The Epoch Times

As more damning information comes to light regarding Beijing’s handling of the COVID-19 outbreak, calls are increasing for countries impacted by the pandemic to hold the Chinese regime to account.

One expert says the crisis should be a wake-up call for the Canadian government as to the true nature of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and provides an ideal opportunity to start taking a hard line toward the regime.

“Based on their treatment of dissidents, their persecution of Uyghurs, or their continued detention of Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, our politicians should have long recognized the brutality of the Chinese Communist Party,” said Kaveh Shahrooz, a senior fellow with the Macdonald-Laurier Institute’s Centre for Advancing Canada’s Interests Abroad.

“But if they were willing to overlook those things, the COVID crisis will hopefully open the eyes of Canada’s lawmakers to the dangers of the CCP.

“We now have a choice to make: do we ignore the threat China poses and continue making nice with them in the hopes of winning trade deals? Or do we finally take a hard line, in concert with our democratic allies? I think the answer should certainly be the latter.”

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Shane Miller is a researcher for Probe International and freelance contributor to The Epoch Times.