The crowds of protesters gathered outside Gao Bing Chen’s home on a cul-de-sac in Surrey, B.C., for 11 weeks, rain or shine.
asserted
crowds → gather → weeks
The group of up to 60 people distributed pamphlets describing their baseless claims that the journalist and commentator was a traitor and an agent of China.
uncertain
journalist → distribute → China
They played funeral music outside Gao’s house, upsetting his wife, young daughter and mother-in-law, and livestreamed the protests around the world, where they were watched by up to 100,000 people.
asserted
they → play → people
They harassed his wife and told her to get a divorce.
asserted
They → harass → divorce
Two of them beat up a friend of Gao’s outside the home, resulting in assault convictions.
asserted
Two → beat → convictions
Now, six years after his ordeal began, Gao has been awarded $275,000 in defamation damages from one of his tormentors, Yun Fei Zhu.
asserted
Gao → begin → tormentors
“Justice might be delayed, but it will never come too late,” said Gao in an interview in Mandarin on Monday.
uncertain
Gao → delay → Monday
“This is likely the first case in Canada where protesters managed to move cyberbullying directly from the internet to my doorstep, livestreaming for five hours a day for 77 consecutive days.
asserted
protesters → manage → days
If I were not tough enough, I might have lost my mind already.
uncertain
I → lose → mind
Last week’s ruling says Gao suffered “severe distress” from the defamatory comments, forcing him to consider moving his family out of Canada entirely.
asserted
Gao → say → Canada
The harassment stemmed from Gao’s criticism of exiled Chinese businessman and convicted fraudster Guo Wengui, who had set up a project called the New Federal State of China with Steve Bannon, the former adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump.
asserted
who → stem → Trump
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It was presented as a political movement to overthrow the Chinese Communist Party, and had a presence in Vancouver and Toronto, but the B.C. Supreme Court defamation ruling says critics regarded Guo and the New Federal State of China as “unreliable, conspiratorial and cult‑like.”
asserted
critics → get → China
Gao was himself a critic of China’s government, testifying that he was well known in the Chinese Canadian community “as a pro‑democracy activist and commentator.”
asserted
he → testify → activist
But the trouble began when he took issue with Guo’s movement.
asserted
he → begin → movement
Zhu, who lives in White Rock, B.C., livestreamed the protests that ensued outside Gao’s home for weeks, five hours a day.
asserted
that → live → weeks
They began on Sept. 15, 2020.
asserted
They → begin → Sept.
“In the course of those livestreams, Gao was called many things, including a spy whose hands were covered in the blood of democracy activists.
asserted
hands → call → activists
There is no evidence to suggest any of that is true,” says the ruling by Justice Richard Hewson.
asserted
ruling → be → Hewson
While Gao said the ruling brought him tears and relief, it could not undo the harm to him, his family and their neighbours.
uncertain
it → say → him
Zhu is described in the ruling as a freelance handyman and goldsmith who operates a YouTube channel about events of interest in the Chinese-Canadian community.
asserted
who → describe → community
He “does not appear to be a man of means,” the ruling notes, adding that paying the defamation award will be a considerable hardship.
asserted
paying → appear → award
“His standing in the Chinese-Canadian community was destroyed,” the ruling says.
asserted
ruling → destroy → community
“He is no longer able to participate in the community in the ways and to nearly the extent that he had in the past.
asserted
he → participate → past
He deserves to have his reputation vindicated.”
asserted
reputation → deserve → ?
Hewson awarded $250,000 in general damages, plus $25,000 in aggravated damages.
asserted
Hewson → award → damages
Gao said the accusations against him outlined in the pamphlets, which were also distributed to neighbours, were all nonsense.
asserted
which → say → neighbours
“These protesters tried to cancel me from my neighbourhood, my family, my community,” said Gao.
asserted
Gao → try → neighbourhood
“Every time my wife tried to leave home, they would approach her, asking her to ‘hurry up and file a divorce,’ saying she shouldn’t have married a spy from the Chinese Communist Party and if she didn’t do it, our marriage would fail.”
asserted
marriage → try → it
When the protests started up again in 2023, Gao briefly left Canada, hoping his family would be left in peace.
asserted
family → start → peace
“There were clear allegations of criminal conduct, including treason, all of which were made without any investigation of the truth,” Hewson’s ruling says.
asserted
ruling → be → truth
“(Gao) knew they were being extensively circulated.
asserted
they → know → ?
He considered moving his family out of the area and perhaps leaving his home in Canada entirely.”
asserted
He → consider → Canada
The ruling says Zhu admitted that in 2024 and 2025 he continued to make similar statements about Gao.
asserted
he → say → Gao
Zhu could not immediately be reached for comment.
uncertain
Zhu → reach → comment
As for Guo, he was sentenced to 30 years in a U.S. jail for fraud in July.
asserted
he → sentence → July
Judge Analisa Torres in the Southern District of New York said Guo “preyed on those seeking to bring democracy to China,” taking their money so he could live lavishly, saying he had called upon supporters “to harass and intimidate those who dare to speak out against him.”
uncertain
who → say → him
Although he is relieved, Gao said he’s still haunted by the months-long protest.
asserted
he → relieve → protest
“I am hoping to move on, but it’s hard.
asserted
it → hop → ?
The fear and trauma lingers,” he said.
asserted
he → linger → ?
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