Surrey Journalist Awarded $275K After 77-Day Protest Outside His Home

Olivia Singh

9/14/20262 min read

A British Columbia journalist has been awarded $275,000 in a defamation lawsuit stemming from months of protests outside his Surrey home.

In a decision released Thursday, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Richard Hewson found Yun Fei Zhu liable for publishing defamatory statements about Bing Chen Gao during demonstrations that took place outside Gao’s residence.

Gao testified that Zhu and other protesters gathered outside his home every day from Sept. 15 to Dec. 1, 2020 — a period of 77 consecutive days.

Crowds ranged from approximately 10 to 60 people, and the demonstrations were regularly livestreamed online for several hours at a time.

Zhu was described in the judgment as being treated as a leader of the protests and was responsible for much of the livestreaming.

Further demonstrations and online broadcasts took place outside Gao’s residence from Jan. 20 to 25, 2023.

Protesters Accused Gao of Being a CCP Spy

Gao told the court that demonstrators repeatedly accused him of working for the Chinese Communist Party, or CCP.

Protesters distributed pamphlets that included his home address and played funeral music outside the residence.

Some pamphlets alleged that Gao presented himself as an anti-communist activist while secretly spreading misinformation and shaping public opinion on behalf of the CCP.

They also accused him of receiving money from the Chinese government.

During livestreamed demonstrations, protesters could be heard chanting insults and accusations in English and Mandarin, including “CCP spy,” “trash” and other derogatory statements.

Demonstrators Supported Guo Wengui

The protesters were supporters of Chinese businessman Guo Wengui, also known as Miles Guo, a prominent critic of the Chinese Communist Party.

Guo founded the New Federal State of China, or NFSC, a political movement advocating for the replacement of the CCP.

Guo was sentenced to 30 years in a U.S. prison two months ago after being convicted of fraud.

Hewson noted in his decision that opinions about Guo and the NFSC varied considerably.

“Some viewed Guo Wengui as a courageous dissident exposing corruption, while others regarded him and the NFSC as unreliable, conspiratorial and cult-like,” the judge wrote.

Gao, a journalist, had been an outspoken critic of Guo.

Gao Was Also a Critic of Chinese Communist Party

The court noted that Gao himself had a history of opposing the CCP.

He participated in China’s pro-democracy movement before moving to Canada in 2004.

Despite that history, protesters accused him of being “a professional agent long trained by the CCP.”

Gao testified that the demonstrations had a significant impact not only on him but also on his wife, young daughter and elderly mother-in-law.

Zhu told the court he stopped attending the demonstrations after an assault occurred in the cul-de-sac, but later returned for the protests in 2023.

Gao testified that the person assaulted was a friend of his.

Judge Awards General and Aggravated Damages

Hewson found Zhu responsible for defamatory statements he personally made as well as comments from other speakers that were broadcast through livestreams he published.

Gao was awarded $250,000 in general damages and an additional $25,000 in aggravated damages.

The judge also issued an injunction preventing Zhu from repeating the defamatory statements.

Zhu was further ordered to pay Gao $5,000 in court costs.

The ruling brings the total damages awarded to Gao to $275,000, in addition to the costs order.

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