BC court orders $275,000 payout to journalist after prolonged Surrey protest
A BC Supreme Court judge awarded journalist Bing Chen Gao $275,000 in damages, ruling that protest leader Yun Fei Zhu spread defamatory statements during a 77-day sit-in outside Gao's Surrey home.
Bing Chen Gao, a journalist and former Chinese pro-democracy activist, received a $275,000 judgment after a BC Supreme Court trial determined that Yun Fei Zhu had defamed him during a 77-day protest outside Gao's Surrey residence in 2020. The daily rallies, ranging from ten to sixty participants, were livestreamed for up to five hours and featured chants labeling Gao a CCP spy, while pamphlets disclosed his home address.
The demonstrators were aligned with Guo Wenghui, founder of the New Federal State of China, who was recently sentenced in the United States for fraud. Similar protests briefly re-occurred in January 2023. Justice Richard Hewson awarded $250,000 in general damages and $25,000 in aggravated damages, ordered Zhu to pay $5,000 in court costs, and imposed an injunction preventing further defamatory statements.
Why it matters
The ruling underscores legal protections against harassment and defamation linked to politically motivated protests.
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