has long welcomed investment from a pair of well-funded Buddhist organizations from Taiwan, which have bought land, built monasteries and pumped millions into the local economy.
But there were also allegations that groups were directly or indirectly circumventing provincial laws that limit the amount of farmland a group or individual can own, and there were rumors of even more serious violations.
A long-simmering dispute over land ownership came to a head last week after PEI Premier Rob Lantz formally asked federal authorities to investigate allegations of foreign interference and
associated with land purchases by the Great Wisdom Buddhist Institute (GWBI) and the Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute Society (GEBIS).
Lantz sent letters to both the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and
Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center of Canada (FINTRAK)
calling on them to assess whether there is “information that could form the basis of a criminal investigation” into the financial and property activities of the groups on the island.
The request comes just 10 days after a press conference on Parliament Hill in which former Attorney General Wayne Easter and former RCMP officer Harry Clement warned that PEI could serve as a “forward base” for Chinese government influence in Canada.
They also accused both provincial and federal agencies of failing to act on years of documented problems.
The finer details of the allegations are still unclear, but here's what we know and don't know.
What groups?
Bliss and Wisdom is a large Buddhist organization headquartered in Taiwan with a worldwide following and significant financial reach. This is reported to be the spiritual umbrella of GWBI in Brudenell, PEI, which has a monastery for about 200 nuns from Taiwan, and GEBIS in Little Sands and Heatherdale, PEI, which is home to about 600 monks.
Bliss and Wisdom and its affiliates are involved in businesses in the jewelry, electronics and agriculture industries. Hundreds of millions of dollars are reported to have flowed into Canada from foreign donors and operations in Taiwan and China.
The groups were initially attracted to PEI through the Provincial Immigration Program, a federal-provincial immigration initiative that expedited permanent residency for wealthy newcomers wishing to invest in the province.
The program, since revised in Ottawa, has brought millions of dollars of new investment to PEI over the past decade.
How do the groups react?
GEBIS said it welcomes the province's call for an RCMP and FINTRAC investigation.
“We understand public concerns about foreign interference, but such concerns cannot justify speculation or unfair accusations against immigrants or religious communities,” the statement said. “Any investigation must be based on solid evidence, not hearsay or discrimination.”
The GWBI issued a similar statement, calling the investigations “an opportunity for clarity and truth” and saying its members have always acted in good faith and complied with provincial laws.
Both groups say they have been unfairly targeted and that they have brought jobs, development and cultural diversity to a province that has struggled to attract new investment.
What problems are there in the game?
At the heart of the dispute is beneficial ownership: who controls the land being purchased.
PEI's Land Protection Act limits ownership to 1,000 acres for individuals and 3,000 acres for corporations, but some reports claim that up to 17,000 acres may now be associated with Buddhist organizations or their affiliates.
“It’s not just a question of who owns what, but who controls what,” said Boyd Allen of the PEI Land Defense Coalition, a grassroots organization created in 2018 in response to the rapid pace of land sales and growing suspicions that many of the transactions were not entirely legal.
Concerns first arose in the mid-2010s, particularly in the eastern part of the province, where land was being bought up quickly, presumably for cash accompanied by non-disclosure agreements.
Local residents and land preservation advocates began to question how such acquisitions could occur without breaking the law.
Has anyone researched this before?
Prince Edward Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission (
IRAC, the provincial body responsible for enforcing the Land Protection Act, began an internal investigation in 2016.
But by early 2018, the investigation had stalled and its findings were never made public, fueling even more concern and speculation.
In February this year, Stephen Myers, then PEI Minister of Housing, Lands and Communities, ordered IRAC to reopen the investigation, saying the lack of transparency surrounding the first investigation had undermined public trust. His directive covered “land holdings – both directly and indirectly – of GWBI and GEBIS” according to the rules of the law.
Myers later resigned, but his involvement renewed public scrutiny of the regulator's handling of the problem. Several attempts were made to contact Myers, but he had not responded by the time of publication.
Why wasn't anything done before?
Critics say successive governments have lacked the political will to act. The rapid development of rural PEI was often celebrated as economic progress, and many stakeholders—from developers and realtors to lawyers—reaped financial benefits.
Internal documents provided to lawmakers, including emails purporting to come from GWBI, outline strategies for circumventing restrictions on land ownership.
In 2020, MLA Corey Deagle presented some of these letters to a legislative committee, but no action was taken. He has since succeeded Myers as Minister of Housing, Land and Communities.
The PEI Land Defense Coalition has long called for a public inquiry with subpoena power, but the government has consistently failed to comply.
Why is an investigation needed?
There are growing concerns about financial transparency and land ownership in PEI. Complex corporate and religious structures make it difficult to track funds or determine who actually owns the land, raising issues of governance and accountability.
PEI laws restricting non-resident and large land ownership are intended to protect local interests, but critics say they can be circumvented through shell companies or associated individuals, undermining fairness and public trust.
Risk factors for illicit finance, such as murky money trails, poor financial oversight, and complex real estate transactions, suggest the need for stricter oversight, even if illicit activity is not proven.
Locals say the purchases are driving up land prices, reducing the housing supply and upending rural communities.
Investigations were carried out, but the lack of transparent findings raised suspicions that regulators lacked independence or that political decisions could take precedence.
Lanza's government may be trying to move away from what has become a political hot potato. Federal investigations by the RCMP or FINTRAC often move slowly, and there is no guarantee that their results will ever be made public.
The key questions now are whether the RCMP or FINTRAC will pursue a criminal or financial investigation, whether PEI will finally launch a public investigation, and whether anyone will exploit the regulatory loopholes that allowed these acquisitions to happen in the first place.
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