Canada again demands that China immediately release two of its citizens
- Ottawa gratified by support from allies in confrontation with Beijing over the detentions
- Action by China decried as a ‘worrying precedent’
Canada repeated calls that China immediately release two citizens it claims were arbitrarily detained there, soon after the arrest of a high-profile Chinese businesswoman.
The Canadian government is concerned about the “worrying precedent” the detentions set, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said on Saturday.
Michael Kovrig, a diplomat on leave from his post in Hong Kong; and Michael Spavor, an entrepreneur who helped organise tourist trips to North Korea, were seized nine days after Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou was taken into custody. Meng is out of jail on bail pending an extradition hearing.
“Canada expects the immediate release of these two Canadians,” Freeland said, noting Chinese officials have not publicly connected the Huawei arrest and the detention of the two citizens. “My key objective here, and the prime minister’s key objective, is to have Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor released.”
“We’re going to keep working with a broad group of allies to raise this issue,” she said, noting that Canadian ambassadors will be reaching out to governments across the world.