ChinaThe Canadian ambassador to China stated that it is no coincidence that this week’s decision to advance two court cases involving Canadians is no coincidence.
In an interview with reporters on Monday evening, Dominic Barton slammed the Chinese court’s decision to uphold the death sentence for Canadians. Robert Schellenberg -And implied that the timing of the decision was related to a high-profile case in Canada.
Barton said: “It’s no coincidence that these things are happening now, and the case is going on in Vancouver.”
The Chinese court upholds the death sentence for the drug smuggling case of Robert Schellenberg
Button refers to Huawei executives Meng WanzhouIn an ongoing court case in Vancouver, her lawyers this week have been making the last effort to fight against the U.S. extradition request. If Meng is extradited, she will face trial in a US court on charges of violating sanctions.
According to experts, China has become increasingly clear that the two detained Canadians — Michael Cumming Kay and Michael Spavor — can expect their case to move forward with Meng’s case.
“If she is handed over to the United States, then they will stay in China for a long time,” the former foreign minister John Manley warned.
Since December 2018, Spavor and Kovrig, commonly referred to as “two Michaels”, have been detained in China. Only 10 days after Canada arrested Huawei’s chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver, they were detained in a Chinese prison.
On March 1, 2019, Canada approved Meng’s extradition order to the United States. Only two days later, China claimed that Kovrig had stolen state secrets.
In mid-May 2019, China arrested the two men on suspicion of espionage, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repeatedly called “fabricated” and “arbitrary” charges. China can only keep detainees in custody for six months at most before they must be arrested-and this deadline is approaching.
Then, in late May 2020, a Canadian court ruling dealt a major blow to Meng’s legal team and allowed her case to proceed. Less than a month later, China formally sued Spavor and Cumming Kai.
The process of releasing two Michaels from Chinese detention will take “a long time”: Trudeau
Now, following the progress of Meng’s court case and China’s decision on Schellenberg’s fate, Spavor is reported to face his own sentence this week.
Manley said that the timetable makes it “unbelievable” that China has not transferred the Canadian case as Meng’s extradition trial progresses.
“If they were not related by blood, it would be a great coincidence,” he said.
Moreover, according to the Canadian ambassador to China, in order to promote Meng’s release, Spavor may find that he has been severely sentenced.
“The Chinese government wants to pressure the Canadian government to release Ms. Meng,” Guy Saint-Jacques said in an interview with Global News.
“What I expect we will hear tomorrow is that Mr. Spavor is undergoing a very severe sentence. I guess at least 10 years in prison.”
Experts say that China’s legal system is very different from that of Canada.
“Chinese law is flexible in this respect, which is different from our own system,” said Gordon Houlden, director of the China Institute at the University of Alberta.
“Obviously, our prime minister cannot call the judge in British Columbia and decide the outcome.”
The former Canadian detained said that the two Michaels are facing “unbearable” sentences waiting for China
But this is exactly what China wants the government to do-Saint Jacques said the two Canadians detained can expect to stay in China until this happens.
“The Chinese government has stated that as long as Ms. Meng is in Canada, no progress will be made,” he said.
For Kevin Garratt, a Canadian who has been detained in China for nearly two years, this situation feels a bit too familiar. He was arrested by the Chinese authorities, apparently in retaliation for Canada’s arrest of Su Bin. Su Bin is a Chinese resident working in Canada. The Americans had requested his extradition.
He said that the Chinese authorities “don’t understand why” Canada cannot interfere in Meng’s extradition case.
In Garrett’s case, after Su was extradited, he finally saw the other side of the cell and chose not to appeal.
“Then they don’t know what to do with me. Again, I’ve been in the dark, but in the end [they] Decided that it’s not worth keeping me,” he said.
“So we hope the same thing will happen to both Michael and Rob (Schelberg).”
Michael Spavor’s trial was inconclusive and Canadian officials were banned from participating
According to Reuters, China rejected the claim that the Canadian case in China was related to Meng’s case-although Beijing has warned that unless Meng is released, the consequences are unclear.
“The nature of the Schellenberg case and the Meng case are completely different. Those who connect the two have ulterior motives,” a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.
The spokesperson also stated that the facts in Schellenberg’s case are clear, the evidence is “conclusive” and that “the sentencing procedure is legal.”
At the same time, the Canadian Attorney General also declined to comment explicitly on any potential link between Meng’s case and Chinese detention.
“I have never publicly commented on the Meng Wanzhou case because I may play a potential role at the end of this process,” said David Lametti, mentioning that as the attorney general, he must sign the Meng Wanzhou case. Extradition.
“What I want to say is, what I can say is that we condemn this sentence in the strongest terms, the death sentence against Mr. Schellenberg. We continue to seek clemency on his behalf.”
Rametti added that Canada will also continue to fight for Spavor and Kovrig.
“We will continue to work hard. All of our colleagues are at the table, using all the resources we can use to release Michael Cumming Kay and Michael Spavor… They are fabricated accusations and have no legal basis at all. .”
-Documents from Reuters
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