A security officer stands guard outside the Canadian embassy in Beijing.
Photographer: Gilles Sabrie / Bloomberg
Photographer: Gilles Sabrie / Bloomberg
Beijing expressed “strong dissatisfaction” after 58 governments signed a declaration against detaining each other’s citizens for geopolitical influence, a move seen to target countries like Iran and China.
“The Canadian side’s attempt to put pressure on China using ‘Megaphone Diplomacy’ or pooling is totally futile and will only end toward a dead end, ”said a Chinese embassy spokesman in Canada in a declaration Tuesday. China “presented severe representations to the Canadian side,” said the spokesman.
Declaration against arbitrary detentions
More than 50 countries support the declaration
Source: Canadian government
Canada led the initiative to resist the use of arbitrary arrests as a diplomatic instrument. China’s use of coercive diplomacy, including arrests and punitive trade measures, has increased dramatically since 2018, according to a report released last year by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
“Today, a quarter of all countries, of all continents, come together to tell those who are being arbitrarily detained for diplomatic gain that they are not alone – we are with them,” said Canadian Chancellor Marc Garneau in a communicated by email. “This illegal and immoral practice puts citizens of all countries at risk and undermines the rule of law. It is unacceptable and must stop. “
Chinese officials last week formally arrested an Australian television anchor on national security charges. Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig have been detained since December 2018 after Vancouver’s arrest of Huawei Technologies Co. executive Meng Wanzhou on a US extradition request.
In its response, the Chinese embassy considered Canada’s actions “distorted and malicious”. China also called Meng’s extradition arbitrary and said the Kovrig and Spavor cases are being dealt with under Chinese law.
“This type of act is no different than a thief shouting to catch a thief,” said the spokesman. “How hypocritical and despicable!”
The announcement comes at a time when relations between China and Western democracies continue to sour in everything from trade to political repression in Hong Kong and the treatment of China’s Uighur Muslim minority.
“The practice of arbitrarily detaining individuals to exert influence over another government is untenable and the UK will not tolerate it,” said British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab. “Depriving someone of their freedom without a legal basis violates fundamental human rights.”
– With the help of Jing Li, Iain Marlow and Zoe Schneeweiss