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Canadian national Michael Spavor jailed for 11 years in China for spying
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has condemned China’s handling of Spavor’s case as “unacceptable and unjust”
Tensions between Ottawa and Beijing escalated on Tuesday after a Chinese court handed down a verdict sentencing businessman Michael Spavor to 11 years in prison on charges of spying. The development came a day after the death sentence imposed on another Canadian national was upheld in China.
A court in the Chinese city of Dandong convicted Spavor of spying and illegally providing state secrets to other nations. He was ordered to be deported from China after the completion of his 11-year sentence.
Spavor was also ordered to have his personal property worth 50,000 yuan ($7,715) confiscated.
The Canadian government, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, has repeatedly said the detention of Spavor and also that of former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig were a case of “hostage diplomacy”.
PM Trudeau has condemned the handling of Spavor’s case as “unacceptable and unjust”. In a statement released by the PMO after the verdict, Trudeau said, “The verdict for Mr Spavor comes after more than two and a half years of arbitrary detention, a lack of transparency in the legal process, and a trial that did not satisfy even the minimum standards required by international law.”
The European Union has reacted sharply to the development, calling for “procedural fairness” in the handling Spavor’s case going forward. An EU statement said the bloc has “urged China to abide by its international legal obligations to guarantee procedural fairness and due process of law for Mr. Spavor. His right to a fair trial and due process, including the right to a public hearing, as guaranteed under international human rights law and China’s criminal procedure law, has not been upheld”.
The latest verdict came as the trial hearing for the extradition of Meng Wanzhou, CFO of Chinese telecom giant Huawei, approaches it conclusion this month.
Meng was arrested in Vancouver in December 2018 on charges of attempting to defraud a bank to bypass sanctions on the Iranian regime. Spavor and Kovrig were detained in China days later.
“Kovrig was accused of using an ordinary passport and business visa to enter China to steal sensitive information and intelligence through contacts in China since 2017, while Spavor was accused of being a key source of intelligence for Kovrig,” China-based tabloid Global Times reported on Wednesday.
In February earlier this year, China had expressed its “firm opposition” to the Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention issued by Canada. “If Canada really opposes arbitrary detention, it should act on its words and immediately release Meng Wanzhou and allow her to return to China safe and sound,” spokesperson Hua Chunying had said.
Canada had led a number of countries to issue the declaration and, according to the Chinese foreign ministry, deliberately arranged relevant personnel to accuse China of the “arbitrary detention” of Kovrig and Spavor. Hua had then claimed that it was a case of “a thief shouting stop thief”.
Hua, quoted by the Xinhua news agency, pointed out that Meng was arbitrarily detained by Canada for two years despite not violating any Canadian law.
On Monday, a court of Liaoning province upheld a death sentence on Canadian citizen Robert Schellenberg on charges of drug smuggling. While he was originally sentenced to 15 years in prison, the charge was changed to capital punishment in January 2019, weeks after Meng’s arrest in Vancouver.
Canada’s high commissioner to Beijing, Dominic Barton, believes the events are linked, telling reporters on Tuesday, “I don’t think it’s a coincidence these [verdicts] are happening right now while events are going on in Vancouver.”
Canada’s foreign minister Marc Garneau tweeted the “release” of the two Michaels, Spavor and Kovrig, was the country’s “top priority”. He claimed they were “arbitrarily detained since December 2018” and thanked Canada’s supporters “for the resolute support” that they have shown in backing Ottawa’s position on this matter.
While these verdicts mar the bilateral ties, Canada’s opposition leader Erin O’Toole has suggested the country consider boycotting the 2022 Winter Olympics, scheduled to be held in China.
Speaking at an event in Oakville in Ontario, O’Toole said he knew the athletes were training hard for the event, but “we are approaching a point where it won’t be safe for Canadians, including Olympic athletes, to travel to China”.
