Canada's totally two-faced approach to 'laws'

Editor's Commentary:
Despite having a legal practice for many years, the matters referenced in the article below are not within my area of expertise. Nonetheless, what I can assert with certainty is that Canada is full of crap on this file.

Canada arrested a Huawei executive at the request of the United States. No questions as to her guilt or otherwise had any bearing on the arrest. But two Canadians arrested in China must be - by default - innocent.

Canada seems to be incapable of accepting that other countries have laws - many that differ from Canada's - and that they are entitled to enforce those laws according to their own policies. Canada's insistence that charging these two Canadians is "unacceptable" is tantamount to saying that China should not have the authority to create and enforce its own laws.

Perhaps, Justin, these two dudes are guilty of exactly what the accusations state. If that's the case - and only the Chinese judicial system has the right to make that judgement - then you are saying effectively that Canadians should be able to break other countries' laws and not pay the price for it.

Canada has NO right to interfere in China's legal system. If these guys really are guilty, then it's a good thing they got caught. Now, let the Chinese justice system work itself out - there should be no presupposition on Canada's part that they are innocent or that they won't be tried fairly. Canada doesn't seem to have any problem abandoning Huawei's CFO to the splendid legal system of the United States.

And besides, have you ever taken a close look at how Canada's legal system works?? In a lot of ways it is superb; but in many ways, it is covered with warts.

Over to you, Justin.

- prh, ed.

Trudeau Slams China's Arrest of Canadians on Espionage Charges as 'Unacceptable'

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, CanadaTrudeau © REUTERS / Chris Wattie

The two were detained in December 2018 soon after Canadian authorities arrested Huawei's Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou on an extradition request from the US. Washington seeks to prosecute Meng for allegedly helping Huawei bypass unilateral American sanctions against Iran.

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has called the arrests of Canadian citizens in China on espionage charges "unacceptable" and vowed to make the safety of his fellow citizens the "utmost priority" during his trip to Paris.

"We will continue to work with our allies and work directly with China to ensure that they understand that we are a country of the rule of law, and we will allow our legal processes to unfold independently while at the same time we will always stand up for Canadians and will continue to", he said.

The Canadian Foreign Ministry also reacted to the news, condemning the "arbitrary arrest" of its citizens and calling on Beijing to immediately release them.

Earlier in the day, China formally arrested two Canadian citizens who were detained on accusations of obtaining secret state data on behalf of foreign actors on 16 May. Having been formally arrested, the two are likely to face trial soon.

"Michael Kovrig, due to being suspected of crimes of gathering state secrets and intelligence for foreign [forces], and Michael Spavor, for being suspected of crimes of stealing and illegally providing state secrets for foreign [forces], have in recent days been approved for arrest according to law", Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said.

At the same time, the spokesman for the Chinese ministry cautioned Canada against making "irresponsible remarks" about the legal proceeding in China.

The arrest of the two Canadian citizens in December 2018 was preceded by Canadian police arresting a Chinese citizen, Huawei's Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou, on an extradition request from the US. The latter accuses her of helping Huawei deceive banks about relations with a third-party firm operating in Iran.

The arrests of each other's citizens have significantly strained bilateral relations between China and Canada. Ottawa believes that the detentions of Kovrig and Spavor, which came shortly after Meng's arrest, were not circumstantial, although Beijing has given no indication that there is a link between the two events.

Washington claims that Huawei has used the firm to operate in Iran in order to bypass American sanctions against the Islamic Republic and is now trying to have Meng extradited from Canada, something that she vehemently opposes. Both Huawei and its CFO deny Washington's accusations.

Source URL