The son of two Canadians detained in China is heading to the Asian country to meet with lawyers, embassy officials and, hopefully, his parents.
Simeon Garratt hasn't spoken directly to his parents, Kevin and Julia, since they were detained in August, but he is hoping to change that.
"At this point, I have no idea if I'll be able to see my parents or not." Garratt told 麻豆影视 Channel on Tuesday. He hopes he'll be able to see them, but Chinese officials haven't confirmed anything. Even if Garratt can't meet with his parents, he still plans to meet with lawyers, deal with some family business and see his brother.
Kevin and Julia Garratt were detained by Chinese authorities in August on suspicion of spying; state media reported they are suspected of stealing national security secrets.
The couple have lived and worked in China for the past three decades and operated a café in Dandong, China since 2008. Dandong, located in the northern part of the country, is close to the North Korean border.
Garratt, who was born in China and now lives in Vancouver, said he has only been in contact with his parents through the Canadian embassy in Beijing and nothing has changed in the past month.
Garratt says details about the case are sparse, but he knows they are detained and being constantly interrogated, but are not officially arrested.
"We haven't heard a single thing from the Chinese authorities," Garratt said. "The only thing we know is what we hear through the consular visits, which is that they are still being questioned and there still have been no charges laid."
Canadian consular officials visit the couple every two weeks.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is also heading to China between Nov. 5-10 for an that is intended to "strengthen the longstanding ties between both countries and set the direction for the future of the Canada-China relationship."
Harper is expected to focus on increasing trade between the two countries. Reports suggest Harper is going to announce a Toronto-based Yuan trading hub that will allow Canadian firms to trade directly in the Chinese currency.
Harper will be accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, International Trade Minister Ed Fast, Industry Minister James Moore and Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz.
Garratt said he didn't co-ordinate his trip to coincide with Harper's, but added this is a good time to go because there will be high-level Canadians in the country.
In September, the government threatened to cancel the trip if the Garratts weren't released.
