OTTAWA -- Chinese Ambassador to Canada Cong Peiwu says concerns around the treatment of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, who have been detained in China for more than a year, are inflated and inaccurate.
鈥淭heir legal rights are protected, so there is nothing like mistreatment, it鈥檚 just hype up of the stories,鈥� said Cong in an interview with CTV鈥檚 Question Period host Evan Solomon airing Sunday.
Spavor, an entrepreneur, and Kovrig, a former diplomat, were arrested in China in December 2018, shortly after the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver.
The two Canadians were accused of violating state secret laws, yet politicians and diplomats alike have called it an unlawful, retaliatory play for Meng鈥檚 arrest, which was carried out by the RCMP at the request of U.S. authorities.
The reported state of the Canadians鈥� confinement has, at the very best, been equated to a gross violation of human rights, and at the worst, torture. Neither has had access to legal counsel, contact with family, and for the first six months, sunlight.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 somebody鈥檚 account but for us, I have made it clear, their legal rights have been preserved,鈥� Cong said. 鈥淭here is nothing like mistreatment of those two citizens from Canada.鈥�
He called the U.S. extradition case against Meng a political front, shielding broader issues between the two superpowers.
鈥淭he nature of these two cases is different,鈥� Cong said. 鈥淪o for Meng鈥檚 case, we have maintained from the very beginning this is not a judicial case at all, it鈥檚 a serious political incident, plotted by the United States.鈥�
U.S. President Donald Trump has maintained the charges are based on fraudulent activity and the company鈥檚 work in Iran, which is under American economic sanctions.
鈥淐anada also kind of misused the extradition treaty between Canada and the United States,鈥� Cong said. 鈥淲e are supposed to make sure that we safeguard the legitimate rights of our citizens.鈥�
The Canadian government maintains they are in talks with Chinese officials about the release of Spavor and Kovrig. Newly minted Canadian Ambassador to China Dominic Barton has also paid frequent visits to the detention centre where they鈥檙e held.
On Thursday, Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Munich, Germany, on the sidelines of a global security conference.
鈥淢inister Champagne raised the cases of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, which are a priority for the Government of Canada,鈥� read the press release. 鈥淭he two ministers also discussed China鈥檚 response to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.鈥�
MISINFORMATION AND THE CORONAVIRUS
Responding to reports that China withheld information about the actual number of coronavirus cases within its borders, leading to a sharp rise in the tally, Cong said standards of diagnosis simply changed.
鈥淸It] means more patients can be treated at an earlier date, so that鈥檚 good for cutting the spread of the virus,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hen it comes to the figures, they are transparent and I think we are also approaching the issue with transparency and openness from the very beginning.鈥�
He added that China 鈥減romptly鈥� made every effort to share all available information to the World Health Organization and relevant countries about the disease and its spread.
Following the death of Chinese doctor Li Wenliang, who first alerted authorities in Beijing about the scale of the virus only to become infected himself, posts on social media erupted calling for accountability.
Cong said he is 鈥渟addened by the news鈥� but there is no hiding of information.
鈥淲e are encouraging people to speak out, to speak the truth and for the outside world, we are also approaching the issue with openness.鈥�
CANADA鈥橲 FRAYED RELATIONSHIP WITH CHINA
In a parliamentary committee appearance in Ottawa last week, Ambassador Barton said the 鈥渃hill is real鈥� between Canada and China, particularly in the days and months after the detainment of the 鈥渢wo Michaels鈥� -- Kovrig and Spavor -- but it鈥檚 come around.
"The first conversation I had was probably one of the most unpleasant conversations I have ever had,鈥� said Barton. 鈥淚 hope that our efforts will soon bear fruit.鈥�
Cong said the relationship between the two countries is facing 鈥渄ifficulties鈥� because of 鈥渟omething done on the Canadian side.鈥�
鈥淲e do hope the Canadian side will take our recommendations seriously and takes measures to make sure that the relationship gets back on track.鈥�
Whether Canada allows Huawei into its 5G network, a decision the government is mulling over as the U.S. continues to campaign globally for the company鈥檚 exclusion, will be another test to the already unstable relationship.
