22 min listen
Canada's two Michaels and China's long history of 'hostage diplomacy'
FromThis Matters
ratings:
Length:
17 minutes
Released:
Aug 18, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
Guest: Joanna Chiu, Toronto Star reporter covering Canada-China relations and author of “China Unbound” It’s been almost three years since former diplomat Michael Kovrig and entrepreneur Michael Spavor (collectively known as the “two Michaels”) were arrested by the Chinese Communist Party. The move was seen as retaliation against Canada’s arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, who is currently standing trial for possible extradition to the United States. Now, just this month, Michael Spavor was found guilty of espionage charges and sentenced to 11 years in a Chinese prison, while another Chinese court rejected Canadian Robert Lloyd Schellenberg’s appeal against a death sentence for drug trafficking. It all seems so shocking, but as Star reporter Joanna Chiu reports, this form of hostage taking diplomacy and death threat diplomacy is not new. Why is no one talking about other Canadians that have been taken as political prisoners by China?
Released:
Aug 18, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
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