Route to free the two Michaels from Chinese prison can be found in Canada’s extradition law

As Canadians mark the passing of the 1,000th day in detention for Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, the Trudeau government’s pledge to do its best to secure their freedom rings hollow

Ottawa ignored the solid legal case for releasing China’s Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested in Canada following a US warrant for extradition

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(From the left) Paul Spavor, Michael Spavor’s brother, Vina Nadjibulla, Michael Kovrig’s wife, and Ariana Botha, Kovrig’s sister, thank supporters after a march to mark 1,000 days since the two men were arrested in China, during a protest in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada on September 5. Photo: Reuters

Richard Desjardins

Richard Desjardins retired in 2020 after a 29-year career as a Canadian public servant.

Published: 5:50am, 8 Sep 2021

Two Canadians have now been detained in China for over 1,000 days for allegedly breaching national security laws. Both have been tried and one, Michael Spavor, has been found guilty and faces 11 years in prison.

It did not have to end this way. A solution to this most unfortunate situation was available to the Canadian government all along.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau reacted with dismay to the court decision on Spavor, with Garneau calling his detention and that of Kovrig “completely arbitrary”.

Their detention followed the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Huawei, on December 1, 2018 in Vancouver on a warrant for extradition issued by US authorities over Huawei’s alleged circumvention of US sanctions on Iran. Meng is fighting extradition in the Canadian courts. Beijing denies any link between the cases.