Global EditionASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
    Opinion
    Home / Opinion / Op-Ed Contributors

    Canada should deal with Meng case prudently

    By Zhang Tengjun | CHINA DAILY | Updated: 2020-06-11 07:34
    Share
    Share - WeChat
    SHI YU/CHINA DAILY

    The extradition hearing of Meng Wanzhou, chief financial executive of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei, has been deferred to 2021 due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The decision comes in the wake of a Canadian court ruling on May 27 that the fraud charges against Meng met the legal standard for extraditing her from Canada to the US.

    The US pressure and influence on Canada's "independent judicial system" are clear in Meng's case. The United States has imposed sanctions on Huawei because it cannot accept the Chinese company as a global leader in 5G technology, and is using it as a bargaining chip against China in the escalating trade war it has launched.

    Meng's case is not a simple judicial matter; it is essentially a political game the US has been playing to derail China's technology development. The matter has been further complicated as Canada doesn't seem prepared to order a judicial review of the case.

    First, Washington's plea for the extradition of Meng to the US is politically manipulated, which is in violation of the apolitical nature of the US-Canada extradition treaty. In fact, the US president has said he would intervene in Meng's case if it helped strike a deal with China, raising doubts about the legitimacy of the US extradition request. In such a case, the Canadian judicial authorities should have deliberated whether the US was using Meng's case as a bargaining chip against China in the Sino-US trade war. But Canada decided to meet the US extradition request in the name of judicial independence.

    Second, the legal description of a criminal offense is different in the US and Canada. Under the US-Canada extradition treaty and the Canadian Extradition Act, any offense that necessitates extradition must constitute a crime in both Canada and the US to meet the "double criminality" principle. The US sought Meng's extradition claiming that she had lied to HSBC to evade US sanctions against Iran. But the fact is, Canada has not imposed such sanctions on Iran.

    The Canadian court deliberately interpreted fraud in way that ensured Meng's conduct met the legal standard of "double criminality". The US' sanctions against Iran and Canada using them as its legal standard to arrest Meng suggest the US has used its long-arm jurisdiction to influence the Canadian court's order.

    Third, Meng was detained after being questioned for hours at Vancouver airport by Canadian border officials at the US' request before being arrested, prompting her lawyer to say the extradition process should have been dropped as Canadian officials had abused the law.

    In the name of border control, the Canadian border agency and police launched a criminal investigation against Meng, which violated her rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. And by taking an exceptionally long time to produce a warrant against Meng and inform the Chinese Embassy in Canada about the case according to the Sino-Canadian consular agreement, Ottawa violated the international law. Whether the Canadian officials abused the extradition process by arresting Meng will be a focus of the next hearing.

    But whatever the verdict, the Canadian government has the final say in Meng's case. One thing is certain, though, that Canada has misused discretion by accepting the US' extradition request for Meng.

    If Canada fulfills all of the US' political demands against China, it will harm Sino-Canadian relations without serving the cause of the US-Canada partnership in the long run.

    Also, Canada should not link the arrest of two Canadian nationals, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, with Meng's case, because they were held for engaging in "activities that endanger national security" and their cases are being handled according to China's security law.

    Although Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has claimed Canada's judiciary is free of political interference and asked China to understand the situation, some reports say he might have been involved in judicial interference scandals. Canada has also followed the US in accusing China of spreading the novel coronavirus across the world, undermining global cooperation in the fight against the pandemic, and criticized the national security legislation for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, souring bilateral relations.

    Canada should realize that no responsible government can stand by when its national security is threatened by the actions of another country, in this case the US in particular. The year 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Canada. The Meng case has become a touchstone of 50 years of Sino-Canadian diplomatic relations. And since the crux of the issue is unlawful detention of a Chinese citizen by Canada on trumped-up charges, Ottawa should make a decision only after serious consideration.

    Most Viewed in 24 Hours
    Top
    BACK TO THE TOP
    English
    Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

    Registration Number: 130349
    FOLLOW US
    亚洲AV无码专区亚洲AV伊甸园| 亚洲日产无码中文字幕| 中文在线最新版天堂bt| 亚洲成a人在线看天堂无码| 九九久久精品无码专区| 无码AV动漫精品一区二区免费| 曰韩无码AV片免费播放不卡| 亚洲人成中文字幕在线观看| 亚洲欧美日韩在线中文字幕| 中文国产成人精品久久亚洲精品AⅤ无码精品 | 寂寞少妇做spa按摩无码| A级毛片无码久久精品免费| 亚洲AV无码第一区二区三区 | 中文无码喷潮在线播放| 亚洲永久无码3D动漫一区| 精品无码av一区二区三区| 亚洲国产精品成人AV无码久久综合影院 | 国产精品无码一区二区在线| 中文在线中文A| 中文字幕无码成人免费视频| 亚洲国产精品成人精品无码区在线| 免费无码中文字幕A级毛片| 无码的免费不卡毛片视频| 台湾佬中文娱乐中文| 成人A片产无码免费视频在线观看| 久久精品无码专区免费东京热| 亚洲午夜无码久久久久小说| 中文亚洲日韩欧美| 久久水蜜桃亚洲av无码精品麻豆| 中文字幕亚洲综合小综合在线| | 国产台湾无码AV片在线观看| 久久亚洲精品无码观看不卡| 中文字幕国产在线| 色窝窝无码一区二区三区色欲| 日韩亚洲变态另类中文| 精品亚洲成A人无码成A在线观看| 久久久无码精品午夜| 亚洲天堂中文字幕在线| 国产羞羞的视频在线观看 国产一级无码视频在线 | 精品无码成人片一区二区98|