Canada’s Foreign Minister warns its citizens about travelling to China

The two Canadians were arrested in December 2018 and were later charged with spying in China and passing on sensitive information to entities outside the country.

Canada’s foreign minister Marc Garneau fears many nations that are doing business with Beijing could end up seeing their citizens in China getting detained in case there are major disagreements.

Canada has warned its citizens against travelling to the Chinese province of Xinjiang, saying they face the “risk of arbitrary detention” on doing so.

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In an advisory on Saturday, Ottawa said, “Chinese authorities are increasingly detaining ethnic and Muslim minorities in the region without due process. There are reports of extrajudicial internment and forced labour camps. Family members of Canadian citizens with Chinese citizenship have been detained.”

The two Canadians were arrested in December 2018. They were later charged with spying in China and passing on sensitive information to entities outside the country.

In a statement issued earlier in the day by Global Affairs Canada, the country’s foreign ministry, Garneau said, “We are deeply troubled by the total lack of transparency surrounding these hearings and we continue to work towards an immediate end to their arbitrary detention.”

Canada also cautioned the people who undertake the line of research or journalism in China, particularly in Xinjiang or Tibet. “You should be particularly vigilant if researching or reporting on subjects critical of or sensitive to the government and in areas such as Tibet or Xinjiang,” says the advisory, pointing to instances of arrests of foreign journalists on grounds of national security violations.

In July 2020, Canada sent an advisory  note with regard to Hong Kong, warning that Canadians going there “may be at increased risk of arbitrary detention on national security grounds and possible extradition to mainland China”.