China envoy warns Canada against granting protesters asylum

Chinese ambassor to Cana warned Trudeau government on Thursday t to grant asylum to Hong Kong residents fleeing a widely criticized national security law imposed by Beijing. Ambassor Cong Peiwu branded pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong as violent criminals and said if Cana grants m asylum that amounts to interference in China’s internal affairs.

Protests against Hong Kong and mainland Chinese governments swelled last year, and Beijing clamped down on expressions of anti-government sentiment in city with a new national security law that took effect June 30.  law outlaws subversive, secessionist, and terrorist activity, as well as collusion with foreign powers to interfere in city’s internal affairs. U.S., Britain and Cana accuse China of infringing on city’s freedoms.

“If Canian side really cares about stability and prosperity in Hong Kong, and really cares about good health and safety of those 300,000 Canian passport-holders in Hong Kong, and large number of Canian companies operating in Hong Kong SAR, you should support those efforts to fight violent crimes,” Cong said.

Cherie Wong, executive director of Alliance Cana Hong Kong, said Cong’s comment is a “direct threat” to all Canians.

“ir actions are reason that many Hong Kongers are seeking asylum in Cana, because y longer feel safe in Hong Kong or ir human rights will be protected in Hong Kong under control of new National Security Law,” she said in a statement. “It should t be lost on Canians living in Hong Kong or China, y could be next. Ambassor Cong suggested so himself.”

Cong also flatly rejected Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s assertion that China is engaging in coercive diplomacy by imprisoning two Canian men in retaliation for arrest of a Chinese Huawei executive on an American extrition warrant. Meng Wanzhou is living under house arrest in Vancouver while her case wends through a British Columbia court.

In December 2018, China imprisoned two Canian men, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, and charged m with undermining country’s national security.