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Since Meng Wanzhou was detained in Vancouver for Huawei’s violation of U.S. sanctions against Iran, Beijing has detained three Caucasian Canadians, one of them a former Canadian diplomat, Michael Kovrig.

In May, Ottawa had advised Canadians to expect scrutiny at U.S. border crossings. It advised travellers to comply with border agents, and warned travellers they could be detained and have their cellphones searched.

“Since December 2018, we have had in-depth reports and special coverage on Huawei and its connection with the Chinese regime, and later we had five weeks of special coverage on the use of torture in China, as the detained Canadian Kovrig also underwent

Trail of Foreign Hostages Foreigners can find themselves dragged off by China’s state security officials, as two Canadians, Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig experienced when detained for two and a half years as hostages in retaliation for charges against

Michael Kovrig, a former Canadian diplomat, was detained on the same day as Spavor, for the same alleged offense, spying. Kovrig still faces life in prison.

The two Canadians were detained in China just days later and have been held ever since, while Meng has been released on bail and remains under house arrest at her Vancouver mansion.

Global Affairs confirmed on Feb. 1 that Canadian consular officials in China visited with Michael Spavor, who has been detained since Dec. 10, 2018.

China has arbitrarily detained two Canadian citizens for over two years, threatened Canadian interests, violated an international treaty protecting freedoms in Hong Kong where tens of thousands of Canadians live, and committed genocide against innumerable

Kovrig and Spavor were arrested in December 2018 in a move widely read as retaliation for Canadian police detaining Meng Wanzhou, the Chief Financial Officer for Huawei, on a U.S. extradition order.

Following the cocaine discovery, the Air Line Pilots Association, the Canadian Union of Public Employees and Unifor said their members were arbitrarily detained, threatened and prosecuted despite following Transport Canada protocols and international

She also said the decision means there is a heightened risk for Canadians that they could be arbitrarily detained in Iran.

Two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, have been detained in China since December for allegedly endangering national security.

According to the UN, they were arbitrarily detained. We call for their unconditional release," the Canadian embassy wrote in a Twitter statement on April 13.

The same day, Canadian businessman Michael Spavor was detained by Chinese authorities in the northeastern province of Liaoning on the same charges.

China detained former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig and Canadian entrepreneur Michael Spavor on Dec. 10 in an apparent attempt to pressure Canada to release Meng.

China detained Kovrig and Spavor separately after Canadian authorities arrested a Chinese technology executive in Vancouver.

Lu also accused Canada of “white supremacy” and “double standards” for calling for the release of two Canadians detained in China following Meng’s arrest. The CCP’s Foreign Ministry praised his words and deeds.

Meanwhile, Canada has obtained an agreement to allow greater family and consular access for Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, the two Canadians arbitrarily detained in China since shortly after Meng was arrested at the Vancouver airport on a U.S. extradition

“All Canadian citizens, regardless of their background, are equal before and under the law, and no one will ever be arbitrarily detained at the Canadian border nor refused entry purely because of their ethnicity or religion,” Blair's office said.

told reporters her 81-year-old mother has been in jail for three years after being arbitrarily detained and given a four-year sentence.

Apparent targets of China's ire have included two Canadians detained on suspicion of harming national security, a third Canadian sentenced to death, and now the Canadian staple canola. Canola is grown in China, Japan and many other countries.

Beijing released two Canadians on Sept. 24, who were detained as bargaining chips for over 1,000 days against Meng’s arrest in Canada. Reuters contributed to this report.

Navalny was detained on his return to Russia in January from Germany where he was treated for what German authorities concluded was poisoning in Russia with a banned nerve agent.

Kovrig, a China scholar, was detained in China for more than 1,000 days, along with fellow Canadian Michael Spavor, in apparent retaliation by Beijing after Canada executed a U.S. extradition warrant in late 2018 for Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou and

MP Han Dong said March 22 he is resigning from the Liberal caucus after a news report alleged he had told a Chinese diplomat that Beijing should not release two Canadian citizens who had been arbitrarily detained in China, an allegation that Dong denies

Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, two Canadians released by Beijing in September 2021, are further examples, according to the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC).

He pointed to the regime’s retaliation for Canada’s arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou for extradition to the United States—through detainment of Canadian citizens Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig and the blocking of Canadian agricultural exports—as

In what has widely been viewed as retaliation, the Chinese regime detained two Canadians and accused them of spying, while also sentencing another two Canadians to death for drug-related crimes.

OTTAWA—Canada will continue to fight for the release of Michael Spavor and other Canadians arbitrarily detained in China, Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau promised on Wednesday after a Chinese court sentenced the entrepreneur to 11 years in prison