Nova Scotia’s opposition parties say Premier Stephen McNeil should have raised the fate of two imprisoned Canadians while meeting with a Chinese ambassador who has started referring to him as a “great friend.”
Tory Leader Tim Houston said McNeil’s focus on trade over the arbitrary detentions in his talks with diplomat Lu Shaye on Wednesday amounted to a “cop out” that failed to take advantage of the close relationship.
“It’s disappointing to me to know that the premier was sitting with his friend, the ambassador, and didn’t raise this issue on behalf of all Canadians,” Houston told reporters following Thursday’s cabinet meetings.
“I think that’s an opportunity that was missed.”
McNeil’s meeting with the ambassador came amid tensions between Canada and China following the December arrest in Vancouver of Huawei Technologies executive Meng Wanzhou after an American request for her extradition.
READ MORE: China’s ambassador makes second trip to Nova Scotia, calls McNeil ‘great friend’
After Meng’s arrest, China detained two Canadians – ex-diplomat Michael Kovrig and entrepreneur Michael Spavor.
It has accused the pair of violating China’s national security, but the Canadian government has described the arrests as arbitrary and outside of the normal rule of law.
China has also sentenced two Canadians to death for drug-related convictions and blocked key agricultural shipments.
The deteriorating relationship has prompted Lu to describe Canada’s ties with China last week as having hit “rock bottom.”
Days later, the diplomat flew to Halifax and joined McNeil for a photo opportunity – with no questions permitted from journalists – where he described the premier as “a great friend” and suggested Nova Scotia was taking the lead among provinces in building ties with his nation.
Amid the criticisms of coziness, McNeil told reporters following a cabinet meeting Thursday that in fact he had, in a general way, broached the topic of the troubled relationship with Lu.
“I raised the issue … globally that while there are challenges between our national governments, that our national governments will deal with, we need to keep open the lines of communication and dialogue,” said the premier.
McNeil said he has not directly discussed the issue of the prisoners “at the political level” with Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, but said senior officials from the Canadian embassy “raised the issue” with him before he held talks with the governor of Guandong province during his recent trip to China.
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The premier continued to emphasize his position that ending dialogue with China on regional trade and cultural issues would only increase tensions.
“I’m going to continue to drive the economic fortunes of our province,” he said. “Not having dialogue … entrenches people into their positions.”
McNeil has said a trade delegation is planning a return visit to Nova Scotia, and that he will return to Guandong later this year.
Nova Scotia has benefited from the expanding trade relationships with the southern Chinese province. Nova Scotia exports to China totalled $794 million in 2018, up from $275 million in 2014.
NDP Leader Gary Burrill said it’s quite acceptable to continue the trade and cultural missions and talks, but he wishes that McNeil would also put a stronger spotlight on the issue of human rights.
He said at a time when Canadians are arbitrarily detained by China, discussion between McNeil and Lu “ought not to go from beginning to end without that matter being raised.”
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