Police cars leave the Dandong Intermediate People’s Court as Michael Spavor stands trial in Dandong, Liaoning province, China March 19, 2021.
Michael Spavor, a Canadian citizen, has been detained by Chinese authorities since late 2018 on suspicion of espionage. The case, which involves a broader diplomatic dispute between Washington and Beijing, was heard behind closed doors on Friday (March 19), with the hearing ending after about two hours.
In a statement posted on its website, the Dandong Intermediate People’s Court said it “held a closed session hearing in the case of Canadian defendant Michael Spaver for spying and illegally providing state secrets abroad.”
The statement said Spavor and his defense attorney were present at the proceedings and said the court “will deliver the verdict at a later date in accordance with the law.”
The Reuters report said the Chinese court had a conviction rate of more than 99 percent. The report said the 45-year-old Canadian businessman did not appear outside the courtroom, and there was no word on him.
China arrested Spavor and his Canadian compatriot Michael Kovrig, known as Kang Mingkai, in December 2018, shortly after Canadian police arrested Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese technology company huawei Technologies Co. in response to a U.S. extradition request. The two men are commonly referred to as the “Two Michaels.
Beijing insists that the detention of the two Macs is unrelated to Meng’s arrest.
Kang, a former diplomat, is scheduled to appear in court in Beijing on Monday (March 22).
Police set up a cordon outside the courthouse on Friday morning, according to Reuters. Officials from the Canadian embassy and the United States, the Netherlands, Britain, France, Denmark, Australia, Sweden and Germany hoped to attend the court appearance but were unable to enter the courtroom.
Reuters reported that Canadian embassy officials in China were disappointed with the lack of contact and lack of transparency in the Chinese court.
Jim Nickel, chargé d’affaires at the Canadian Embassy in China, told Reuters that the reason given by the Chinese was a so-called national security case. He said they believe domestic law overrides international law, but that is not the case. Nickel said China does have an international obligation to allow consular access to the court.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Friday that cases involving state secrets are not open to the public.
Observers believe the possible conviction of “Two Michaels” could eventually help lead to a diplomatic agreement under which they would be released and sent back to Canada.
Guy Saint-Jacques, a former Canadian ambassador to Beijing, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. on Thursday that Beijing’s trial of Spavor was timed to coincide with Thursday’s meeting of top U.S. and Chinese officials in Anchorage, Alaska, which he believes is China’s way of pressuring the Biden administration to release Meng.
St. Jacques said the Canadian side is in a very difficult situation, but “unfortunately, at this stage, there is nothing the Canadian government can do.”
In a statement, the Spaffer Family called on China to release the two men unconditionally .
In the statement, they said Spavor was just an ordinary Canadian businessman who made extraordinary efforts to build constructive relations between Canada, China and North Korea.
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