My View on the Meng Wanzhou Incident
如何看待孟晚舟事件
Ambassador Cong Peiwu Publishes a Signed Article on The Hill Times
驻加拿大大使丛培武在《国会山时报》发表署名文章
25 August 2021
2021年8月25日
As of August 26, Ms. Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Huawei, has been arbitrarily detained by Canada for 1,000 days. I would like to share my views on this incident and respond to some of the questions that draw a lot of attention.
截至8月26日，华为公司首席财务官孟晚舟女士已被加拿大任意拘押长达1000天，引发国际社会广泛关注。我愿在此分享我的一些看法，回答外界普遍关注的几个问题。
My view on the Meng Wanzhou incident
一、怎么看孟晚舟事件？
Contrary to some people’s belief, the Meng Wanzhou incident is obviously not a judicial case. Over the past two years and more, the US wasted no time in suppressing Huawei, cooking up disinformation to smear Huawei and coercing its allies to boycott Huawei, which is a brazen practice. Facts have fully proved that the Meng Wanzhou incident is purely a political one. The US government concocted the incident to repress Chinese high-tech companies and obstruct China's development. Canada is acting as a cat’s paw for the US. It has been used by the US. To my knowledge, before Ms. Meng Wanzhou arrived in Canada, the US asked many countries that have extradition treaties with it to detain Ms. Meng Wanzhou, and none of them wanted to be part of the US’ dirty game. However, Canada is the only one to take on the hot potato, triggering greatest indignation among the Chinese people. But the inspiring news is that a growing number of people have realized the incident is, in essence, a political incident that is illegal and unfair. This once again proves that justice will always prevail.
一些人认为，孟晚舟事件是一起普通的司法案件，但事实绝非如此。该事件发生两年多来，美方一刻也没有放松对华为打压，从炮制虛假信息污蔑华为，到威逼盟友抵制华为，简直穷凶极恶、毫无下限。事实充分证明，孟晚舟事件就是一起严重的政治事件。美方炮制这一事件的目的就是打压中国高技术企业、阻挠中国发展。而加方充当美方帮凶，被美方利用了。据了解，在孟晚舟女士抵加前，美方曾向许多同美签有引渡条约的国家提出逮捕并引渡孟女士，但没有哪个国家接受这个“脏活”，唯有加拿大接下这个烫手山芋，这激起了中国人民的强烈愤慨。令人鼓舞的是，今天已有越来越多的人认清孟晚舟事件的政治性、非法性和非正义性。这也再次表明，公道自在人心。
My view on the individual cases related to Canada
二、怎么看加拿大公民个案？
Recently, China’s court pronounced the judgments in public on the cases of Canadian citizens Michael Spavor and Robert Schellenberg and respectively, for the former secretly gathered state secrets and illegally provided state secrets to foreign forces, and the latter was involved in organized international drug trafficking. Some Canadian media and experts accused China of engaging in “hostage diplomacy”. And the Canadian government hyped up China’s “arbitrary detention”, ganged up on China, and even said that the trial “did not satisfy the minimum standards required by international law”.
近期，中方法院依法分别就加籍被告人迈克尔为境外刺探、非法提供国家秘密案和谢伦伯格走私毒品上诉案作出一审和二审公开宣判。加一些媒体和专家诬称中方搞“人质外交”，加政府也炒作中方搞“任意拘押”，在国际上拉帮结伙向中方施压，甚至声称相关审判不符合“最低国际标准”。
It must be pointed out that the nature of the Meng Wanzhou incident is completely different from that of the Canadian citizens’ cases. China is a friendly country and a country with the rule of law. Everyone is equal before the law, and nationality is not a shield against the law. The Canadian citizens are suspected of committing crimes, and the evidence is reliable and sufficient. Competent Chinese authorities handle cases in accordance with the law and fully protect the legitimate rights of them, including the right to consular visits. How can there be “hostage diplomacy”? The United States fabricated false allegations of “fraud” and Canada acted as an accomplice to detain Ms. Meng Wanzhou, who did not violate any Canadian law at all. This is truly hostage diplomacy and arbitrary detention. It is Canada’s irresponsible remarks on the Chinese judicial authorities and its gross interference in China’s judicial sovereignty that fail to meet the “minimum standard required by international law”.
必须指出，孟晚舟事件同相关加公民个案性质完全不同。中国是一个友好国家，也是一个法治国家。法律面前人人平等，国籍不是逃脱法律制裁的“挡箭牌”。相关加公民涉嫌犯罪，证据确实、充分。中方主管部门依法办案，充分保障加公民包括领事探视权在内的合法权利，何来“人质外交”？美国捏造虚假的“欺诈”指控、加拿大充当帮凶拘押没有违反任何加法律的孟晚舟女士，这才是不折不扣的“人质外交”、“任意拘押”。加方对中方司法机关依法办案说三道四、粗暴干涉中国司法主权，这才是彻头彻尾的不符合“最低国际标准”。
My understanding of the spirit of the rule of law
三、怎么理解法治精神？
The true spirit of the rule of law is to pursue fairness and justice through law. On the Meng Wanzhou incident, the Canadian side insists on fulfilling its obligations under the Treaty on Extradition between Canada and United States and persists in promoting the so-called judicial process when the political nature of the incident is very clear. In essence, the Canadian side is doing evil in the name of the rule of law. We are firmly opposed to this. The America’s use of the justice system as a tool of bullying to achieve political ends is not only inconsistent with the spirit of the rule of law, but is the ultimate blasphemy against it. Canada accepted whatever the United States gives it. Is this Canada’s judicial independence? Canada’s actions not only violate the spirit of the rule of law, but also undermine fairness and justice, and more seriously violate the human rights of the Chinese citizen.
通过法律追求公平、正义才是真正的法治精神。在孟晚舟事件上，加方坚称履行《加美引渡条约》义务，并在事件政治性质十分清楚的情况下执意推进所谓司法程序，本质上是假法治之名，行邪恶之举。我们对此坚决反对。美国把司法体系作为霸凌工具、以图达到某种政治目的，这不仅不符合法治精神，反而恰恰是对法治精神的最大亵渎。加方对美国交代的事情，无论黑白，照单全收，这就是加方的司法独立？加方的作法不仅违背法治精神，而且破坏公平正义，更严重侵犯了中国公民的人权。
Recently, more than 10 million netizens from China and around the world have added their names to an open letter to the Canadian Ambassador to China, calling on the Canadian side to correct its mistake and release Ms. Meng Wanzhou immediately and unconditionally. At the same time, we have noticed that many Canadians with vision have been calling on the Canadian government to end the extradition of Ms. Meng Wanzhou under Canada’s Extradition Act. We urge the Canadian government to heed these voices for justice seriously, uphold the spirit and courage for independence, release Ms. Meng Wanzhou and ensure her safe return to the motherland as soon as possible. Now is the time for Canada to make the right decision.
日前，有1000多万来自中国和世界各地的网民联署了致加拿大驻华大使的公开信，要求加方纠正错误，立即无条件释放孟晚舟。我们也注意到，加国内有不少有识之士不断呼吁加政府依据加《引渡法》授权终止对孟的引渡进程。我们敦促加方认真倾听这些正义的呼声，拿出独立自主的精神和勇气，尽快释放孟晚舟女士并让她平安回到中国。现在是加方作出正确决断的时侯了。