Canadian officials were granted Sunday consular access to the second of two Canadians detained in China last week amid rising tensions over the arrest in Canada of a top Chinese telecom executive earlier this month.
“Today, Canada was granted consular access to Michael Spavor,” a statement by Global Affairs Canada said.
Canada’s ambassador to China, John McCallum, met the Canadian entrepreneur, according to the statement.
“Canadian consular officials continue to provide consular services to him and his family and will continue to seek further access to Mr Spavor,” the statement said. “Due to the provisions of the Privacy Act, no further information can be disclosed.”
According to the statement, consular visits generally aim to assess the well-being of the person being detained, clarify the reason for the detention, provide guidance on legal issues and act as a link between the detainee and loved ones.
Spavor, who ran a non-profit organization that organized cultural and sports exchanges with Pyongyang, was arrested by the State Security Bureau of Dandong City, Liaoning Province, near the border with North Korea.
He came to international prominence by organizing the visits to North Korea of former basketball star Dennis Rodman in 2013 and 2014.
The website for Paektu Cultural Exchange, the organization Spavor founded, says it is “dedicated to facilitating sustainable co-operation, cross-cultural exchanges, tourism, trade, and economic exchanges between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) and international organizations, businesses, and individuals.”
According to the website, Spavor has spent more than 20 years living in both North and South Korea. It says he speaks Korean and French fluently and is learning Chinese.
“In 2013 and 2014, he organized the Dennis Rodman visits, and the basketball match between the DPRK and former NBA players, where he also became friends with the country’s leader Marshal Kim Jong Un,” the website states.
Michael Spavor, (in blue jacket), organises trips to North Korea such as this high profile trip of American basketball star Dennis Rodman (L). He has met on several occasions with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. (facebook.com/mpspavor
Spavor’s personal Facebook page contains several images of him with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, including one of him with both Kim and Rodman at an undisclosed location. Another image shows the two sharing a drink with the North Korean leader.
Spavor’s arrest has been interpreted as another step in increasing tensions between China and Canada, which exploded when Canada arrested Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver earlier this month.
Meng, Huawei’s chief financial officer and the daughter of company founder Ren Zhengfei, was arrested on Dec. 1, the same day that U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met to hammer out a truce in an ongoing trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
Meng, 46, could face extradition to the U.S. over allegations she was involved in violating sanctions on Iran, with each charge carrying a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
She was released on bail by a Canadian court after she agreed to post a $10-million bail, surrender her passports and abide by more than a dozen conditions.
A man holds a sign outside of the B.C. Supreme Court bail hearing of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou, who is being held on an extradition warrant in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada December 10, 2018. (David Ryder/REUTERS)
China has demanded from Canada “to immediately correct its mistake and release” Meng.
Beijing confirmed last week that Spavor and the second arrested Canadian, former diplomat Michael Kovrig, are being investigated for “endangering national security,.” a move seen by some as retaliation for Meng’s arrest.
Canada has insisted that there was no political interference and Canadian officials had no choice but to abide by Ottawa’s extradition treaty with the U.S. and arrest Meng upon the request of U.S. authorities.
The Canadians are “suspected of being involved in activities endangering China’s national security law,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said last week.
Chinese authorities granted Canadian officials access to Kovrig on Friday.
Canadian officials are working to get continued access to both detainees.
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