China warns Canada against granting asylum to Hong Kong activists, gets strong response

China has warned Canada against granting asylum to Hong Kong pro-democracy activists, adding that it could jeopardise the “health and safety” of Canadians living in the semi-autonomous region. During a video conference, Chinese Ambassador to Ottawa, Cong Peiwu, urged Canada to not grant political asylum to “violent criminals”. He added that such asylum amounts to interference in China's domestic affairs and will embolden those “criminals.”

"So if the Canadian side really cares about the stability and the prosperity in Hong Kong, and really cares about the good health and safety of those 300,000 Canadian passport-holders in Hong Kong...you should support those efforts to fight violent crimes," Cong said.

The strained relationship between China and Canada after the arrest of Huawei CFO has further deteriorated over Canada’s decision to grant refugee status of a Hong Kong couple who participated in pro-democracy protests last year. Canada had also accused China of engaging in “coercive diplomacy” by keeping two Canadian men hostage.

The warning triggered a strong response from Canada's Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, describing the remark as "totally unacceptable and disturbing". In a statement carried by Canadian news outlets, Champagne said that he has instructed Global Affairs to summon the ambassador to make clear that Canada will always stand up for human rights. 

Read: China Rebukes Canada's 'coercive' Diplomacy Allegations, Calls For Release Of Huawei CFO

Read: China Threatens Countermeasures Against US Sanctions Over Hong Kong Issue

'Coercive diplomacy'

Earlier this week, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that he would fight China’s “coercive diplomacy”, adding that arbitrary arrests, human rights violation in Hong Kong and Xinjiang are not “particularly productive path.” China’s envoy to Ottawa, Cong Peiwu, dismissed the claims, saying the Canadian citizens have been prosecuted because of suspected activities which endangers China’s national security. 

“There’s no coercive diplomacy on the Chinese side,” said Cong told the video news conference.

The Chinese envoy further said that the arrests of Spavor and Kovrig were unrelated and accused Canada of using “coercive measures” by arresting Huawei executive as “she was breaking no Canadian law at all.” He called for the immediate release of Meng “to create conditions to bring Canada-China relations back on the right track.”

Read: Huawei CFO Meng's Lawyers Call US Evidence In Extradition Case 'unreliable'

Read: China Opposes 'deliberate Suppression' Of Companies After US Limits Huawei's Market Access

(With ANI inputs)