Â鶹´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Dealing with growing Chinese authoritarianism a challenge for democracies: Garneau

Share
OTTAWA -

China's growing authoritarianism and coercive diplomacy constitute a challenge to democratic countries around the world including Canada, Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau said Monday.

Garneau told a parliamentary committee that Canada and other democracies are grappling with the question of how they reconcile their business, security and human-rights objectives with China.

"China of 2021 isn't the same China of 2016, and Canada's approach needs to evolve with an evolving China," he said, noting that China is rapidly gaining global influence and expanded clout with which all countries must learn to coexist.

"China's economic might has emboldened its ambitions and interests beyond the Asia Pacific region, where it has enjoyed enormous clout for centuries, to span the entire globe, including here in Canada," he said.

Garneau said leaning to coexist with China means knowing when it's necessary to co-operate with that country on global issues such as climate change, and when to challenge Beijing over human-rights violations.

"It also implies challenging China when human rights are violated or Canadian citizens and interests are jeopardized," he said.

A path to any kind of long-term relationship with China requires the safe return of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor to Canada, Garneau added.

"Bringing them home is and must remain our top priority in our dealings with China," he said.

The men, who have become known as the "two Michaels," were detained in December 2018, days after Canada's arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on an extradition request from the United States.

Garneau said both men received virtual visits two weeks ago from consular officials, but China has not allowed consular access to other Canadian citizens held in that country.

He said China should allow consular officials access to Huseyin Celil so Canada can confirm his well-being.

Celil, who settled in southern Ontario after becoming a Canadian citizen, is a former Uyghur activist who has been imprisoned in China for 15 years.

Garneau said China should put an end to the systematic campaign of repression against Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic minorities in light of mounting evidence of forced labour, political re-education, torture and forced sterilization.

Growing competition with China and the pervasive use of digital technology forces Ottawa to work with other governments, businesses and universities to protect intellectual property, digital infrastructure, protect its democratic institutions from foreign interference and election meddling, he said.

"Hostile activities by state actors pose strategic, long-term threats to Canada," Garneau said. "They can undermine our nation's economic, industrial, military and technological advantages."

Garneau said Canada is working with other G7 countries to counter foreign interference.

"We must continue to work with our partners around the world to protect the rules-based international order and defend human rights and freedoms."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 7, 2021.

----

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

IN DEPTH

Opinion

opinion

opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster

A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?

opinion

opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike

When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

An Edmonton man says he was in the wrong place at the wrong time when he was injured by members of the Edmonton Police Service last year.

The brother of a 27-year-old man who was fatally shot in Scarborough over the weekend has been arrested and charged in connection with his death, say police.

The Royal Canadian Mint has introduced its latest Gold Maple Leaf bullion coin – made entirely from gold sourced from a single mine in northern Ontario

Local Spotlight

Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

Stay Connected