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| China Sentences Canadian Businessman to 11 Years in Prison | China Sentences Canadian Businessman to 11 Years in Prison |
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| For years, as Michael Spavor tried to expand his business in North Korea, China appeared to offer the stable base from where he could set up deals, tours and even diplomatic forays into the North involving Dennis Rodman, the retired basketball star. | For years, as Michael Spavor tried to expand his business in North Korea, China appeared to offer the stable base from where he could set up deals, tours and even diplomatic forays into the North involving Dennis Rodman, the retired basketball star. |
| On Wednesday, Mr. Spavor became a warning about the growing risks of operating in China, as tensions with the West rise and Beijing takes an increasingly combative approach to defending its interests. | On Wednesday, Mr. Spavor became a warning about the growing risks of operating in China, as tensions with the West rise and Beijing takes an increasingly combative approach to defending its interests. |
| A court in northeastern China, where Mr. Spavor has lived, sentenced him to 11 years in prison after declaring him guilty of spying, deepening a rift with Canada, which has condemned the case as political hostage-taking. | A court in northeastern China, where Mr. Spavor has lived, sentenced him to 11 years in prison after declaring him guilty of spying, deepening a rift with Canada, which has condemned the case as political hostage-taking. |
| To China’s critics, the sentence sent an ominous message that the Chinese government under Xi Jinping is willing to add prison sentences to its political armory for pressuring Western governments to make concessions. | To China’s critics, the sentence sent an ominous message that the Chinese government under Xi Jinping is willing to add prison sentences to its political armory for pressuring Western governments to make concessions. |
| The Canadian government said that Mr. Spavor’s prison term was the Chinese government’s latest move in a campaign to win the release of Meng Wanzhou, a Chinese telecommunications executive held in Canada and facing extradition to the United States. Michael Kovrig, another Canadian arrested in China at around the same time as Mr. Spavor in 2018 and accused of spying, is likely to also face conviction and sentencing soon. | The Canadian government said that Mr. Spavor’s prison term was the Chinese government’s latest move in a campaign to win the release of Meng Wanzhou, a Chinese telecommunications executive held in Canada and facing extradition to the United States. Michael Kovrig, another Canadian arrested in China at around the same time as Mr. Spavor in 2018 and accused of spying, is likely to also face conviction and sentencing soon. |
| Mr. Spavor’s imprisonment raises the pressure on the Canadian government and the Biden administration to negotiate with China over Ms. Meng. Canada has emphasized that it has the support of allies, and on Wednesday diplomats from more than two dozen countries gathered in a show of solidarity at the country’s embassy in Beijing. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada criticized the prosecution of both men. | Mr. Spavor’s imprisonment raises the pressure on the Canadian government and the Biden administration to negotiate with China over Ms. Meng. Canada has emphasized that it has the support of allies, and on Wednesday diplomats from more than two dozen countries gathered in a show of solidarity at the country’s embassy in Beijing. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada criticized the prosecution of both men. |
| “Our top priority remains securing their immediate release,” Mr. Trudeau said in a statement Wednesday after the sentencing of Mr. Spavor. “We will continue working around the clock to bring them home as soon as possible.” | “Our top priority remains securing their immediate release,” Mr. Trudeau said in a statement Wednesday after the sentencing of Mr. Spavor. “We will continue working around the clock to bring them home as soon as possible.” |
| President Biden has said he will seek to secure their release. But that could require the United States to drop or modify its case against Ms. Meng, so that she can return to China. She faces fraud charges, which she denies, linked to her role as chief financial officer of the Chinese tech giant Huawei. | President Biden has said he will seek to secure their release. But that could require the United States to drop or modify its case against Ms. Meng, so that she can return to China. She faces fraud charges, which she denies, linked to her role as chief financial officer of the Chinese tech giant Huawei. |
| “Call them hostages, call them what you like, but their fate — and this is how China wants it to look — is intertwined with Ms. Meng’s fate,” John Kamm, an American businessman and founder of the Dui Hua Foundation, which seeks to win the release of prisoners in China, especially in human rights cases, said by telephone. | “Call them hostages, call them what you like, but their fate — and this is how China wants it to look — is intertwined with Ms. Meng’s fate,” John Kamm, an American businessman and founder of the Dui Hua Foundation, which seeks to win the release of prisoners in China, especially in human rights cases, said by telephone. |
| “If Ms. Meng is released to go home to China, then you could see a fairly quick resolution for Spavor and Kovrig,” he said. “It’s been a drip, drip, drip process of constant pressure.” | “If Ms. Meng is released to go home to China, then you could see a fairly quick resolution for Spavor and Kovrig,” he said. “It’s been a drip, drip, drip process of constant pressure.” |
| The specifics of the charges against Mr. Spavor are unclear. The court in Dandong said in a one-sentence statement that he was guilty of obtaining state secrets and illegally passing them to an unnamed foreign recipient. Mr. Spavor may not have to serve out his full sentence; the court said that he would be deported, though it gave no details about the timing. | The specifics of the charges against Mr. Spavor are unclear. The court in Dandong said in a one-sentence statement that he was guilty of obtaining state secrets and illegally passing them to an unnamed foreign recipient. Mr. Spavor may not have to serve out his full sentence; the court said that he would be deported, though it gave no details about the timing. |
| Canada’s ambassador to Beijing, Dominic Barton, who traveled to Dandong to attend the hearing, later told journalists that the prosecutors had accused Mr. Spavor of taking pictures “around airports or those places where one should not take photos” in China, including of military aircraft. Mr. Barton also said he had met with Mr. Spavor afterward, and that he had said he was in good spirits. | Canada’s ambassador to Beijing, Dominic Barton, who traveled to Dandong to attend the hearing, later told journalists that the prosecutors had accused Mr. Spavor of taking pictures “around airports or those places where one should not take photos” in China, including of military aircraft. Mr. Barton also said he had met with Mr. Spavor afterward, and that he had said he was in good spirits. |
| David Meale, the chargé d’affaires at the United States Embassy in Beijing, condemned the prosecutions as “a blatant attempt to use human beings as bargaining leverage.” | David Meale, the chargé d’affaires at the United States Embassy in Beijing, condemned the prosecutions as “a blatant attempt to use human beings as bargaining leverage.” |
| The Chinese government has denied that Mr. Spavor and Mr. Kovrig are being kept as political hostages. In demanding Ms. Meng’s release, Chinese officials have repeatedly described the executive as a victim of American overreach. Beijing has accused Canada of entrapping Ms. Meng and serving as an accomplice to the United States. | The Chinese government has denied that Mr. Spavor and Mr. Kovrig are being kept as political hostages. In demanding Ms. Meng’s release, Chinese officials have repeatedly described the executive as a victim of American overreach. Beijing has accused Canada of entrapping Ms. Meng and serving as an accomplice to the United States. |
| Mr. Spavor’s conviction came amid closing arguments at the Supreme Court of British Columbia over whether Ms. Meng can be extradited. Canadian officials have said that the timing of Mr. Spavor’s sentencing, as well as a hearing in the case of another Canadian, Robert Lloyd Schellenberg, on Tuesday, was no coincidence. | Mr. Spavor’s conviction came amid closing arguments at the Supreme Court of British Columbia over whether Ms. Meng can be extradited. Canadian officials have said that the timing of Mr. Spavor’s sentencing, as well as a hearing in the case of another Canadian, Robert Lloyd Schellenberg, on Tuesday, was no coincidence. |
| In Mr. Schellenberg’s case, another court in northeast China upheld a death sentence that was handed down in a one-day retrial in 2019, one month after the police in Canada arrested Ms. Meng. Mr. Schellenberg had initially been sentenced to 15 years in prison for methamphetamine trafficking, but then appealed. | In Mr. Schellenberg’s case, another court in northeast China upheld a death sentence that was handed down in a one-day retrial in 2019, one month after the police in Canada arrested Ms. Meng. Mr. Schellenberg had initially been sentenced to 15 years in prison for methamphetamine trafficking, but then appealed. |
| The latest developments will fuel anger in Canada, where attitudes toward the Chinese government have hardened over the prosecution of Mr. Spavor and Mr. Kovrig. Critics have contrasted the harsh conditions the Canadians have faced with Ms. Meng’s opulent lifestyle and ready access to lawyers. | The latest developments will fuel anger in Canada, where attitudes toward the Chinese government have hardened over the prosecution of Mr. Spavor and Mr. Kovrig. Critics have contrasted the harsh conditions the Canadians have faced with Ms. Meng’s opulent lifestyle and ready access to lawyers. |
| Mr. Spavor and Mr. Kovrig, a former diplomat, have been held in detention centers for more than two years, cut off from their families and with limited legal and consular access. The two were tried in short and opaque trials in March. | Mr. Spavor and Mr. Kovrig, a former diplomat, have been held in detention centers for more than two years, cut off from their families and with limited legal and consular access. The two were tried in short and opaque trials in March. |
| Ms. Meng has been out on a bail of 10 million Canadian dollars, or about $8 million, in a seven-bedroom mansion in a rarefied Vancouver neighborhood, where she has had private painting lessons and massages. She wears a GPS tracker on her left ankle and has been able to move around Vancouver. | Ms. Meng has been out on a bail of 10 million Canadian dollars, or about $8 million, in a seven-bedroom mansion in a rarefied Vancouver neighborhood, where she has had private painting lessons and massages. She wears a GPS tracker on her left ankle and has been able to move around Vancouver. |
| Mr. Spavor’s family, which has said little publicly about him or the trial, released a statement through a lawyer, striking a somewhat hopeful note: “While we disagree with the charges, we realize that this is the next step in the process to bring Michael home.” | Mr. Spavor’s family, which has said little publicly about him or the trial, released a statement through a lawyer, striking a somewhat hopeful note: “While we disagree with the charges, we realize that this is the next step in the process to bring Michael home.” |
| Mr. Spavor forged a career doing business with North Korea and living in Dandong, a Chinese city looking across the Yalu River into the North. But he appeared much more interested in people and adventures than high politics, his friends have said. | Mr. Spavor forged a career doing business with North Korea and living in Dandong, a Chinese city looking across the Yalu River into the North. But he appeared much more interested in people and adventures than high politics, his friends have said. |
| “Spavor did not come off as very political, or ideological for that matter,” said John Delury, a professor of Chinese studies at Yonsei University in Seoul. “Creating bridges with North Koreans is incredibly challenging, mostly thankless work, but Michael approached it with an entrepreneurial spirit.” | “Spavor did not come off as very political, or ideological for that matter,” said John Delury, a professor of Chinese studies at Yonsei University in Seoul. “Creating bridges with North Koreans is incredibly challenging, mostly thankless work, but Michael approached it with an entrepreneurial spirit.” |
| In 2013, Mr. Spavor helped organize a visit to North Korea by Mr. Rodman, the retired basketball player, and then a second visit the following year. Mr. Spavor’s company, Paektu Cultural Exchange, posted a picture showing Mr. Spavor with Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, on Mr. Kim’s yacht in 2013. | In 2013, Mr. Spavor helped organize a visit to North Korea by Mr. Rodman, the retired basketball player, and then a second visit the following year. Mr. Spavor’s company, Paektu Cultural Exchange, posted a picture showing Mr. Spavor with Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, on Mr. Kim’s yacht in 2013. |
| Mr. Spavor’s supporters have said that his interest in North Korea reflected his affection for its people, going back to when he was a student in South Korea in the 1990s. Mr. Spavor later did a stint as an English-language teacher in Pyongyang and honed the distinctive Northern dialect of Korean. | Mr. Spavor’s supporters have said that his interest in North Korea reflected his affection for its people, going back to when he was a student in South Korea in the 1990s. Mr. Spavor later did a stint as an English-language teacher in Pyongyang and honed the distinctive Northern dialect of Korean. |
| “In China, he was perfectly positioned between the Koreas. He also liked living among the ethnic Korean population in Chinese border cities,” Jon Dunbar, a copy editor in Seoul who has been a friend of Mr. Spavor’s for over a decade, wrote by email. “He had no fear at all of living in China, just like he was comfortable visiting North Korea.” | |
| In 2016, a court in Dandong sentenced another Canadian, Kevin Garratt, to eight years in prison on spying charges — but then deported him shortly after the sentencing. Mr. Garratt was detained around a month after the Canadian authorities arrested a Chinese national on an extradition warrant for spying charges in the United States. | In 2016, a court in Dandong sentenced another Canadian, Kevin Garratt, to eight years in prison on spying charges — but then deported him shortly after the sentencing. Mr. Garratt was detained around a month after the Canadian authorities arrested a Chinese national on an extradition warrant for spying charges in the United States. |
| “My message to the Spavor family is: ‘Keep holding on to hope. I didn’t believe I would be deported. It is going to end,” Mr. Garratt said when reached by phone on Wednesday. “To Michael, I say: ‘You can do it. You survived almost 1,000 days, you’ll make it through it.’” | “My message to the Spavor family is: ‘Keep holding on to hope. I didn’t believe I would be deported. It is going to end,” Mr. Garratt said when reached by phone on Wednesday. “To Michael, I say: ‘You can do it. You survived almost 1,000 days, you’ll make it through it.’” |