Is China Safe for Canadians?

Is China safe for Canadians?

China is absolutely safe for Canadians and for tourists of any nationality no matter what you hear from the politicians and the news media. “Arbitrary detention” is a term we often hear when the media and politicians talk about China, but the reality is far more complicated than the average person can appreciate. As long as you don’t go there to stir things up, such as advocating for Taiwan’s independence in public spaces, nobody would bother you.

The current diplomatic tension between Canada and China has its direct roots in Canada’s arrest of Huawei’s CFO, Meng Wanzhou, in early December 2018, at the request of the US government during Trump’s first presidency. In retaliation, China detained two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, to pacify Chinese citizens who were outraged by what Canada did to Meng, a key executive of a hugely successful high-tech company widely admired by the Chinese.

Before Meng’s arrest, relations between Canada and China had been very cordial, so much so that Justin Trudeau was in Beijing in late 2017 to celebrate the opening of 2018 Canada-China Year of Tourism!

The cases of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig were political messes that could have been avoided had Mr. Jean Chretien or someone like him been the Prime Minister of Canada. As a matter of fact, Messrs. Chretien, his deputy prime minister John Manley as well as Trudeau’s own ambassador to Beijing, John MacCallum, all openly questioned the political wisdom in the arrest of Meng for Trump. Looking back, any rational Canadian would see that arresting Meng for Trump was nothing but a political blunder, which Trudeau himself would never publicly admit – similar to Tony Blair’s stance till this day on the UK’s participation in the invasion of Iraq.

Upon return to Canada, Michael Spavor, the Calgary businessman, threatened to sue his fellow detainee, Michael Kovrig, the former Canadian diplomat, and the Canadian government for causing him harm. Trudeau’s government paid Spavor 7 million dollars instead of fighting him in court. All this information is in the public domain for anyone to verify.

Travel advisories issued by one country against another are political in nature. They are routinely used as diplomatic weapons to settle political scores. If your question is whether China as a travel destination is safe for Canadians, our honest answer is definitely yes.

Happy travels!