My Take | Sabrina Meng Wanzhou case exposes the worst of East and West
- All-purpose phrases such as the rule of law in the case of the detained Huawei executive merely ignore the highly selective way in which US prosecutors enforce sanctions
China’s “hostage” diplomacy is immoral and reprehensible. But no less sickening is the hypocrisy and moral piety of Western political and opinion leaders.
Among these are 143 scholars and former diplomats who have signed a letter calling on President Xi Jinping to release two Canadians detained in China, most likely in retaliation for the arrest of Huawei’s top executive, Sabrina Meng Wanzhou, in Vancouver.
It is a tragic mistake for Beijing to lock up businessman Michael Spavor and former diplomat Michael Kovrig, who are the type of knowledgeable expatriates needed to help explain China to a Western audience. Canada could have been one of the friendlier Western nations to China. Yet the diplomatic spat is likely to have set back bilateral relations by a generation.
But if these men deserve to be set free, so does Meng. Her detention and possible extradition fit into a consistent pattern of Washington’s aggressive campaign to destroy Huawei, at least as an international company. But Meng’s case has been carried out under the guise of US sanctions laws, and Westerners have been falling over themselves to defend “the rule of law”.
The rule of law, they say, cannot be interfered with. China has no rule of law, so let’s appeal to its president, who surely could order the men’s release with a phone call. But if you can appeal to Xi, why not the US Justice Department to withdraw its extradition request or the Canadian justice minister to reject the request, on the ground that it’s politically motivated?
