CHINA WARNS OF MORE ACTION
Canada told to ‘stop interfering’
China said on Monday it reserved the right to take more action after Canada suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong and said efforts to pressure Beijing were “doomed to fail like kicking against the pricks.”
Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for China’s foreign ministry, said Hong Kong’s affairs are internal Chinese business and other countries have no right to get involved.
“China urges the Canadian side to immediately correct its mistakes and stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s other internal affairs in any way so as to avoid further damage to China-canada relations,” Zhao said in a translated transcript posted to the ministry’s website.
On Friday Canada joined other countries in restricting exports to Hong Kong and complaining that a new security law China imposed on Hong Kong violates the principle of “one country, two systems” that is meant to govern Hong
Kong’s place in China. Canada also suspended its extradition agreement with Hong Kong.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada would look at more measures, potentially including moves related to immigration. Britain, for instance, has created a path to citizenship for Hong Kong residents who have certain documents dating from when it was a British territory, prior to 1997.
“Their attempt to exert pressure on China under the pretext of Hong Kong-related issues is completely against the trend of time, and doomed to fail like kicking against the pricks,” the Chinese foreign ministry statement said.
“Kicking against the pricks” is an English expression meaning “to hurt oneself by struggling against something in vain,” according to the Collins dictionary.
Separately, China warned its citizens on Monday to exercise caution in travelling to Canada, citing “frequent violent actions” by law enforcement.
China and Canada have been locked in a dispute since late 2018 after the RCMP detained Huawei Technologies’ chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, on a U.S. arrest warrant. She is still being held pending possible extradition to the United States. In retaliation, China charged two Canadians with espionage and blocked canola imports.
Bob Rae, newly tapped as Canada’s next UN ambassador, said Monday that working to get Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor freed is a top priority. He said he supports Trudeau’s position that no swap of Meng’s freedom for theirs is reasonable, partly because it would reward China’s behaviour.
It presumably is a High Standard gun, which commonly fires .22 calibre bullets, but also comes in a .357 Magnum version.
They are sold with various barrel lengths, including a long model that looks like the guns in old cowboy movies.
❚ A loaded “Norinco M14 rifle,” a prohibited firearm. The M14 is a retired military weapon now common with hunters. Although it isn’t specified, most M14s are semi-automatic.
❚ A loaded “Lakefield Mossberg shotgun,” which is a non-restricted firearm. The Canada-made 12-gauge, pump action shotguns come in different barrel lengths.
❚ A loaded “Grizzly Arms shotgun,” which is likely a mistake meant to refer to a Dominion Arms Grizzly Mag shotgun, which is a non-restricted firearm. The shotgun is based on the design of one of the most popular pump-action shotguns, and is used in sport shooting, hunting and by police and military.
Hurren is also charged with having a prohibited high-capacity magazine, although which gun it is for is not given. It likely was for the M14.
The court documents do not specify how the threat against Trudeau was communicated. The RCMP earlier said officers spoke with Hurren for about 90 minutes during a low-key armed standoff.
Media reports also say a note was found in the truck.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
Hurren, of Bowsman, Man., is a member of the Canadian Rangers and was considered on duty at the time as part of Operation Laser, the Canadian military’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
None of the guns involved were Canadian Armed Forces weapons, the military said. The Ranger rifle he was issued is still in the possession of the Canadian Rangers.
The charges were laid by the Ontario RCMP’S Integrated National Security Enforcement Team, known as INSET, which is a counter-terrorism unit, likely because of the obvious potential for it to be considered a terrorist threat or attack, although the RCMP said there is no evidence he was part of any group of plotters.
RCMP Cpl. Michelle Bergeron, who is familiar with Rideau Hall, filed the charge information against Hurren.
Rideau Hall is the official residence of the Governor General.
Hurren is being held pending a bail hearing.