Is China safe for Canadians?
Absolutely!
The ongoing fear-mongering by Canadian politicians and the mainstream media only serves to perpetuate their own bias. China may not be our friend, but it shouldn’t be held up as our enemy either, especially when China is not the aggressor. It’s more than poor taste when politicians are so fond of using China as their whipping boy to rally their troops.
The federal government of Canada tells Canadians on its website that Canadians should “Exercise a high degree of caution in China due to the risk of arbitrary enforcement of local laws.” This is basically parroting what the US State Department says on their website warning Americans to “Exercise increased caution when traveling to Mainland China due to arbitrary enforcement of local laws, including in relation to exit bans.”
If you follow the news, you’d know that back in 2018, before Canada grabbed Meng Wanzhou for Trump, the relations between Canada and China were so cordial that 2018 was designated as “Canada-China Tourism Year”!
It is true that China was in the wrong too when it arrested our “two Michael”, but do you know that the Canadian government paid Michael Spavor $7 million as settlement when he threatened to sue the Canadian government upon return to Canada? The settlement was to prevent some facts from being revealed in a court trial that could embarrass our government. But why?
Playing a geopolitical game on behalf of another government is dangerous. Unless we can be certain that our national interest is well served, it’s wise to stay out of it. Canada didn’t join the US and the UK in invading Iraq. Looking back, we know how fortunate we were in having Jean Chretien as our prime minister at that time.
Going back to your question is China safe for Canadians, the answer is a resounding yes unless you plan to go there to stir things up and break the local law. As a tourist with no ulterior motive, you will find China to be an incredibly safe and pleasant country to visit.
