US Ambassador: Arrests of Canadians in China Unacceptable

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - The U.S. ambassador to Canada said Saturday that her country was "deeply concerned" about China's "unlawful" detention of two Canadians.

Ambassador Kelly Craft said in a statement to The Associated Press the arrests of ex-diplomat MichaelKovrigand entrepreneur MichaelSpavor were "unacceptable" and urged China to end the arbitrary detentions. They were her first public comments on the cases.

China detained the two Canadians on Dec. 10 in an apparent attempt to pressure Canada to release Chinese executive MengWanzhou, who was arrested Dec. 1 at the request of U.S. authorities.

Meng is the chief financial officer of the Chinese tech giant Huawei and the daughter of its founder.The U.S. wants her extradited to face charges that she committed fraud by misleading banks about Huawei's business dealings in Iran.

Craft said the U.S. Department of Justice's criminal case against Meng was based solely on the evidence and the law.

"The United States appreciates Canada's steadfast commitment to the rule of law," she said.

Awating execution

Craft made no mention of China's planned execution of a third Canadian. China resentenced a convicted Canadian drug smuggler to death after the Meng arrest as part of an apparent campaign of intimidation and retribution against Canada.

Some analysts have said the U.S. response to China's arrests of the two Canadians has been muted. President Donald Trump himself has not commented on the Canadians. But U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has, saying China ought to release them.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders and the State Department have also issued statements of support.

"We urge China to end all forms of arbitrary and unlawful detentions and to respect the protections and freedoms of all individuals in accordance with China's international commitments," Craft said.

Robert Bothwell, a professor at the University of Toronto, called Craft's statement "tepid."

"It doesn't bespeak ringing support," Bothwell said.

Threat of consequences

Beijing threatened grave consequences for America's neighbor and ally after Meng was arrested at Vancouver's airport.

Canada has embarked on a campaign with allies to win the release ofKovrigandSpavorand many countries have issued statements in support.

The two were detained on vague allegations of "engaging in activities that endanger the national security" of China. They remain locked up without access to lawyers.

Meng is out on bail in Canada and living in one of her two Vancouver mansions awaiting extradition proceedings.

Despite the escalating frictions resulting from the detentions, trade talks between Beijing and the Trump administration remain ongoing.

The U.S. has taken pains to emphasize that their trade talks are entirely separate from the U.S. case against Meng. They have been doing so since Trump said in an interview that he might be willing to drop the charges against Meng as part of a trade deal with China.

Trump's comment frustrated Canadian officials who have been adamant Canada is following the rule of law and that Canada has an extradition treaty it must respect. A Canadian judge could deny the extradition request if the charges were deemed political.

"The next time the U.S. asks, Canada will be hard of hearing," Bothwell said. "Trouble with Trump and company is that they are entirely transactional. They don't think ahead. And in this case, Trump's own words will probably be enough to get the U.S. extradition request denied." (VOA)

Canadian Diplomats File Suit Over Injuries Suffered in Cuba

TORONTO, LELEMUKU.COM - Some Canadian diplomats who became mysteriously ill while posted to Cuba are suing the Canadian government.

Canada has confirmed 14 cases of unexplained health problems since early 2017. Twenty-six workers at the U.S. Embassy in Cuba have also been affected, suffering a range of symptoms and diagnoses including mild traumatic brain injury, also known as a concussion.

Five Canadian diplomats say in a 28 million Canadian dollar ($21 million) lawsuit that the government failed to protect them, hid crucial information and downplayed the seriousness of the risks.

The Canadian government acknowledges that nine adults and five children from diplomatic families have developed unusual illnesses in Havana. Canada is removing up to half of the Canadians at its embassy in Havana.

Cuba has adamantly denied any involvement. (VOA)

Canada Dismisses China's Warning of Huawei Ban Repercussions

OTTAWA, LELEMUKU.COM - Canada's government on Friday dismissed China's warning of repercussions if Ottawa banned Huawei Technologies Co Ltd from supplying equipment to 5G networks, saying it would not compromise on security.

China's ambassador to Canada issued the threat on Thursday as relations between the two nations continued to deteriorate after a senior Huawei executive was arrested in Vancouver last month on a U.S. extradition warrant. China has also detained two Canadians.

Canadian officials are studying the security implications of 5G networks, the latest generation of cellular mobile communications, but their report is not expected in the immediate future, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.

Some Canadian allies have already imposed restrictions on using Huawei equipment, citing the risk of espionage. Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, asked at a cabinet retreat about the Chinese ambassador's remarks, said Ottawa had already made clear it would not cut corners on national security.

"We understand that those sorts of comments will be made in the process, but we will make our judgment based on what is right for Canada and not be deterred from making the right decision," he told reporters.

"We are determined to stand our ground based on what is right for Canada ... this is a tough and turbulent world." Goodale noted that China had made similar comments after Australia banned Huawei from supplying 5G equipment last year.

Western intelligence agencies have for years raised concerns about Huawei's ties to China's government and the possibility its equipment could be used for espionage. (VOA)

App Shows US, Canadian Commuters the Cleanest, Greenest Route Home

VANCOUVER, LELEMUKU.COM -  mobile application launched in dozens of U.S. and Canadian cities on Monday measures the planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions of inner-city travel, its creators said, letting concerned commuters map their so-called carbon footprints.

Mapping app Cowlines can suggest the most efficient route as well which uses the least fuel, combining modes of transport such as bicycling and walking, within cities, its Vancouver, Canada-based creators said.

Some two-thirds of the world's population is expected to settle in urban areas by 2050, according to the United Nations.

The trend presents an environmental challenge, given that the world's cities account for the bulk of greenhouse gas emissions.

Not only will the app measure a trip's emissions and suggest alternatives, it will provide the data to cities and urban planners working on systems from subway lines to bike-sharing programs, said Jonathan Whitworth, chief strategy officer at Greenlines Technology, which created the app.

"As you would imagine here in Canada, especially Western Canada, most people are driven by the environmental side of it," Whitworth told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

The app aims to encourage users in 62 U.S. and Canadian cities to use cleaner modes of transportation, from mass transit to walking or biking, he said.

In the United States, mass transit accounts for less than 2 percent of passenger miles traveled, according to Daniel Sperling, founding director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis.

"People are starved for good information and data for good travel choices," said Sperling.

The app's suggested route is a cowline - city planner parlance for the fastest route, said Whitworth. In pastoral settings, a cowline is the most direct path cattle use to reach grazing grounds.

The app shows users after a trip how many kilograms of carbon-dioxide equivalent emissions they are responsible for, Whitworth said.

While other apps such as Changers CO2 Fit track users' carbon footprints, Cowlines claims its methodology, certified by the International Organization for Standardization, is most accurate, he said.

Whitworth said the company also plans to sell the data it collects. (VOA)