Ottawa, July 27 : China is threatening to use its considerable economic strength to penalize Canada following the Harper government’s decision to bestow honorary Canadian citizenship on the Dalai Lama.
Canada’s gesture toward the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the honour does not bode well for Canadian-Chinese relations, a Chinese diplomat told reporters Wednesday. Zang Weidong, minister-counsellor at the Chinese embassy, said China has relayed its disapproval to the Canadian government and its hope that Canada would continue to recognize Tibet as a part of China.
“We said that Dalai Lama is a separatist, so I don’t think he should be honoured with that and that will harm the Canadian image and also harm the relationship between China and Canada,” Zang said told reporters at a news conference.
Parliament unanimously adopted a motion on June 22 conferring the honorary status on the Dalai Lama. The honour has been awarded only twice before – to South African leader Nelson Mandela and Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, who saved countless Jews from extermination during the Second World War.
The Dalai Lama won a Nobel peace prize for his life-long struggle for Tibetan autonomy and his pursuit of peace.
China annexed Tibet in 1958. The Dalai Lama has lived in exile ever since.
Amnesty International says freedom of religion, expression and association continued to be severely restricted in Tibet last year. Arbitrary arrests and unfair trials are rampant there.
“Over 100 Tibetan prisoners of conscience, mainly Buddhist monks and nuns, remained in prison,” Anmesty said in an annual report.
China is Canada’s second-largest trading partner, with annual trade worth $30 billion in 2004, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Zang hinted that Parliament’s decision could bring economic repercussions.
“We have 1.3 billion population and we are developing and the future for China is bright and China has a big market and we hope we can co-operate with all the countries in the world,” Zang said.
“But if some problems or troubles always appear or emerge in the bilateral relationship, certainly the other relationships certainly will be hurt. So we have to manage all the differences and difficulties with caution.”
Asked if China was levelling a threat, Zang smiled and said: “I don’t think it’s a threat. I’m just trying to make things clearer. It is a clear fact and very easy to be seen.”
Foreign Affairs says Canada recognizes the Peoples Republic of China as the legitimate government of China and Tibet.
“Canada does not recognize the Tibet government in exile, but Canada considers the Dalai Lama to be an important and widely supported spiritual leader,” said spokeswoman Kim Girtel.
Stephen Harper’s Conservative government has been much less enthusiastic about building ties with China.
The prime minister complained about Chinese espionage early in his tenure. Japanese officials said Harper told Prime Minister Junchiro Koizumi last month that both countries needed to adopt a similar approach to dealing with the world’s last great communist power.
Peggy Nash, MP for Parkdale High Park, and a member of the Canada-Tibet Parliamentary Committee that pushed for the honorary status, said the Dalai Lama is expected to visit Canada in early September.
