- Michael Kovrig accuses China of psychological torture during imprisonment
- He was detained after the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou
- China denies allegations, claiming his detention followed legal procedures
Michael Kovrig, a former Canadian envoy whose arrest in China led to a diplomatic crisis, has accused Chinese authorities of subjecting him to “psychological torture” during his imprisonment. Kovrig was detained in December 2018, held in solitary confinement, and interrogated relentlessly over 1,000 days. He claims these actions violated international law, including United Nations guidelines on solitary confinement.
Kovrig’s arrest followed Canada’s detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on behalf of the United States. In what has been widely described as “hostage diplomacy,” both Kovrig and fellow Canadian Michael Spavor were imprisoned on spying charges, only to be released after US prosecutors dropped their extradition request for Meng.
In a CBC interview, Kovrig recounted the night of his arrest in Beijing, where he was suddenly surrounded by Chinese authorities, blindfolded, and transported to a padded cell. For six months, he says he endured isolation under fluorescent lighting, with six to nine hours of interrogation each day, often confined to a chair for extended periods. His food was limited to three bowls of rice a day.
“The United Nations standard is no more than 15 days in solitary confinement,” Kovrig noted, adding that he spent nearly six months in isolation. He described the experience as a strategy to “bully, torment, terrorize, and coerce” him into admitting false charges.
After half a year, both Kovrig and Spavor were formally arrested and transferred to a pre-trial detention facility, where conditions slightly improved. Kovrig shared a cell with a dozen inmates and had access to daylight for the first time in months. He remained there for two years until his release in September 2021, which coincided with Meng’s extradition request being dropped.
The Chinese government has denied Kovrig’s allegations, with a Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson stating that his case was handled lawfully. “Lies and smears cannot change the fact that the person you mentioned committed a crime,” Lin Jian, a spokesman for the ministry, told reporters in Beijing.
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Kovrig’s account starkly contrasts with Meng Wanzhou’s treatment in Canada. Meng, the chief financial officer of Huawei and the daughter of its founder, Ren Zhengfei, was granted bail and placed under house arrest. During her time in Canada, she had considerable freedom to move within Vancouver, went on private shopping sprees, and received massages and art lessons in her mansion. She later reflected on the experience, saying she had time to “read a book cover to cover” and “carefully complete an oil painting.”
Meng’s release was celebrated in China, where her case became a symbol of resistance against what the Chinese government called “political persecution.” The case also significantly strained diplomatic relations between China, Canada, and the United States, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accusing China of “using arbitrary detention as a tool to achieve political goals.” China has consistently denied these claims.
