Most Canadians want to see courts decide Meng Wanzhou case rather than use her to free Michaels

OTTAWA (NEWS 1130) – It seems most Canadians back the prime minister’s stance when it comes to Canada’s arrest of Meng Wanzhou and the “two Michaels” being detained in China.

A new poll finds most Canadians want to see Meng’s extradition case play out in the courts rather than bow to pressure from Beijing to intervene.

More than seven-in-10 respondents say Meng’s future should be decided by the courts, while only 28 per cent say they would rather the government negotiate a way to exchange Meng for Canadians Michael Kovrig and Micheal Spavor, who were detained in China days after the Huawei executive was arrested at Vancouver International Airport at the request of the U.S.

The Angus Reid Institute poll suggests that sentiment is consistent across party lines, with at least two-thirds of past voters for each of the main federal parties saying the Chinese tech executive should not be used as a way to negotiate a release for the Michaels, who are now facing espionage charges.

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However, 50 per cent of Canadians believe Ottawa should not have arrested Meng in the first place, as the U.S. wants her face charges related to sanctions against Iran.

“That said, views of Trudeau’s overall handling of the situation are less positive,” the poll results read.

Half of respondents believe Justin Trudeau has done a “poor job,” with Conservative voters the most critical of the government’s action. NDP voters were pretty evenly split.

The Angus Reid Institute finds only two-in-five people — 37 per cent — say the Trudeau government “has done a good job,” with the majority of respondents being people who supported the Liberal Party in the last federal election.

Meanwhile, four-in-five say consumers in this country should boycott Chinese goods in response to the detainment of Kovrig and Spavor.

The majority of people polled say China can’t be trusted when it comes to upholding human rights.