After months in a Chinese prison cell, Canadian former diplomat Michael Kovrig has finally made contact with the outside world. It became a virtual conversation full of surprises: the man did not know what Covid-19 was and was shocked about the state of the world. “That sounds like a zombie movie,” he said according to his wife.
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The corona crisis, former diplomat Michael Kovrig and his adviser Michael Spavor knew nothing about that until Saturday. On December 10, 2018, the two Canadians were arrested in China on suspicion of espionage, and have since been in a Chinese prison awaiting trial. They fell out of the blue when they had contact with the outside world for the first time since January last weekend through a virtual conversation with the ambassador and their family members.
Sense of humour
A statement from Kovrig’s wife states that her husband is doing well, “despite months of extreme isolation.” “He still has courage and his perseverance and even his sense of humor have remained intact.”
Because of that isolation and shielding from the world, Kovrig did not know about the corona crisis. “He was amazed that there was a pandemic,” added his wife CBC news. “He said it sounded like an apocalyptic zombie movie.”
The fact that the two Canadians are still in prison creates great diplomatic tension between Canada and China. Canada suspects that the “arbitrary arrest” has everything to do with the arrest of Huawei top woman Meng Wanzhou in Canada.
