Mr. Speaker, first I would like to thank the hon. member for Mississauga South for raising this issue.
When Canadian citizens find themselves imprisoned in foreign lands, it is our responsibility to ensure that they are treated fairly and afforded due process.
Mr. Celil's case has indeed been in the forefront of our minds and it is being continuously raised in discussions with our Chinese counterparts. These efforts will not stop until we receive satisfactory assurances from the Chinese that they will afford Mr. Celil due process and that they will permit Canadian Embassy staff to visit him.
As the member already knows, the Prime Minister has raised this case personally with the Chinese President. The Minister of Foreign Affairs has raised this with his Chinese counterpart three times, the most recent being during the APEC meeting in Vietnam. At every given opportunity, whether it be an elected official or a Government of Canada employee, this issue is raised with the Chinese. We will continue to seek other means that we deem appropriate to acquire information about and access to Mr. Celil.
From the moment that we were advised of the possibility that Mr. Celil would be extradited from Uzbekistan to China, we advised the Chinese government of our interest in Mr. Celil's well-being as he is a Canadian citizen. They continue to insist that Mr. Celil is a Chinese citizen and subject to Chinese laws. China refuses to acknowledge his Canadian citizenship and maintains that Canada has no consular rights. They also refuse to advise us of the location of his incarceration or provide any information about his well-being.
However, the Chinese foreign minister has reassured the Minister of Foreign Affairs that they will abide by their commitments to the Uzbeki government made at the time of Mr. Celil's extradition. Those commitments were to abide by the international convention against torture and not to seek the death penalty for crimes allegedly committed in the territory of China. Chinese officials have advised us that their investigation continues, that no trial has taken place and that no sentence has been pronounced against Mr. Celil.
The Government of Canada will continue to engage the Chinese authorities to ensure that Mr. Celil's rights are upheld and respected. I can assure the hon. member that repeated representations have been made and will continue to be made to the Chinese authorities. In fact, in the first weeks of January of this year, the Minister of International Trade and the Minister of Finance visited China and raised Mr. Celil's case. At the same time, a parliamentary delegation consisting of MPs from both sides of the House raised this case on multiple occasions.
I can assure the member that Mr. Celil's case remains top priority for the Government of Canada, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs will continue to be involved personally in this case.
