Canada Condemns Execution of Four Citizens in China for Drug Crimes

China defends the executions as lawful under its anti-drug policies, deepening already strained relations with Canada.

Canada announced that four of its citizens were executed in China in recent weeks for drug-related crimes, despite appeals for clemency.
The identities of the executed Canadians remain undisclosed at the request of their families, according to Canadian officials.
China defended the executions, citing its strict anti-drug policies and equal treatment of individuals under its legal framework, regardless of nationality.
Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly criticized the executions as a violation of human dignity and confirmed that Robert Schellenberg, another Canadian on death row in China, was not among those executed.
Diplomatic tensions between Canada and China, already strained since the 2018 Huawei executive arrest, have worsened following this incident.