More than 100 China experts urge China to release Canadians

More than 100 academics and former diplomats are calling on China to release two Canadians who have been detained in apparent retaliation for the arrest of a top Chinese tech executive in Canada.

The letter addressed to Chinese President Xi Jinping says the arrests send a chilling message that policy and diplomacy work is “unwelcome and even risky in China.”

It notes that one of those detained, Michael Kovrig, is a former diplomat who was working as an expert on Asia for the International Crisis Group think tank.

More than 20 diplomats from seven countries and 100 scholars and academics from 19 countries signed.

Kovrig and entrepreneur Michael Spavor were both arrested last month on vague national security allegations.