Surrey Board of Trade urges caution for businesses trading with China

SURREY (NEWS 1130) — Now the two Michael’s have been returned home to Canada, a Surrey business leader is urging companies to use caution when dealing with China, and she’s not the only one hesitant to keep deals going.

Surrey Board of Trade CEO Anita Huberman said many businesses she’s talked to lately are looking to diversify who they trade with and move away from working with China for ethical reasons.

“It is time to look into other markets and to take a look at businesses and countries that have the same ethical values in doing business, and ensuring the safety of workers when they’re in someone’s country, for example.”

Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig were reunited with their families last month after being released from detention in China. The Michaels were imprisoned for nearly three years, after being charged with “spying on national secrets” and released within hours after Huawei executive Meng Wenzhou was allowed to return home from Vancouver.


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Huberman said the first thing businesses need to look at when deciding what country they’ll be doing deals with needs to be the safety of their employees if they go to that country.

“Are they going to be safe? Are they going to be compromised in some sort of political warfare?” Huberman asked. “I think these are things we’re hearing from our member businesses — that they’re thinking twice before doing business with China.”

She added if it comes down to costs, it might surprise businesses that other markets around the world could have comparable prices.

“We cannot ignore China, or 20 per cent of the world’s population, but it is time to take a look at other markets, and to take a look at businesses and countries that have the same ethical values,” she said.

Huberman said the board always recommends that businesses diversify their trading relationships.

“Continue doing business with China but in a safe, ethical way. Make sure you have good, consistent Canadian government partners, with your trade commissioners, your chambers of commerce, boards of trade, for example, but of course look at diversifying your trading relationship,” she said.

“We’ve said that even before these types of situations with the two Michaels and the Huawei case came into existence. It’s good, healthy trading relationships that will ensure Canadian success on the world stage.”

It appears other communities are also carrying that sentiment.

North Shore business owner Lisa Will says she’s hesitant to go back to China to check up on her business like she used to before the two Michaels were detained and released.

Last week, posters encouraging British Columbians to boycott China were spotted in Coquitlam. They were covered with the faces of the two Michaels.

James Palmer, Deputy Editor at Foreign Policy, says he thinks that wariness about business dealings with China will continue throughout the pandemic.

“One of the impacts and the detention of other businessmen has been to make people physically more nervous about going to China,” he says.

For now, Will plans to return to China cautiously, and to be extremely aware of her surroundings.

“We’re in usually really remote towns with larger factories and people who are very established, and I usually know who I’m with and have referrals from other people,” she said.

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