Majority of Canadians do not want to swap Meng for two Michaels

Photo: Angus Reid Institute

A new study reveals that majority of Canadians support Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's stance on refusing to swap Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou for two detained Canadians in China.

Trudeau has dismissed a letter signed last week by 19 prominent Canadians including various former Liberal politicians calling for the federal government to intervene and end legal proceedings against Wanzhou in order to free Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, who have been held in China for more than a year.

A study from the Angus Reid Institute reveals 72 per cent of Canadians support Trudeau's position of letting Wanzhou's extradition case play out in the courts. Only 28 per cent of Canadians say they would rather have her exchanged for the two Canadians.

These results are consistent with all generational lines, genders and political parties, however, views of Trudeau's handling of the overall situation are less positive. 

Thirty-seven per cent of Canadians believe the government has done a good job, led by supporters of the Liberal's in the most recent federal election with 64 per cent. Half say Trudeau has done a poor job, with past Conservative voters sitting at 83 per cent. Past NDP voters are divided nearly equally on each side.

Aside from ongoing tensions, 50 per cent of Canadians believe arresting Wanzhou in the first place was the right move while the other half say it should have been avoided.

Some other interesting findings reveal that 81 per cent of Canadians want consumers to boycott Chinese goods within the country in response to the detainment of the two Canadians and 93 per cent say China cannot be trusted in terms of upholding human rights. 

Photo: Angus Reid Institute