He said he doesn’t intend to ask his embassy to file a protest, and apologized for causing a fuss.
A spokesman for prime minister, Andrew MacDougall, responded on Twitter saying that the matter will be raised with the Parliamentary Press Gallery and he called on Li to apologize immediately.
“Agree or disagree with how events are run, there was no excuse for the Chinese state reporter to get physical with our staff,” MacDougall wrote.
But Li was incredulous.
“Why should I apologize? They should apologize to me for depriving me of my right to ask a question,” Li responded.
Tension between the Canadian media and the prime’s minister’s staff has largely become a matter of routine since the Conservatives were elected, but it the incident is the first of its kind with the international press.
The incident capped a week where Harper hop-scotched through the Arctic with three — sometimes four — federal ministers in tow, reannouncing some measures from the last federal budget, and adding $100 million in new money for mineral resource mapping in the region.
It is a broad effort to lay the foundation for a resource boom in the Arctic, something Li said is of particular interest to Chinese readers and investors.
Opposition New Democrats have dismissed Harper’s tour of the region as little more than a taxpayer-funded photo-op.
Harper met with Inuit leaders from across the country as part of the journey and took time to praise them on Friday.
“It was a very positive, forward-looking discussion,” he said. “We all recognize there are serious challenges, social challenges that exist in the Arctic regions of Canada. At the same time, the Inuit are very proud people with a very long history of adventure and self-reliance. The focus of the leaders is overwhelmingly on the great opportunities that are ahead of them.”
http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/08/23/harpers-northern-tour-ends-with-tussle-involving-chinese-reporter/http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/08/23/harpers-northern-tour-ends-with-tussle-involving-chinese-reporter/[/url] |