Canadian diplomats denied access to Kris Wu’s appeal trial in China

Canadian diplomats were denied access to the start of Canadian pop star Kris Wu’s appeal trial in Beijing, the Canadian government said, following his sentencing in 2022 to more than a decade in prison for crimes including rape.

The Canadian embassy in Beijing had been notified of the appeal trial in advance, which was not open to the public to protect the privacy of the victims, state-run Xinhua reported at the time when the trial began on Tuesday (July 25).

“Consular officials in Beijing were notified of the hearing and requested to attend, but the request was denied by Chinese authorities,” said Jeremie Berube, spokesperson at Global Affairs Canada, which manages the government’s diplomatic and consular relations.

Consular officials have been actively engaged on Wu’s case and are providing consular assistance to him and his family, Berube said in a statement to Reuters on Thursday.

Chinese-born Wu, 32, was a former member of K-pop group Exo. The superstar returned to China in 2014 to pursue a solo career.

In 2017, He made his Hollywood debut in the film XXX: Return of Xander Cage.