User:Geo Swan/John Chang (Canada)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Chang
Born1955 (age 68–69)
NationalityTaiwanese-Canadian
OccupationWine merchant
Known forconvicted by China

John Chang is Chinese-Canadian winemaker.[1][2][3] He and his wife Allison Lui immigrated to Canada, from Taiwan, in the late 1990s, together with their young children. Previously, in Taiwan, Chang was a merchant in electronics.

Chang and Liu bought several Canadian wineries, that specialized in ice wine, a concentrated sweet wine, prepared from grapes that have frozen on the vine.[2] Ice wine is popular in China, and Chang's wineries eventually sold fifty percent of the ice wine imported to China.

In 2016, when Chang and Lui were in Shanghai, on business, when they were arrested by Chinese officials.[3] Chang was eventually convicted, and received a harsh sentence. Lui had the charges against her, but she is under a travel restriction, and can't leave China.

According to the South China Morning Post, Chang and Liu's detention in China was likely to impede Canadian Prime Minister's December 2017 efforts to secure a free trade deal with China.[4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ David Akin (2012-02-09). "In China, here's the roster for corporate Canada's dream team". On the Hill. Retrieved 2017-12-17. Prime Minister Stephen Harper arrived in Beijing leading a corporate Canada dream team. The Chinese have definitely noticed. Press reports here have consistently noted that Harper is leading 'a strong delegation.'{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ^ a b Ian Young (2016-07-22). "Top Canadian winemaker John Chang of Lulu Island Winery is arrested for smuggling in China, state media suggests". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2017-12-17. Chang, 61, once a successful electronics businessman in his native Taiwan, has developed Lulu Island Winery into an export powerhouse, winning a slew of awards along the way. He was invited to join then Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper on a trade mission to China in 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ a b "Canadian Winery Owners John Chang, Allison Lu Trapped In China Over Customs Dispute". Huffington Post. 2017-06-01. Retrieved 2017-12-17.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ Kristin Huang, Catherine Wong (2017-12-03). "Trudeau's trip a chance for China and Canada to talk free trade". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2017-12-17. Trudeau's trip may also be overshadowed by a commercial dispute that saw two Canadians, John Chang and his wife Allison Lu, detained last year over claims of smuggling and under-reporting the value of wine they exported to Asia. Chang is still in detention and Lu has been released but banned from leaving Shanghai.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)