TORONTO - Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne has announced she will be going on a trade mission to China later this month.
The announcement comes amid pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong — demonstrations the Chinese government has declared illegal.
Wynne says she supports the ability of people in any country to express their opinions in a peaceful environment.
The premier says she met with the consul general for China on Tuesday and expressed Ontario's support for freedom of speech, and she says she will deliver that message in China as well.
Wynne will leave on the week-long mission on Oct. 25 and will travel to Nanjing and Shanghai, then will head to Beijing, where she will join the premiers of Quebec and Prince Edward Island for a Council of the Federation mission.
The protests in Hong Kong were sparked when Beijing rejected a proposal for open nominations of candidates for Hong Kong's first-ever leadership election in 2017, meaning all candidates will continue to be picked by a panel that is mostly aligned with Beijing.
