The Current for March 19, 2021
Today on The Current:
China announced this week that it had set court dates for Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, who have been detained in the country since 2018 on suspicion of espionage. Spavor's trial ended Friday morning with no verdict, while Kovrig's trial is set for Monday. We speak with Kovrig's wife, Vina Nadjibulla, about her reaction to the latest developments. And Lynette Ong, associate professor at the Munk School of Global Affairs, and Evan Medeiros, who teaches U.S.-China relations at Georgetown University, tell us what they think Canada needs to do to bring the two men home.
Then, Iran released a final report on its investigation into the downing of Flight PS752 earlier this week, but victims' families say they waited 15 months for nothing. Hamed Esmaeilion, whose family was killed on the flight, tells us what the report doesn't answer for those left behind. And Payam Akhavan, former UN prosecutor at The Hague, and Ralph Goodale, the prime minister's special adviser on the destruction of Flight PS752, weigh in.
Plus, Brazil's intensive care units are at a breaking point — and some exhausted front-line workers are laying the blame at the feet of President Jair Bolsonaro. Our guests are: Dr. Edgard Vernetti Ferreira is a physician working in the ICU in Pelotas, in the south of Brazil; Pedro Hallal is an epidemiologist at the Federal University of Pelotas; and Jose Eduardo Levi is a virologist at the University of Sao Paulo.