The Chinese government is required to have a Canadian diplomat present in all cases in which Canadian citizens are accused of a crime; however, no Canadian diplomat attended Celil's trial, and he has not been allowed to see either Canadian Consular officials or his lawyer. When Celil appeared in court he said Chinese secret police had tortured and starved him. In response to a demand from Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper that the Chinese government explain Celil's treatment, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said the Chinese government considers Celil a Chinese citizen and therefore the "consular agreement between China and Canada does not apply in this case." Jiang Yu also said that Celil is "a member of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement. He's a criminal."