China's most wanted financial fugitives have been openly living in the United States and Canada for years and China is at the end of its rope trying to arrest and prosecute them due largely to the absence of an extradition treaty with the two countries.

U.S. and Canadian officials have promised to work with China in tracking down and repatriating these fugitives but the promise remains unfulfilled.

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Neither the U.S. nor Canada has an extradition treaty with China mainly because these countries question the credibility and integrity of China's judicial system and denounce its maltreatment of prisoners.

To date, only one person on China's Sky Net list of 100 most wanted fugitives has been repatriated to China by Canada. At least 46 of those fugitives are believed to be living in the U.S. and Canada freely.

Reports say many of China's corruption suspects who fled abroad and are on the list are already living as legal immigrants in the United States and Canada for years and have not heard from their host country since the list was issued in April this year.

At least one corruption suspect in Canada and one in the U.S. have been awarded citizenship, and many more have been granted permanent residency.

The only time these fugitives living in North America face deportation proceedings and returned to China is when they commit crimes in their host country or violate immigration laws.

China's minister in charge of repatriating corruption suspects, Liu Jianchao, said so far, 17 economic fugitives on the Sky Net List, were repatriated to China from countries who are friendly to the mainland like Singapore, Malaysia, Uganda, and Cambodia.

The United States have, so far, been wary and careful in announcing its assistance to China on the issue of repatriation of corruption suspects.

The US Department of Justice has been quoted as saying that the U.S. will "vigorously pursue prosecutions'' of China's wanted fugitives if they have been found to have committed money laundering crimes or any criminal activity within U.S. territory.

U.S. Justice officials have also made it clear to China that before they release these fugitives to its jurisdiction, Beijing must first show concrete evidence of the crimes these suspects have allegedly committed.

Canada, for its part, has said that it will continue to work hand in hand with Chinese authorities in returning suspected economic fugitives provided that the Canadian government will have a share in the assets seized.

TagsChina's financial fugitives, Sky Net List of 100 most wanted fugitives, corruption suspects, President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign, legal immigrants, US citizenship, permanent residency, North America, Repatriation, US Department of Justice