Huawei exec wants Canada’s bail conditions eased

VANCOUVER – An executive for Chinese tech giant Huawei, facing extradition to the United States on fraud and conspiracy charges, plans to ask Canadian authorities to ease her bail conditions, her lawyers said yesterday.

Meng Wanzhou’s attorneys revealed their upcoming application during a routine scheduling hearing in Vancouver, where the Huawei chief financial officer is under court-ordered house arrest.

Lawyer Mona Duckett said the request would be related to “the daytime supervision of Ms Meng outside of her curfew hours”.

Prosecutor John Gibb-Carsley said the government would be opposed to relaxing the conditions.

The businesswoman – whose father is Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei – has been in a two-year battle against extradition over charges Huawei violated US sanctions on Iran.

She is accused of hiding Huawei’s relationship with former subsidiary Skycom in Iran from HSBC bank.

Meng, who has denied the charges, was arrested in 2018 at the Vancouver airport on a US warrant, causing a major diplomatic crisis between China and Canada.

Following her arrest, a judge released the 48-year-old on bail conditions including a curfew in one of her two Vancouver mansions, a GPS monitoring ankle bracelet, and daytime supervision by private security guards.

Yesterday’s hearing in the Supreme Court of British Columbia also saw lawyers hash out upcoming dates for her extradition hearings, as well as the defense lawyers’ allegations Meng’s rights were repeatedly abused.

They argue US President Donald Trump “poisoned” her case when he said he might intervene in exchange for Chinese trade concessions.

They also say the US has no jurisdiction over the alleged crimes and extraditing her there would violate international law.

The lawyers also accuse Canadian authorities of violating Meng’s rights during her interrogation.

Meng’s next extradition hearings are scheduled for March 1 2021, and are expected to finish in mid-May.

Canada alleges two Canadian citizens detained in China on espionage suspicions were held in retaliation for Meng’s arrest. – AFP, December 24, 2020