Canada judge sides with Huawei CFO on some claims but does not dismiss U.S. extradition case

Canada judge sides with Huawei CFO on some claims but does not dismiss U.S. extradition case

By Tessa Vikander, Moira Warburton

FILE PHOTO: Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou leaves her home to attend a court hearing in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada October 26, 2020. REUTERS/Jennifer Gauthier

Oct 29 2020

However, the judge sided with the attorney general in agreeing that Meng’s arguments were not strong enough to warrant an immediate dismissal of the case.

The ruling comes as a week-long witness testimony is under way in the British Columbia Supreme Court, in a different part of the same extradition case.

Meng’s assertion that the United States misrepresented evidence of alleged fraud in its formal request to Canada for her extradition has an “air of reality,” Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes wrote in her decision, dated Oct. 28. She also agreed that Meng was entitled to introduce some additional evidence in the case record, “to a limited extent.”

“Some of that evidence is realistically capable of challenging the reliability” of the U.S. request for extradition, Holmes said.

The office of Attorney General David Lametti did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Huawei Canada called the decision “a substantial victory,” in a statement to Reuters.

Canada’s Department of Justice said it respects Holmes’ decision.

Meng, 48, was arrested at Vancouver International Airport in December 2018 while on a layover bound for Mexico. Meng's case turns on whether she misled HSBC HSBA.L about Huawei's [HWT.UL] business dealings in Iran. The United States has argued she is guilty of fraud for causing the bank to break sanctions against Iran.

Meng has said she is innocent and is fighting the charges from Vancouver, where she is under house arrest.

Her arrest caused diplomatic relations between Ottawa and Beijing to become rocky. Soon after her detention, China arrested two Canadian citizens on espionage charges.

POWERPOINT PRESENTATION

A PowerPoint presentation that Meng gave to a HSBC banker in Hong Kong in 2013, showing Huawei’s relationship to Skycom Tech Co Ltd - a firm that operated in Iran - has been cited by the United States as key evidence against her.

Holmes agreed with Meng that the U.S. request for extradition should have included certain statements from the PowerPoint that add “further precision” to Meng’s statements about Huawei’s business relationship with Skycom in Iran.

Holmes flagged one example of potential U.S. misrepresentation of evidence, pointing out that it did not include the phrase “‘Huawei’[s] engagement with Skycom is normal and controllable business cooperation, and this will not change in the future’ (emphasis added).”

“A similar statement is included earlier in the summary, but that statement omitted the word ‘controllable’, reading, ‘Huawei’s engagement with Skycom is normal business cooperation,’” Holmes said.

Although Holmes agreed that Meng’s arguments were not strong enough to warrant immediate dismissal of the case, she said they “may be capable of doing so when considered together with allegations from the first or second branches,” referring to other allegations of abuses of process Meng has put forward.

Leo Adler, a Toronto-based extradition lawyer who is not involved in the case, said the ruling represented “a good win” for Meng, but added that Holmes “is a very cautious judge.”

RUSHED DISCUSSION

In Thursday’s witness testimony, a border officer told the court that the impending arrival of Meng at a Canadian airport two years ago meant discussions about the best way to apprehend her had to be cut short.

Scott Kirkland, an officer with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), had previously told the court he was worried about allegations of civil rights violations if the agency intercepted and interviewed Meng before her arrest by Canadian police.

But he did not bring this concern up with others, in part because they had less than an hour before Meng’s flight landed to decide how to handle her interception.

“It was a rushed discussion,” Kirkland said.

The afternoon’s testimony focused on the sequence of events during the border agency’s inspection of Meng. The defense suggested that it was improper for Kirkland to have written down her cell phone passcodes on a piece of paper rather than only in his notebook, but he maintained that it is standard procedure.

Meng’s lawyers have argued that abuses of process occurred in the nearly three hours between when CBSA intercepted her and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested her, during which she had no legal representation.

RCMP Constable Winston Yep, who arrested her, was the first witness in the week-long testimony. Yep insisted the RCMP stayed in its lane and did not direct the CBSA in its investigation of Meng.

•  

Canadian government prosecutors have tried to prove that Meng’s arrest was by the book, and any lapses in due process should not impact the validity of her extradition.

Meng’s extradition hearings are scheduled to wrap up in April 2021, although the potential for appeals means the case could drag on for years.

Reporting by Moira Warburton in Toronto and Tessa Vikander in Vancouver; Additional reporting by David Ljunggren in Ottawa; Editing by Denny Thomas, Rosalba O’Brien and Leslie Adler

US Moving Self-Propelled Artillery to Border With Quebec; Reports of Uniformed Chinese Troops in Canada...[ is this for real? stay tuned]

 

US Moving Self-Propelled Artillery to Border With Quebec; Reports of Uniformed Chinese Troops in Canada

Sunday, October 25, 2020 22:57

By Hal Turner / Hal Turner Radio Show

For weeks, stories have been coming out about large numbers of Chinese troops in Canada, near Vancouver, BC.  Now, more information indicates additional uniformed Chinese troops are mustering elsewhere near the US border in Canada; this time, along the Quebec and New Brunswick Province borders with Maine, USA.  The United States is now moving trainloads of heavy armor to that exact area.  Looks like a fight is coming, right here in the USA.

On Wednesday, a train carrying dozens of self-propelled Howitzers (artillery) was seen moving north from Hermon, Maine.   Local CBS-TV affiliate WABI Channel 5 reported “The artillery was being moved to Presque Isle, where it will be moved out of Maine to an unknown location.”  Trouble is, once in Presque Isle, there are no more FUNCTIONING railroad tracks to go anywhere else.   Presque Isle is not a port; no ships to take the armor anywhere- so there’s no where for this armor to go.

Turns out, these Howitzers are going elsewhere all right: closer to the Canadian Border near Quebec because, according to intelligence sources, ”significantly large numbers of uniformed Chinese military troops are now confirmed to be in Quebec, near the US border.”

MAP:

Canada Today on Alert

The scalable map below shows the area where the photos above were taken (Route 2), and the route to Presque Isle.  The railroad tracks run nearby the roads:

This information comes on the heels of other reports, from last week, showing uniformed Chinese troops in Vancouver, BC CANADA in large numbers (Story HERE) and additional reports WITH VIDEO of even more uniformed Chinese troops on Salt Island, Canada (Story HERE) 

Moreover, information found on a Laptop computer owned by former Vice-President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, allegedly contains proof that the Chinese Communist Party worked on a “biological outbreak” to shut down the US economy so China would not be the only nation suffering economically from President Trumps trade sanctions against China.   

Information is starting to indicate the US Democrat Party may have actually been “in” on a deliberate Chinese Communist Party effort to use a bio-outbreak (COVID-19) to wreck the US economy, because Democrats knew it was the only way they could win the upcoming Presidential election.

Given the discovery of this information off a Hunter Biden laptop computer, it is now a possibility that China may have to actually invade the US to cover up the bio-attack, and take north America for the Chinese people who have outgrown their own land, and whose land can no longer provide enough food production to feed them all.

If Chinese troops commence an invasion, Americans are reminded they must shoot, shoot first, and shoot to kill.  No uniformed Chinese troops who are invading this land are to be shown any mercy or given any quarter.

In the sad event that some local or state official argues that maybe he can negotiate with the invading troops to protect local Americans as we are being taken over . . .  that official should also be shot dead – on the spot – for being a yellow-bellied coward and traitor to our nation.

 ELECTION 2020

Bobulinski Bombshell: The Bidens are 'Compromised' and Lying About Joe's Knowledge of Hunter's Deals With China

BY BRYAN PRESTON OCT 27, 2020 9:53 PM ET

Tony Bobulinski. Screenshot from video of his interview with FNC's Tucker Carlson.

Former Biden family business associate Tony Bobulinski appeared on Tucker Carlson’s show on the Fox News Channel Tuesday night. The former U.S. Navy nuclear technology officer explained in detail how he became involved with the Biden family and the nature of the deals they have been engaged in primarily through Hunter Biden, Joe’s son.

Bobulinski made it clear that he had no desire to appear on national television for any reason, and certainly not in a moment of controversy. He said his motivation is that the American people must be informed about the Biden family’s questionable business relationships with CEFC and Burisma, the Chinese and Ukrainian energy companies, respectively, that Hunter Biden received millions of dollars from despite having no experience in the energy field.

One of Bobulinski’s more explosive comments was that the Chinese government directly loaned the Biden family $5 million, interest-free. This makes the Biden family “compromised,” in his opinion, meaning they cannot be trusted with sensitive roles or information due to the control others may exert over them using some leverage or advantage they have obtained. Joe Biden is, of course, running for president of the United States.

Bobulinski:

To them, it was always the Biden family. Wasn’t Hunter Biden, Jim Biden, it was the Biden family and led and operated by Joe Biden and in that document that you guys have, and I think has been provided to the world, the Chinese reference that because of their trust in the Biden family, that they were excited about moving forward and in that document, they reference loaning $5 million to the family, that is, the Biden family, and notice they didn’t say we are loaning that money to Tony, we are loaning that money to Bob Walker and not a document generated by me, but documented and generated that they are loaning that money the Biden family.

Bobulinski also stated that the email referring to “the Chairman” is referring to Joe Biden. That email says Hunter Biden consults with and seeks the sign-off of his “chairman” on his international deals, in direct conflict with Joe Biden’s claim to know nothing of his son’s business.

Bobulinski stated that Joe Biden’s claim of knowing nothing about Hunter’s business arrangements is a “blatant” lie.

After Bobulinski detailed the Biden family’s complex business associations with international energy firms, Carlson pressed him to describe what qualifications the Bidens bring to the table that put them in a position to even be part of such deals.

CARLSON: “So I just want you to assess once more, is there anything about Hunter Biden’s personal experience, personal qualifications that would justify him doing a deal in Kazakhstan?”

BOBULINSKI: “Absolutely nothing. The only thing that he had was the Biden family name and the fact that his father at one point obviously was a sitting vice president and potentially would run as a future president.”

Bobulinski told Carlson his motivation to speak stems from the fact that Democrats, including Rep. Adam Schiff, have smeared him as engaging in “Russian disinformation.” Bobulinski noted his own military service and the multiple high-level security clearances he held while in the military, and the fact that military service runs in his family, saying he found the accusation “disgusting.” He told Carlson he spoke with Biden family representative Rob Walker before going public and asked him to get the Democrats to cease smearing him and to retract their statements. When they refused, he felt he had no choice but to go public. He said it is his “patriotic duty” to speak out.

On Carlson’s show, Bobulinski effectively destroyed the “Russian disinformation” smear the Bidens and the Democrats as a party have leveled against him.

Since speaking out and providing first-person accounts and hard evidence of the Biden family’s questionable deals, which the Bidens have not directly addressed or refuted, Bobulinski says he has received death threats and is no longer staying at his home. He is now protected by former Navy SEALs.

More: Just watch.

Officials: Feds thwart Chinese threat scheme against its citizens in U.S.

 Oct 28 2020

WASHINGTON - The FBI arrested five people Wednesday in connection with a scheme to force a former Chinese municipal official and his family residing in the United States to return to China, as part of China’s “Operation Fox Hunt” anti-corruption campaign.  

The five men, including a naturalized U.S. citizen, were arrested in New Jersey, New York and California early Wednesday morning, officials said. Three others, also charged in connection with the scheme, remain at large in China. 

The defendants face charges of serving as illegal agents of China for allegedly participating in a campaign to “harass, stalk and coerce” U.S. residents to return to China as part of Operation Fox Hunt, the Justice Department said. 

Operation Fox Hunt was launched in 2014 as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping's sweeping anti-graft campaign. The program's purported aim was the arrest of thousands of corrupt Chinese officials and businessmen who had fled abroad. 

US says dissidents real targets

U.S. officials say Operation Fox Hunt is an “extralegal repatriation effort” designed to target Chinese dissidents around the world. 

“With today’s charges, we have turned the PRC’s Operation Fox Hunt on its head. The hunters became the hunted, the pursuers the pursued,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers said at a news conference. “The five defendants the FBI arrested this morning on these charges of illegally doing the bidding of the Chinese government here in the United States now face the prospect of prison.”  

A criminal complaint unsealed in court Wednesday alleges the defendants surveilled, threatened and harassed the unidentified resident of New Jersey, as well as an unidentified woman, as part of an international campaign to force him to return to China. The complaint describes the first victim as a former official in a Chinese city government who has resided in the United States since 2010. 

In April 2017, they forced the first victim’s elderly father to travel to the U.S and sought to use his unexpected arrival to coerce the victim to return to China. In September 2018, two conspirators affixed a threatening note to the door of the victim’s residence. 

“If you are willing to go back to (the) mainland and spend 10 years in prison, your wife and children will be all right. That’s the end of this matter!” the note read. 

Messages on social media

The criminal complaint says the defendants later conducted surveillance of the victim’s adult daughter and sent her and her friends threatening messages on social media as part of the campaign to force her father to return to China.  

“The Chinese government’s brazen attempts to surveil, threaten and harass our own citizens and lawful permanent residents, while on American soil, are part of China’s diverse campaign of theft and malign influence in our country and around the world,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said.  

The five arrested defendants were identified as Zhu Yong, Hongru Jin, Michael McMahon, Rong Jing and Zheng Congying.  

McMahon, a private investigator, is accused of gathering intelligence about the victim and his wife and locating their whereabouts. 

Operation Fox Hunt is run by China's Ministry of Public Security. Since its launch, hundreds of Chinese "fugitives" have been brought back to China to stand trial, some of them voluntarily, and others after being arrested in foreign countries. 

 

Huawei employee’s ‘fighter’s pledge’ legally binding, China court rules

• Product manager Zeng Meng thought the declaration ‘no big deal’ but it cost his claim to benefits from telecoms giant
• Pledge is commonly used by Chinese technology companies to boost morale and encourage team building
• 27 Oct, 2020

A court in southern China has ruled in favour of the Shenzhen-based telecommunications giant 

Huawei

 in a dispute with a former employee over unpaid overtime and leave compensation.

The ruling, issued by the Guangdong Higher People’s Court last week, was based in part on a signed declaration by the employee that he would become a “fighter” for the company and was willing to surrender his claims to some benefits.

The declaration, called the “fighter’s pledge”, is commonly used by technology companies in China as a morale booster and for team building for local employees. Foreign staff are not expected to make the pledge.

Zeng Meng, 40, signed the declaration, in addition to his employment contract, after joining Huawei in 2012 as a product manager. He took Huawei to court last year seeking more than 400,000 yuan (US$59,700) in overtime pay and unclaimed leave.

As part of its defence, the company argued Zeng had voluntarily given up his claim to some benefits when he signed the pledge. The court ruled that, according to Huawei’s work guidelines, overtime work required supervisors’ approval and Zeng had failed to show that he had such approval and that the overtime work happened as claimed.

The court also ruled there was no evidence that Zeng signed the pledge under duress or against his will. 

“There was no sign that the agreement was signed under trickery or coercion, therefore it should be seen 

as Zeng’s true intent,” the verdict said.

Zeng said he had not appreciated the significance of the pledge when he joined the company. “At that time, I didn’t think signing it would be a big deal,” he said.

During his employment with Huawei, Zeng was assigned first to West Africa and then Morocco but in 2017 he was transferred back to Shenzhen and sidelined, after a supervisor found his performance “unsatisfactory”. Zeng said that for about a year he was given virtually no assignment.

Then, in May 2018, he took three days of absence after seeking, but not receiving, his supervisor’s approval. Zeng said he was notified about a week later that he had been fired for absenteeism without approval.

Zhang Bo, a Shanghai-based labour lawyer, said declarations like the

 “fighter’s pledge” were considered legally binding under current Chinese laws.

“The employees may have signed such an agreement as they consider it as part of the company’s culture or for other reasons,” Zhang said. “But, once they have signed it, [the pledge] is considered legally effective unless they can prove that they signed it as a result of trickery, coercion or were at risk.”

Zeng said he planned to lodge an application for review at the provincial prosecutors office in the slim hope that his case would be reconsidered.

Huawei did not respond to an interview request.

In recent years, the company has become a symbol of China’s technological prowess, backed by nationalistic pride, 

especially against the backdrop of the 

US-China technology war

.

However, its image was tarnished last year by the lengthy detention of former employee 

Li Hongyuan

, who was accused of extortion and held by prosecutors for 251 days after filing a lawsuit against Huawei when he did not receive his year-end bonus in 2017.

Li, who worked for Huawei for 12 years, was eventually released, he said, because the prosecutors did not have enough evidence to press charges.