How China gets away with killing its own [Democide] to the tune of 45 million citizens [ close friend and mentor to Pierre Trudeau]

 How China gets away with killing its own [Democide] to the tune of 45 million citizens   

[close friend and mentor to Pierre Trudeau]

 

Huawei lawyers claim emails prove US has no grounds to extradite CFO from Canada

Lawyers will try to persuade Canadian court to permit new documents to be introduced as evidence to clear Meng Wanzhou

Huawei’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, arrives at a court hearing in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on Tuesday.

Patrick Wintour

Tue 29 Jun 2021

The US justice department’s battle to extradite Meng Wanzhou from Canada has taken a fresh turn as lawyers for Huawei’s chief financial officer claimed that internal emails and bank documents prove there is no grounds to extradite her to the US.

Meng, 48, was arrested on a US warrant at Vancouver airport in late 2018, and has been battling extradition. Her detention infuriated the Chinese government and has helped drag relations between Beijing and Ottawa to their lowest point in years.

The US accuses Huawei of using a Hong Kong shell company called Skycom to sell equipment to Iran, in violation of US sanctions. It says Meng, 48, committed fraud by misleading HSBC about the company’s business dealings in Iran.

But Meng’s lawyers argue that documents from HSBC show that Huawei was open about its links to Skycom. In a statement, Huawei Canada said: “These documents consisting of emails and other HSBC records show there is no evidence of fraud on HSBC.

“They show that Huawei’s control over Skycom was not kept from senior HSBC executives, that the continuing nature of Skycom’s business with Huawei in Iran was not kept from HSBC executives and that internal HSBC risk assessments were made based on knowledge of the true facts.”

It added: “The reputational risks were managed with the knowledge of senior HSBC executives.”

Huawei lawyers will now try to persuade the Canadian court to permit the internal documents to be introduced as evidence.

Government lawyers in Canada are likely to contest Huawei’s interpretation of the documents and have argued that they are irrelevant to the extradition process and should be reserved for a fraud trial in the US.

Huawei has claimed that Meng’s arrest was prompted by the US as part of a trade war with China launched by Donald Trump.

Meng’s lawyers have been battling to gain access to the HSBC documents, first in a case in February in the UK that proved unsuccessful and then in March in Hong Kong, where it reached an out-of-court settlement with HSBC. The terms of the settlement was not published, but it appears HSBC gave Huawei access to the papers, with a confidentiality clause attached.

But last week the Canadian courts accepted an application from Canadian prosecutors and media groups that the information could not be kept under seal – an outcome that may not in reality have disappointed Huawei, since it made it more likely the evidence would be admissible in court to challenge the extradition claim.

US prosecutors allege Meng gave a PowerPoint presentation to HSBC in August 2013 that the US claims “involved untrue representations” by downplaying her firm’s control of Skycom, describing the firm simply as a business partner. The US says Huawei in reality controlled Skycom’s operations in Iran until at least 2014.

HSBC, according to the US government, “relied on those and other misrepresentations in deciding to continue the banking relationship with Huawei”.

HSBC “cleared more than $100m worth of transactions related to Skycom through the United States between 2010 and 2014”, says the US.

But Huawei argues the new documentation shows Meng did not mislead the bank, and so the basis for her extradition to the US is undermined.

HSBC had already given the internal documents to the US justice department in a bid to avoid prosecution by the US, but not to Meng’s lawyers.

Path to freedom narrows for detained Canadian duo caught in US-China feud

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The Chinese government has sharply criticised HSBC’s cooperation with the US government over the case.

HSBC has said it had no legal option but to cooperate with the US authorities. But the bank has been caught in a political quandary since it is headquartered in the UK and the bulk of its profits are made in China.

Meng has been living in one of her Vancouver homes on bail since her arrest at the city’s airport in December 2018. Days after Meng’s arrest, former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor were arrested by the Chinese government on espionage charges. They remain in detention.

 

Commons speaker to ask court to strike down government lawsuit challenging Parliament's right to know

Rota told MPs that he would fight 'tooth and nail' to protect the principal 'that the legal system does not have jurisdiction over the operations of the House'

Author of the article:

Publishing date:

Jun 25, 2021 

Speaker of the House of Commons Anthony Rota. PHOTO BY SEAN KILPATRICK/THE CANADIAN PRESS/FILE

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OTTAWA – The Speaker of the House of Commons says he intends to ask the federal court to strike down the Trudeau government’s attempt to have a judge block parliamentarians from receiving documents regarding the firing of two scientists at Canada’s top laboratory.

“As Speaker of the House of Commons and guardian of its parliamentary privileges, I will oppose the Attorney General’s application and take the position that the Federal Court has no jurisdiction to restrict the House’s power to request documents,” Anthony Rota wrote in a letter addressed to parliamentarians Friday.

Has giving gratuities reached a tipping point in restaurants? New report shows shifting…

 

“The Attorney General has been advised of our position, and the necessary steps will be taken before the Court,” his letter concluded.

Rota’s letter was sent on the same day his office formally notified the federal court that it intended to respond to the Liberal’s lawsuit earlier this week asking the federal court to prohibit the disclosure of documents that a majority of MPs formally demanded from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

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In a statement provided to National Post, Rota’s director of communications clarified he intends to ask the court to strike down the Liberal’s request for judicial review if the government does not withdraw it.

After the request for judicial review was filed by the Liberal government Wednesday, Rota told MPs that he would fight “tooth and nail” to protect the principle “that the legal system does not have jurisdiction over the operations of the House. We are our own (court).”t

The unusual legal battle between the federal government and the Speaker stems from a series of documents related to the firing of Xiangguo Qiu and her husband, Keding Cheng. Both were scientists at Winnipeg’s National Microbiology Laboratory when they were suddenly escorted out of it in July 2019 and later fired.

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Earlier this week, the National Post revealed that Qiu collaborated with Chinese government scientists on inventions patented in Beijing that were closely related to her job in Canada’s top security lab. Federal civil servants are not allowed to file such patents without permission.

Since the firing came to light, opposition MPs have passed multiple motions — first at the parliamentary Canada-China relations committee, and then in the House of Commons — demanding that PHAC release the unredacted documents related to the firing.

PHAC President Iain Stewart has consistently refused, and the situation escalated to the point where he was ordered to the House of Commons on Monday to be admonished by Rota and hand over the documents in person — a first for a private citizen in over 100 years. government has continued to refuse to disclose the documents, arguing that they may contain information that could be “injurious to international relations or national defence or national security” if published.

Two days later, the government filed a lawsuit in the federal court asking for a ruling to prohibit disclosure of the documents. The application specifically names Rota as one of the respondents.

Xiangguo Qiu’s ouster from the National Microbiology Laboratory remains cloaked in mystery and has been the subject of ongoing debate in Parliament. 

In an analysis posted on his blog Thursday, former long-time House of Commons senior parliamentary counsel Steven Chaplin derided the government for its “ill-advised, political and some would suggest cynical move” to sue the speaker.

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“By attempting to drag the courts into the fray, the government fails to accept the fundamental premise on which it holds constitutional authority and legitimacy in the Westminster system of democracy,” Chaplin wrote.

“Pursuing the matter through the courts is not only wrong and unnecessary, it is likely to distort the public’s already shaky understanding of Parliament, and further erode trust in Parliament, the courts, and the government.”

Friday, Conservative MP Michael Chong reiterated his party’s support for Rota in this lawsuit all the while accusing the government of going “extraordinary lengths” to prevent the documents from being released.

“The Trudeau government’s decision to use Canada’s independent judicial system to defy the House of Commons orders undermines the rule of law and our parliamentary democracy. This should concern every Canadian,” Chong said in a statement.

LILLEY: Trudeau suing the House of Commons to keep lab firings of Chinese secret

LILLEY: Trudeau suing the House of Commons to keep lab firings of Chinese secret

A Commons committee is seeking documents related to the firing of two scientists from Winnipeg's National Microbiology Laboratory

Author of the article:

Publishing date:

Jun 24, 2021 

President of the Public Health Agency of Canada Iain Stewart, right, approaches the bar in the House of Commons to be admonished by the Speaker of the House of Commons Anthony Rota on

 Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Monday, June 21, 2021. 

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What exactly is Justin Trudeau trying to hide when it comes to the firing of two scientists from our national microbiology lab?

On Wednesday, the Trudeau government filed a lawsuit against the Speaker of the House of Commons in Federal Court.

The reason for the lawsuit is to have the court issue an order sealing documents demanded by the House through a vote earlier this month.

The Commons committee on Canada-China relations has been asking for documents related to the firing of Dr. Xiangguo Qiu and her husband, Keding Cheng from the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg.

The pair, along with a group of students from China, were escorted out of the lab in July 2019 and their security clearance was revoked.

At that point little was said, but eventually it became clear that CSIS and the RCMP had been involved in an investigation.

In January 2021, it was revealed that the pair were fired after an intervention from CSIS.

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While still at the lab, Dr. Qiu was involved in shipping samples of the Ebola and Henipah viruses to the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China.

There was also the sharing of other information between the lab the Wuhan Institute.

This week the National Post reported Dr. Qiu is listed as one of the inventors on two patents filed in Beijing by the Chinese government in 2017 and 2019 related to the Ebola and Marburg viruses.

It is illegal for Canadian civil servants to file a patent outside the country without permission from the minister they report to.

There are a lot of unanswered questions surrounding these two former civil servants, questions the government clearly doesn’t want to answer.

After ignoring several requests from the committee to turn over documents, the House of Commons voted last week to order the papers released.

The Trudeau government defies fourth order to release documents about the Chinese scientists at the Winnipeg lab

The Trudeau government defies fourth order to release documents about the Chinese scientists at the Winnipeg lab

June 27 2021

Ottawa, ON – The Hon. Michael Chong, Conservative Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Gérard Deltell, House Leader of the Official Opposition, issued the following statement after the House adopted a fourth order requiring the Trudeau government to hand over documents regarding the transfer of dangerous viruses from the Winnipeg National Microbiology Laboratory to the Wuhan Institute of Virology and the subsequent firing of two government scientists:

“Yesterday, the Speaker of the House ruled the Trudeau government in breach of three orders of the House and its Special Committee on Canada-China Relations by continuing to cover-up the Winnipeg lab breach. These orders require the government to hand over documents related to the Winnipeg lab and its work with the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The Trudeau government’s defiance of these orders demonstrates a complete lack of respect for Parliament and smacks of a cover-up.

“On June 2, the House adopted a motion ordering the government to hand over documents regarding the transfer of viruses from the Winnipeg lab to the Wuhan lab in March 2019 and the subsequent firing of two government scientists in January 2021. This June 2 order followed two previous orders from the Special Committee of March 31 and May 10.

“Despite these orders, the Liberals continue to defy Parliament and cover-up information about these breaches of national security. It is appalling to see just how far they will go to defy Parliament and cover up details about the Winnipeg lab and its relationship with the Wuhan lab.

“Conservatives have once again demanded the Trudeau government release the documents they are hiding from Canadians so that Parliament can get to the bottom of this and ensure these breaches of national security do not happen again. However, the Liberals continue their cover-up by voting against a motion upholding the Speaker’s ruling demanding the documents.

“Now, for the fourth time, the House has ordered the Trudeau government to hand over the documents. We expect Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to comply with this lawful order.

“It’s time the Liberals end their cover-up. It’s time for the Liberals to release these documents and be transparent with Canadians. Canadians deserve to know the truth about what happened at the Winnipeg lab and the breaches of national security. Canada’s Conservatives are fighting to protect our national security.