Huawei CFO ‘unlikely’ to be extradited
▶ US must prove Meng violated Canadian laws as well: analyst
Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese tech giant Huawei, who was granted a $7.5 million bail, is unlikely to be extradited to the US because she is charged for political reasons, analysts said.
Canadian news outlet CBC News, citing the country’s extradition laws on December 7, reported that Ottawa has the power to reject extradition requests that it considers oppressive or politically motivated. Extradition requests that seek to prosecute people for their nationality, race or religion should be declined.
“Considering this regulation, Meng’s extradition is unlikely to be approved,” Huang Feng, director of Beijing Normal University’s Institute for International Criminal Law, told the Global Times on Thursday.
US Ambassador to Canada Kelly Craft on Tuesday said there is “absolutely” no political motive behind the arrest of Meng after noting China’s rise might have worrying implications for North American workers. Her words were undermined hours later when US President Donald Trump said he could intervene in the case for the country’s interest, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday.
Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland on Wednesday also warned the US not to politicize extradition cases and Meng’s lawyers would have the option of raising Trump’s remarks if they decide to fight extradition, Reuters reported on Thursday.
Canada’s Department of Justice said an individual can be extradited if the alleged criminal activity in question is recognized as a criminal in both countries.
The US must also provide “solid evidence” to prove Meng violated the laws of “both the US and Canada”; otherwise the request cannot pass the judicial review of the Canadian court, Huang said.
Meng did not violate Canadian laws that only impose sanction regulations on its citizens and domestic enterprises. Therefore, Meng “did not violate the laws of both countries, which further reduces her chance of being extradited to the US under current conditions,” Huang noted.
Meng faces charges of deceiving financial institutions and conducting business in Iran in contravention of US sanctions, according to information from her bail hearings. But her activities were outside the US and the concerned financial institutions are not US ones, which means “the US is obviously overreaching,” Huang noted.
Meng was granted bail on Tuesday after being detained by Canadian police based on the US request of a provisional arrest.
The US still has some 50 days to gather evidence for its extradition request, and Huang believes the sudden arrest of Meng and confiscation of her personal items “are meant to dig for evidence, which the US does not possess, to support future extradition requests.”