Released Huawei top woman welcomed as a hero in China
China has hailed Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou as a hero, released by Canada. At the airport in her hometown of Shenzhen, the red carpet for Meng had even been laid out, and a group of people were singing patriotic songs for her.
China’s state broadcaster CCTV had previously released a statement from Meng while she was still on the plane to China. In her own words, tears welled up in her eyes as she ‘approached the embrace of the great motherland’. “Without a strong motherland, I would not have the freedom I have today,” said the top woman.
Release Canadians
However, Chinese media kept quiet about the release of the two Canadians who were imprisoned in China in retaliation. The two men were taken in by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Saturday in Calgary.
Meng was allowed to leave Canada after being under house arrest for nearly three years. She was there awaiting extradition to the United States, who wanted to prosecute her for fraud and conspiracy. The American judiciary closed a deal with her on Friday. The charges against Huawei’s financial chief were thus dropped.
Arrest
Meng, the daughter of Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, was arrested in Canada in 2018. The US accused her of lying about trade contacts with an Iranian company, which is subject to US sanctions.
Meng’s arrest put a lot of pressure on relations between China on the one hand and the US and Canada on the other. Shortly after her arrest, China detained the two Canadians.
