HUAWEI: AN OPEN DOOR FOR CHINA'S SPYING

  There is well-founded international resistance to Huawei, based on fears it will open the door for Beijing to further its global spying activities. Huawei insists it would never stoop to stealing or sharing information on unsuspecting customers, no matter how much China’s rulers may insist on it, and has assembled a small army of consultants, lobbyists and public relations experts to plead its case. Nonetheless the case against it is straightforward: either you trust China’s Communist supremos to play by international rules and Canadian law, despite a vast and lengthy history of doing nothing of the kind, or you don’t. Unquestionably, Canada shouldn’t.

  It doesn’t take much more than a Google search to dispel the pleasant fantasy Huawei is trying to sell. Despite what Ren Zhengfei may say, there is absolutely a law in China requiring his company to do as Beijing asks. It’s called the National Intelligence law and it states that “any organization or citizen shall support, assist and co-operate with the state intelligence work in accordance with the law.” Intelligence agencies are empowered to demand such assistance. Nowhere does it say, “except for Huawei.”