Canadian immigration authorities have denied residency visas to two employees of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei over fears that they could pose a security risk, according to a news report by a Hong Kong newspaper.
South China Morning Post reported late Wednesday that Ottawa rejected the applications in March. In a letter obtained by the newspaper, a Canadian consular official wrote to one of the applicants that Canadian officials feared he might engage in spying.
“There are reasonable grounds to believe that you are a member of the inadmissible class of persons described in section 34(1)(f) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act,” the letter said.
A copy of the “procedural fairness” letter by Canadian consular officials in Hong Kong was obtained by the South China Morning Post newspaper.
A second applicant was told last month that the same concern existed about their spouse, who was included in their immigration application, the newspaper reported.
The newspaper obtained the letter written by the Canadian officials through the applicants’ immigration consultants in China.
The applicants are denying any ties to China’s spy agencies, the consultants said.
Huawei, the world’s third largest producer of cellphones and telecom equipment, has long been suspected of ties to the Chinese authorities.
A US intelligence committee referred to the firm in 2012 as a national security threat, and urged firms “to consider the long-term security risks” before doing business with Huawei and another firm, ZTE.
Chief executive Ren Zhengfei, a former Chinese military officer, has repeatedly denied any links between his company and the Chinese government, and said Huawei has never been asked to spy for the authorities in Beijing.
In October 2012, Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall came under fire after the provincial telecom company SaskTel signed an agreement with Huawei to test high-speed wireless internet and phone service in rural Saskatchewan.
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