@annabelballerina
Annabelle Yao, 20, is the half-sister of 46-year-old Meng Wanzhou, the
CFO of Huawei and the daughter of Ren Zhengfei, a 74-year-old Chinese business heavyweight. Wanzhou was arrested on Saturday, December 1, in Canada and faces extradition to the United States.
Wanzhou is the Vice Chairman of Huawei, the company founded by her father that is currently China’s largest smartphone and telecommunications equipment maker and the world’s second largest smartphone seller.
Huawei is an infamously shady company, as it is not traded on the stock exchange and its executives largely remain media silent.
Wanzhou’s arrest comes after a United States-led probe into the company’s alleged violations of Iran sanctions. She had her bail hearing on Friday, December 7, in Canada. However, Huawei and Chinese officials remain adamant that Meng has not violated any laws and should be released from custody.
At this time, it is not clear what she is being charged with.
The Chinese Embassy in Canada released the following statement in response to Wanzhou’s arrest:
“At the request of the U.S. side, the Canadian side arrested a Chinese citizen not violating any American or Canadian law. The Chinese side firmly opposes and strongly protests over such kind of actions which seriously harmed the human rights of the victim. Beijing has lodged stern representations with the U.S. and Canadian side, and urged them to immediately correct the wrongdoing and restore the personal freedom of Ms. Meng Wanzhou.”
As for Yao, she is a ballerina that attends Harvard University and is set to graduate in 2020.