The Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) said May 22 that it plans to add China’s Fiberhome Technologies Group and eight other organizations to its Entity List. Fiberhome would become the third Chinese communications technology supplier, after ZTE and Huawei, to land on the list, which restricts access to U.S. technology. Fiberhome and the other eight entities are being cited for being “complicit” in alleged human rights abuses involving Uighurs, ethnic Kazakhs, and other members of Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) in northwest China.
Fiberhome is part of a second group of organizations and commercial enterprises added to the Entity List for alleged abuses of Mulsim minorities in the XUAR. The BIS originally placed 28 parties on the Entity List in October 2019. Joining Fiberhome are China’s Ministry of Public Security’s Institute of Forensic Science and Aksu Huafu Textiles Co., which BIS alleges engaged in human rights violations and abuses. Fiberhome and six other companies were named for allegedly aiding in surveillance of the XUAR Muslim groups. The other six companies are CloudWalk Technology; FiberHome subsidiary Nanjing FiberHome Starrysky Communication Development; NetPosa and subsidiary SenseNets; Intellifusion; and IS’Vision. Collectively, the nine entities were involved or complicit in what BIS alleged was “human rights violations and abuses committed in China’s campaign of repression, mass arbitrary detention, forced labor, and high-technology surveillance,” aimed at Muslim minorities in XUAR.
Once it’s placed on the list, exports and other transactions with Fiberhome will be subject to Export Administration Regulations (EAR). U.S. companies wanting to do business with Fiberhome or its named subsidiary will have to apply for a special license – few of which are granted. Its addition to the list effectively shuts off Fiberhome from its U.S. suppliers. That includes NeoPhotonics (NYSE: NPTN), which today stated that the addition of Fiberhome to the Entity List would not have a material impact on its near-term financial health.
Unlike Fiberhome, ZTE and Huawei were placed on the list for alleged violations of U.S. export bans. ZTE was placed on the Entity List twice, in 2016 and 2018 (see “ZTE faces export sanctions from US Department of Commerce” and “U.S. Commerce Dept. finds ZTE violated export disciplinary agreement, bans U.S. component supply”); the second time nearly brought the company to its knees before it agreed in June 2018 to a set of strict conditions for reinstatement to BIS’s good graces (see “ZTE must disclose Chinese government stake as part of new agreement”). Huawei remains on the Entity List, where it has resided since May 2019 (see “Huawei faces U.S. technology access ban”).
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Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher, Lightwave
Stephen Hardy is editorial director and associate publisher of Lightwave and Broadband Technology Report, part of the Lighting & Technology Group at Endeavor Business Media. Stephen is responsible for establishing and executing editorial strategy across the both brands’ websites, email newsletters, events, and other information products. He has covered the fiber-optics space for more than 20 years, and communications and technology for more than 35 years. During his tenure, Lightwave has received awards from Folio: and the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE) for editorial excellence. Prior to joining Lightwave in 1997, Stephen worked for Telecommunications magazine and the Journal of Electronic Defense.
Stephen has moderated panels at numerous events, including the Optica Executive Forum, ECOC, and SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. He also is program director for the Lightwave Innovation Reviews and the Diamond Technology Reviews.
He has written numerous articles in all aspects of optical communications and fiber-optic networks, including fiber to the home (FTTH), PON, optical components, DWDM, fiber cables, packet optical transport, optical transceivers, lasers, fiber optic testing, and more.
You can connect with Stephen on LinkedIn as well as Twitter.