BFF-63,64 Interpol’s former Chinese chief accused of bribery

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Interpol’s former Chinese chief accused of bribery

BEIJING, Oct 8, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – The former Chinese head of
Interpol, who went missing last month, was accused of
accepting bribes on Monday, becoming the latest top official
to fall in President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption dragnet.

After days of concealing the fate of Meng Hongwei — who is
also China’s vice minister for public security — from the
international community, the public security ministry said
Monday he had accepted bribes but provided no further details
on the allegations or the conditions and location of Meng’s
apparent detention.

French officials disclosed on Friday that Meng had been
reported missing after leaving France for China, while his
wife voiced concern for his life on Sunday some two weeks
after he texted her an ominous knife emoji.

His case could tarnish Beijing’s efforts to gain leadership
posts in international organisations, but it is also a black
eye for France-based Interpol, which is tasked with finding
missing people, analysts say.

Interpol said Sunday that Meng had resigned and would be
temporarily replaced by a South Korean official until a new
election in November — hours after China’s anti-graft body,
the National Supervisory Commission, said he was under
investigation for violating unspecified laws.

The public security ministry released a statement Monday
afternoon, saying Meng accepted bribes and that the
investigation “clearly expressed comrade Xi Jinping’s”
determination to fully carry out the struggle against graft.

It did not provide more details about the allegations.

“It shows that no one is above the law with no exceptions.
Anyone who violates the law will be seriously investigated
and severely punished,” the statement said, adding others
suspected of accepting bribes alongside Meng would be
investigated and dealt with.

Meng is the latest high-profile Chinese citizen to
disappear, with a number of top government officials,
billionaire business magnates and even an A-list celebrity
vanishing for weeks or months at a time.

When — or if — they reappear, it is often in court.

Meng, the first Chinese president of Interpol, was last
heard from on September 25 as he left Lyon, where Interpol is
headquartered.

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Meng was appointed in 2016, despite concerns from human
rights groups about giving Chinese President Xi Jinping a win
in his bid to paint the communist-led country as a
responsible player in global affairs.

But the episode could be a setback for China. Interpol was
kept in the dark about Meng’s disappearance, prompting its
secretary general Juergen Stock, who oversees day-to-day
operations, to say Saturday the agency was seeking
“clarification” on his whereabouts.

“Any international organisation should think twice going
forward before considering a Chinese candidate to be its
head,” Bonnie Glaser, senior Asia adviser at Washington’s
Center for Strategic and International Studies, told AFP.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said Beijing
will continue to support Interpol’s work and “strengthen
pragmatic cooperation” with its member states to crack down
on crime.

– Danger emoji –

Meng had lived with his wife and two children in France
since 2016.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Meng’s wife Grace said she
had received a message from his phone containing a knife
emoji before his disappearance.

That day, Grace Meng said he sent a message telling her to
“wait for my call”, before sending the emoji signifying
danger.

“This matter belongs to the international community,” she
told a press conference with her back turned to the cameras
out of fear for her safety.

“I’m not sure what has happened to him,” she said.

The recently established National Supervisory Commission
holds sweeping powers to investigate public servants, with
few requirements for transparency.

Some critics of Xi’s anti-graft campaign — which has
punished more than one million officials — say it also
functions as a tool for the Communist Party general secretary
to eliminate his political rivals.

– Red notices –

Meng rose through the ranks of the country’s domestic
security apparatus when it was under the leadership of Zhou
Yongkang, a rival to Xi and the highest-ranking official to
be brought down on corruption charges.

Zhou — who was jailed for life in 2014 — was subsequently
accused of conspiring to seize state power.

The security ministry called for “Meng Hongwei’s acceptance
of bribes to be deeply understood” and to “thoroughly
eliminate the pernicious influence of Zhou Yongkang”.

Zhou appointed Meng vice security minister in 2004.

In that role, Meng has been entrusted with a number of
sensitive portfolios, including the country’s counter-
terrorism division, and was in charge of the response to
several major incidents in China’s fractious western region
of Xinjiang.

Critics of Meng’s rise to Interpol’s presidency said he
would use the position to help China target dissidents
abroad.

Interpol downplayed those concerns, saying the president
has little influence over the organisation’s day-to-day
operations.

BSS/AFP/BZC/200HRS