Meng Hongwei
孟宏伟
Meng Hongwei
President of Interpol
In office
10 November 2016 – 7 October 2018
Secretary-GeneralJürgen Stock
Preceded byMireille Ballestrazzi
Succeeded byKim Jong Yang
Vice-Minister of Public Security of China
In office
10 April 2004 – 7 October 2018
MinisterZhou Yongkang
Meng Jianzhu
Guo Shengkun
Zhao Kezhi
PremierWen Jiabao
Li Keqiang
Deputy Director of the State Oceanic Administration of China
In office
18 March 2013 – 8 December 2017
PremierLi Keqiang
DirectorLiu Cigui
Wang Hong
Director of the China Coast Guard
In office
18 March 2013 – 8 December 2017
PremierLi Keqiang
Preceded byPosition created
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Personal details
BornNovember 1953 (age 70)
Harbin, Heilongjiang, China
Political partyChinese Communist Party (1975-2019, expelled)
SpouseGrace Meng
Children2
Alma materPeking University and
Central South University

Meng Hongwei (simplified Chinese: 孟宏伟; traditional Chinese: 孟宏偉; pinyin: Mèng Hóngwěi; born November 1953) is a former Chinese politician and police officer who was the president of Interpol from 2016 to 2018. He also served as vice-minister of Public Security in China from 2004 to 2018. Meng purportedly resigned in absentia in October 2018 via Chinese officials[1] after he was secretly detained and accused of taking bribes by Chinese anti-corruption authorities.[2] On 21 January 2020, Meng had been sentenced to 13 and a half years in jail by a Chinese court for bribery during his time at the Chinese coast guard and Ministry of Public Security.[3]

Early life and career

Meng was born in Harbin, Heilongjiang, in 1953.[4] He entered the workforce in 1972 and joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1975.[5] He graduated from Peking University with a bachelor's degree in law in 1983 [5]

He has 40 years of experience in criminal justice and policing.[6] He served as Vice-Minister of Public Security from 2004[5] until his arrest in 2018. He served as Director of the Maritime Police Bureau and deputy director of China's State Oceanic Administration from 2013 until 2017.[5] In April 2018, without explanation, he was relieved of his membership of the CCP committee at the Ministry of Public Security. It was unclear whether this was due to his declining political fortunes or due to his age.[4]

Interpol

In 2004, Meng became the head of Interpol's China branch.[4]

He was elected as President of Interpol on 10 November 2016,[7] becoming the first Chinese head of the agency. His election was viewed as a success for China's ambitions to gain influence within international organisations.[8] Dissidents feared that China would use Meng to track exiled opponents.[9] During his presidency, the Chinese government submitted extensive lists of officials and business people wanted for questioning on allegations of corruption, which critics claimed were politically motivated. His term as president was due to last until 2020, but he resigned in October 2018 after being detained by Chinese authorities.[10]

Corruption accusations

Secret detention

Meng left Sweden on 18 September 2018, and landed in China on a flight from Stockholm on 19 September. On September 25th, Meng sent his wife Grace an emoji of a knife, suggesting that he was in danger.[11][12] The South China Morning Post reported that Meng had been taken away for questioning by "discipline authorities" on his arrival in China.[6] French newspaper Le Parisien added that he was under investigation in China, suspected of favouring a company in a cybersecurity procurement.[9]

On 4 October, Mrs. Meng reported her husband missing to the French police.[6] She was given police protection after being threatened by phone and Internet. As of January 2019, Mrs. Meng was seeking asylum in France.[13][14]

Prosecution

On 6 October 2018, Interpol officially demanded to know Meng's status from the Chinese government.[8] The next day, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection announced that Meng was being investigated by the National Supervisory Commission, an anti-corruption agency, for allegedly taking bribes,[8][15] and that a task force would be set up to pursue his alleged associates. Meng was also accused of "willfulness", which public administration expert Zhu Lijia said might indicate that he "may not have strictly toed the party lines".[16]

Interpol also received Meng's letter of resignation, with immediate effect, and said the organisation's acting senior vice president, Kim Jong Yang of South Korea, would be acting president until a permanent replacement was elected at a meeting in Dubai in November 2018.[8][17][18] Interpol's press release did not mention whether Meng had resigned under duress.[10] Grace Meng has threatened Interpol with legal action over its lack of investigation into the authenticity of the resignation.[1]

On 26 October 2018, Meng was removed from the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, China's top political advisory body.[19] On 27 March 2019, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission announced that Meng was expelled from the CCP and removed from all posts.[20]

In April 2019, Meng's wife sued Interpol for failing to assist her at the Permanent Court of Arbitration.[21] In 2021, she criticised the Chinese government as being "a monster" because she said in a figurative sense that, "they eat their children". She said the charges of accepting bribes were "trumped up", and that the CCP really purged him because "he used his high-profile position to push for change". "It's a fake case. It's an example of a political disagreement being turned into a criminal affair. The extent of corruption in China today is extremely serious. It's everywhere. But there are two different opinions about how to solve corruption. One is the method used now. The other is to move toward constitutional democracy, to solve the problem at its roots."[22][23]

On 24 April 2019, a statement by the Supreme People's Procuratorate said that prosecutors "decided to arrest Meng Hongwei on suspicion of accepting bribes".[24] On 20 June 2019, he pleaded guilty for accepting bribes over 14.5 million yuan or $2.11 million.[25] He was sentenced on 21 January 2020 to 13½ years of jail time and fined CNY 2 million for the accepting of bribes and abusing his position.[3][26] He did not apply for appeal to the court sentence.[26]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Graham-Harrison, Emma (2018-11-18). "'It's not justice': wife of detained Interpol chief faces down China". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2018-11-18. Retrieved 2018-11-18.
  2. ↑ "China accuses ex-Interpol chief Meng of bribery and corruption". Al Jazeera. 8 October 2018. Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  3. 1 2 "Former Interpol president jailed for 13 years over bribery charges". ABC News. 2020-01-21. Archived from the original on 2020-01-22. Retrieved 2020-02-07.
  4. 1 2 3 "Missing Interpol president deeply rooted in China's security". The Washington Post. Associated Press. 5 October 2018. Archived from the original on 6 October 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Meng Hongwei 孟宏伟". China Vitae. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Archived from the original on 30 August 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 "Interpol chief Meng Hongwei vanishes on trip to China". BBC News. 5 October 2018. Archived from the original on 5 October 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  7. ↑ 公安部副部长孟宏伟当选新一任国际刑警组织主席 [Deputy Minister of Public Security Meng Hongwei Elected New Interpol Chairman] (in Chinese). Xinhuanet. 10 November 2016. Archived from the original on 10 November 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Wong, Edward; Rubin, Alissa J. (7 October 2018). "Interpol President is Detained by China and has Quit His Post". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 13 May 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  9. 1 2 "Le président d'Interpol soupçonné de corruption par la Chine". Le Parisien (in French). 6 October 2018. Archived from the original on 6 October 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  10. 1 2 Gerry Shih; James McAuley (8 October 2018). "Interpol president who vanished in China has resigned". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 22 November 2018. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  11. ↑ Rudy Ruitenberg; Lynn Chen (7 October 2018). "Interpol President Is Being Probed for Illegal Conduct, China Says". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 8 October 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  12. ↑ John Leicester; Gillian Wong (7 October 2018). "Wife says Interpol officer sent knife image as danger signal". AP News. Archived from the original on 8 October 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  13. ↑ "Meng Hongwei: Wife of ex-Interpol chief seeks France asylum". BBC. 18 January 2019. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  14. ↑ Chris Buckley; Aurelien Breedon (5 October 2018). "Head of Interpol Disappears, and Eyes Turn Toward China". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 March 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  15. ↑ "Meng Hongwei: China accuses Interpol chief of bribery". BBC News. 8 October 2018. Archived from the original on 9 October 2018. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  16. ↑ Choi Chi-yuk; Matt Ho (8 October 2018). "China accuses former Interpol chief Meng Hongwei of taking bribes". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  17. ↑ Express Web Desk (8 October 2018). "Missing Interpol President Meng Hongwei resigns, new chief to be elected in November". Indian Express. Archived from the original on 8 October 2018. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  18. ↑ Eliott C. McLaughlin; Saskya Vandoorne; Ben Westcott (8 October 2018). "Chinese government admits head of Interpol 'under investigation' after disappearance". CNN. Archived from the original on 8 October 2018. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  19. ↑ 公安部原副部长孟宏伟被撤销政协委员资格 [Former vice-minister of Public Security Meng Hongwei is being disqualified from the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference]. ifeng (in Chinese). 2018-10-27. Archived from the original on 2018-10-29. Retrieved 2018-10-29.
  20. ↑ "公安部原党委委员、副部长孟宏伟严重违纪违法被开除党籍和公职". Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. 2019-03-27. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  21. ↑ "Wife of ex-Interpol chief sues agency, accuses it of 'complicity with China'". South China Morning Post. 2019-07-07. Archived from the original on 2019-07-07. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
  22. ↑ "Wife of missing Chinese official calls government a "monster," "they eat their children"". Newsweek. 2021-11-18. Archived from the original on 2021-12-10. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  23. ↑ Leicester, John (2021-11-18). "Wife of former Interpol chief takes on China government". The New Zealand Herald. The Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2021-12-10. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  24. ↑ "China formally arrests ex-Interpol chief". SinoDaily.com. 24 April 2019. Archived from the original on 24 January 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  25. ↑ "Former Interpol chief admits guilt in Chinese court hearing". Asahi Shimbun. Reuters. 20 June 2019. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  26. 1 2 "Chinese court jails former Interpol chief for 13-1/2 years over graft". Reuters. 20 January 2020. Archived from the original on 27 March 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
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