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China news tagged with: Chen Liangyu (46)

• Former Stats Minister, Downed, Resurfaces with CNOOC

  

  Not everything is known about the re-emergence of former minister of the statistics bureau, now working as a senior researcher for a CNOOC unit. Probably more to come. Translated by CDT, from Oriental Web:

  Many wondered if any high-level corrupt officials, after being fired and disgraced, would make their way back into politics or such. Now here’s one, Qiu Xiaohua, former minister of the National Bureau of Statistics, who fell during the pension fund scandal of former Shanghai party secretary, Chen Liangyu.

  According to Xinhua’s Jan. 23, 2007 news dispatch, Qiu took bribes, had a debauched life and was suspected of polygamy. He was one of the many high-ranking officials who got shot down in the big whirl of investigations into the pension fund scandal.

  Qiu recently wrote an essay published on the Economic Observer’s web site, titled “Policy Suggestions for Handling the Current Economic Situation.” The author was described as former chief of National Bureau of Statistics and currently senior researcher with CNOOC. He suggested that in order to control inflation, the government not only needs to work on curbing demand for the currency but also to work on optimizing supply and relieving the burden of enterprises and the people.

  Qiu got out of prison in June, and was said to have started working for state oil company CNOOC, but no details of that position were revealed.

  Phone calls to employees of CNOOC didn’t help much either. There were no official announcements of Qiu’s hiring. He could have been hired as a consultant, but normally CNOOC has technical experts for such positions.

  Also interesting, among the search results of the same story, Baidu.com, Xinhua’s story, a re-run of the news, was deleted.

  » Read more
  • August 31, 2008 1:24 PM

• Chen’s Son Has Day In Court Over Fund Scandal

  

  From Shanghai Daily:

  The son of Shanghai’s former Party chief Chen Liangyu was jailed for three years in Tianjin yesterday, with four years’ probation, over his involvement in the infamous Shanghai pension-fund scandal.

  The Tianjin No.2 Intermediate People’s Court found Chen Weili guilty of misusing the city’s pension fund, together with his father, via lending a media company 1 billion yuan (US$147 million).

  After receiving the money, the Huawen Media Investment Corporation hired Chen Weili as general manager of one of its subsidiaries and paid him 1 million yuan a year.

  Chen Weili was also found to have made illicit profits from the Shanghai Shenhua Group when he acted as its deputy general manager.

  He was given a “VIP card” with 100,000 yuan installed after his father dined with Shenhua’s general manager, Yu Zhifei.

  » Read more
  • August 4, 2008 5:42 AM

• Sunshine Law and the Case of Chen Liangyu

  

  From Caijing Magazine:

  On April 4, the gavel came down for the sentencing of Chen Liangyu. This former member of the Politburo and one-time Shanghai party secretary will spend 18 years in prison after being found guilty of taking bribes and abusing his official powers. Since last June, we have seen a series of connected court cases concerning economic crimes committed in relation to the Shanghai pension scandal come to trial in Shanghai, Tianjin, Anhui and Jilin (see our cover stories Judgment in the Shanghai Pension Scandal Case, Shattered Halo for a Shanghai Magnate, and The Trial of Chen Liangyu). Now, we have an opportunity to take time to reflect and put the matter in perspective.

  There is much to reflect on. While many things remain to be done, two must be given priority: The drafting, promulgation and resolute implementation of a “sunshine law;” and issuance of a system of rules governing the behavior of the family and close colleagues of leading officials. This is a fundamental step for the successful implementation of a strategy for fighting and preventing corruption, and for the rebuilding of public confidence.

  » Read more
  • April 23, 2008 2:59 AM

• Ex-Shanghai Party Boss Accepts 18-year Jail Term

  

  From Reuters:

  Shanghai’s disgraced Communist Party chief, jailed for 18 years this month for corruption, has decided not to appeal, state media said on Tuesday.

  Chen Liangyu was found guilty of taking bribes and abuse of power by a court in the northern port city of Tianjin on April 11, becoming the most senior Chinese official imprisoned for graft in a decade. He had been held since 2006.

  Chen did not file an appeal in the 10-day period he was allowed and the sentence had thus taken “legal effect”, China Central Television said.

  The court also confiscated 300,000 yuan ($42,900) of Chen’s assets, but cleared him of a charge of dereliction of duty.

  Read also Former Shanghai chief not to appeal by Xinhua.

  » Read more
  • April 22, 2008 3:27 PM

• Ex-Party Boss in China Gets 18 Years (Update)

  

  The New York Times reports on Chen Liangyu, saying “His downfall, after China’s top leaders decided to challenge his lock on power in his prosperous and politically powerful coastal city, is the fallout of an elite political struggle. It also exposed the prevalence of corrupt activities among Communist Party bosses.”

  See AP’s report:

  The former Communist Party chief of China’s financial capital was sentenced Friday to 18 years in prison for his role in a massive corruption scandal involving a third of the city’s pension funds.

  Chen Liangyu, who also was a member of China’s powerful 24-seat Politburo, was the highest-level Chinese official to be dismissed in a decade. The official Xinhua News Agency said Chen was locked up “for taking bribes and abusing power.”

  Chen’s lawyer, Gao Zicheng, indicated Chen would appeal. “If Chen appeals, it’s not over,” he said, declining further comment. Chen was sentenced in Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court.

  Read also Former Shanghai Party chief Chen Liangyu sentenced to 18 years in jail by Xinhua.

  » Read more
  • April 11, 2008 9:41 PM

• End Of The Line For A Shanghai Scandal

  

  From Caijing Magazine:

  The Shanghai pension fund scandal that came to light in the summer 2006 involved some 30 people including major political figures, senior managers at state-owned enterprises and wealthy businessmen. After a lengthy process spanning nearly two years of investigations and hearings, the culmination was reached March 25, the opening day of trial for Chen Liangyu.

  The previous afternoon, the 61-year-old Chen was brought under guard from Beijing’s Qincheng Prison to a courtroom Tianjin. The judicial proceedings came 18 months after he fell from power for his involvement in the pension scandal and was removed from public sight after serving as a prestigious member of the national Politburo and secretary-general of the Communist Party in Shanghai.

  As the most senior official among those implicated in the far-reaching scandal, Chen’s trial marked the beginning of closure for a deep scar of corruption that rocked China.

  Read also The Trial of Chen Liangyu by Hanwei.

  » Read more
  • April 3, 2008 12:19 AM

• No Verdict for Chen Liangyu in Social Security Fund Hearing

  

  From China Daily:

  The first hearing of the city’s former Party secretary Chen Liangyu, who was axed for corruption two years ago, has concluded in Tianjin, the media reported Thursday.

  At the hearing, 62-year-old Chen, the highest Party official ousted in the past decade, said he was “partially responsible” for the misuse of social security funds, the Beijing Evening News said.

  He did not, however, plead guilty during the hearing, which was held on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Tianjin No 2 Intermediate People’s Court. A verdict has yet to be reached.

  Read also Trial of ousted Shanghai Communist Party chief begins: Reports by AP.

  » Read more
  • March 27, 2008 6:10 PM

• Shanghai Real Estate Tycoon On Trial For Alleged Tax, Bribery Offenses - AP

  

  From AP, via International Herald Tribune:

  A Shanghai real estate tycoon who served a three-year prison term after a stock market scandal is on trial for alleged bribery and tax offenses, a state-run magazine reported Wednesday.

  Zhou Zhengyi was detained a year ago amid a probe of government misconduct that brought down the Shanghai Communist Party secretary and other city leaders.

  State media reports say he is charged with misappropriation of funds, bribery and forging value-added tax receipts. [Full Text]

  Read also Troubled Shanghai tycoon on trial again from China Daily.

  » Read more
  • October 26, 2007 5:14 PM

• Gripping Conclusion Nears for Pension Fund Scandal - Yang Haipeng, Luo Changping and Chenzhong Xiaolu

  

  From Caijing Magazine:

  In an apartment in the Luwan district of Shanghai, an old couple has saved a well-worn newspaper dated July 27, 2007. The headline reads, “China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection Answers Reporters on Chen Liangyu’s Serious Violation of Principles.”

  “We know nothing more than what was printed in the paper,” said the husband, Chen Genghua (ÈôàÊõ¥Âçé), an 86-year-old retired engineer, as his wife, Li Mouzhen (ÊùéË∞ãÁúü), bears a look of sadness and distress.

  The person mentioned in the headline is Shanghai’s disgraced former party secretary, who has been embroiled in a multi-billion yuan pension fund scandal. Chen is also the eldest of the couple’s three sons. [Full Text]

  » Read more
  • August 13, 2007 7:03 AM

• Can Hu Jintao Go Beyond The Politics Of ‘Winners Are Kings, Losers Are Bandits’? - Liang Jing

  

  Dr. David Kelly translated following essay from overseas Chinese political commentator Liang Jing, the Chinese text is here:

  Last week, the Communist Party announced the expulsion of Chen Liangyu from Party and public posts, and handed him over to the processes of law. This development is understood by all, both domestically and abroad, in terms of ¬†the needs of the power struggle over the 17th National Party Conference.¬† However, in a recent interview with reporters, Xia Zanzhong, deputy secretary of the Central Discipline Inspection Commission, went so far as to say that “Chen Liangyu’s serious breach of discipline was quite covert, deceptive and harmful,” implying that Chen had now become his prisoner of war, not because he was Hu Jintao’s political opponent, but because he was so clever and subtle.

  It was out of the question that Xia Zanzhong himself believed what he said. It has long been public knowledge that, protected ¬†by Jiang Zemin, the Shanghai Gang, including Huang Ju, Chen Liangyu, and Jiang’s princeling son Jiang Mianheng, did bad things for many years in Shanghai, and were even so bold as to openly confront the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection Group. Why then did Xia Zanzhong give such a performance of “no 300 taels of silver here”? It only shows that Hu Jintao and his supp¬≠orters in the party are aware that attacking their political opponents in the name of pun¬≠ishing corruption is drawing censure.

  » Read more
  • August 4, 2007 10:38 AM

• Top China Boss Removed From Party - BBC

  

  Disgraced former Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Liangyu has been officially dismissed from the CCP and relieved of all his government positions. From the BBC:

  Analysts say the latest move against Mr Chen could take him one step closer to standing trial on corruption charges…

  State media said Mr Chen, the former party secretary in Shanghai, had been handed over to judicial authorities and that his case had made a “very negative impact” on the image of the Communist Party. [Full text]

  Read more about Chen’s case and a post on the recent developments from China in Transition.

  » Read more
  • July 26, 2007 11:38 AM

• Rising Chinese star named Shanghai party secretary after scandal - AP

  
  From International Herald Tribune:

  A rising Chinese political star and economic reformer has been named Communist Party boss of Shanghai, the party said Saturday, after his predecessor was ousted in a politically charged scandal.

  The appointment of Xi Jinping, currently party secretary for the booming province of Zhejiang, south of Shanghai, was announced in a one-sentence statement by the party Central Committee that was carried by the official Xinhua News Agency. It did not say when Xi was appointed or give other details.

  Xi succeeds Chen Liangyu, who was fired in September after being accused of improperly allowing government social security funds to be used for real estate and other risky investments. [Full Text]

  » Read more
  • March 24, 2007 1:18 PM

• Corruption Crackdown a Session Focal Point - Xinhua

  

  From Xinhua, via China Daily:

  Motions aimed at fighting corruption and building a clean government are expected to be tabled at the upcoming two sessions - the annual meetings of China’s top legislature and political advisory body.

  Despite a number of high-profile corruption arrests, many experts agree that an effective system of checks and controls that prevent graft is urgently needed…

  A total of 97,260 Party members were punished last year, many of whom were found to have taken bribes or turned a blind eye to their duties. Case files of 3,530 members were handed over to prosecutors, including Shanghai’s former Party chief Chen Liangyu. [Full Text]

  » Read more
  • February 24, 2007 8:49 PM

• Corruption Crackdown Targets Shanghai Inc. - James Areddy

  

  From The Wall Street Journal:

  With its gleaming towers and explosive growth, this city has helped inspire dreams of a China century. Governed for four years by a British-educated architect named Chen Liangyu, Shanghai exuded a can-do attitude that welcomed foreign investment and showcased China’s emergence on the world stage.

  But underneath the boom and glitter, Communist Party leaders in Beijing say, lay a secret: massive corruption.

  Last fall, the party fired Mr. Chen, alleging mismanagement and theft at a city pension fund, influence peddling and other misdeeds. It detained him at an undisclosed location. There, he has made no public comment.[Full Text]

  (Photo: Pension-fund money was used to complete Shanghai’s futuristic Tomorrow Square in 2003.)

  » Read more
  • February 6, 2007 11:17 AM

• Every Red Cent - Susan Jakes

  

  From The China Blog - Time:

  Over the weekend, Xinhua reported the latest in the Shanghai corruption scandal which was responsible for the dismissal of the city’s Communist Party Secretary Chen Liangyu. Chen was removed from his post last September and put under “joint regulations,” a special kind of extra-judicial disciplinary regime reserved for high-ranking members of the Communist Party, for (ostensibly at least) his involvement in embezzling of hundreds of millions of dollars of the city’s pension fund. Since then other officials have been arrested or removed from their posts (again, ostensibly) for their participation in the same affair. The whole probe has been a murky business which may be motivated mostly by political rivalry in the leadership.

  Anyway, Sunday Xinhua ran a story in which Shanghai’s mayor (and acting Party Secretary) Han Zheng cheerfully reports that “the city has retrieved every cent that was siphoned off the Shanghai social security fund for illicit loans and investments last year.” For those of you keeping track, that’s 407.6 million dollars. [Full Text]

  » Read more
  • January 31, 2007 10:22 PM

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