China remains silent on missing Interpol chief
>> BEIJING: China remained silent yesterday over the disappearance of the head of Interpol, deepening the mystery over the international police chief’s fate after reports said he was detained for questioning on arrival in his homeland.
Meng Hongwei, 64, was last seen leaving for China in late September from the Interpol headquarters in Lyon, southeast France, a source close to the enquiry said. His wife has since reported him missing.
It is the latest high-profile disappearance in China, where a number of top government officials, billionaire business magnates and even an A-list celebrity have vanished for weeks or months at a time.
Beijing has so far said nothing on Mr Meng’s case. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to a request for comment.
But news of his absence was swiftly followed by speculation that Mr Meng — who also serves as a vice-minister of China’s Ministry of Public Security — had been swept up in Beijing’s secretive anti-corruption campaign.
Citing an anonymous source, the South China Morning Post said authorities from the country’s disciplinary commission had snatched Mr Meng upon arrival in Beijing. China’s recently established National Supervisory Commission holds sweeping powers to investigate the country’s public servants with few requirements for transparency.
While the law requires authorities to inform family members of a detention, it makes exceptions for cases involving national security, terrorism, or concerns over destruction of evidence or witness tampering. People have been known to disappear into the commission’s custody for weeks or even months without a word.
Interpol has also kept quiet on Mr Meng’s whereabouts. “This is a matter for the relevant authorities in both France and China,” the police agency said on Twitter, adding it would make no further comment. It is not clear why Mr Meng — the first Chinese president of Interpol — would be under investigation.
Chinese president Xi Jinping has presided over a popular anti-graft drive since coming to power in 2012 that has punished more than one million officials, with critics comparing it to a political purge.