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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| 4,000 corrupt officials bolt with US$50 billion |
| 2004-08-22 |
| Researchers for the Ministry of Commerce estimate that about 4,000 corrupt officials who have fled China in the past two decades transferred US$50 billion out of the country. Many of the big cases involved dirty money being sent to overseas destinations through offshore finance centers. After being presented with the report, Premier Wen Jiabao ordered finance regulators to develop ways to deal with the problem, , reported Shenzhen Daily Tuesday, citing the Monday edition of Beijing's Evening Legal News as the source. Dr. Mei Xinyu, lead writer of the report, told the newspaper that corrupt officials and some private firms were using companies registered in offshore finance centers, such as the British Virgin Islands and the Bahamas, to transfer capital and illicit gains out of China illegally. The researchers estimate that Chinese companies and individuals have registered tens of thousands of firms in such offshore finance centers. China has the world's fourth most serious problem with capital flight, and the annual figure has been rising at half the speed of its foreign debt growth since 1985, reported Mei. The authorities are planning to set up a joint task force to deal with capital flight, he said. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #4 OS: I wonder if that will count for our inport/export balance with China, since a lot of it likely ended up here after being washed in the Bahamas. It's helping to inflate real estate prices in US urban areas - fresh-off-the-boat illegals are stumping up cash to buy inconspicuous residential properties - not the trophy stuff, but the income-producing stuff. And the Chinese government will never see a penny of it. More power to these crooks. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2004-08-22 7:55:41 PM |
| #3 After being presented with the report, Premier Wen Jiabao ordered finance regulators to develop ways to deal with the problem ... Permit me to suggest that the politburo commit mass suicide. This is state sanctioned corruption at its finest. Kleptocracy, Chinese communism is thy name. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-08-22 7:49:51 PM |
| #2 I first read this as corrupt officials leaving with $50 billion in *US* money (i.e. the USA got ripped). I wonder if that will count for our inport/export balance with China, since a lot of it likely ended up here after being washed in the Bahamas. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2004-08-22 3:37:33 PM |
| #1 Kylie's looking good. Those 4,000 officials probably left because Xinhua doesn't put the cheescake on the domestic version of the news. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2004-08-22 12:25:49 PM |