The Albany Gazette - Fiji demands US provide evidence Chinese official paid bribes for Beijing

The US State Department on Wednesday accused Zhao Fugang, director of the Overseas Chinese Service Centre in the Pacific nation's capital of Suva, of engaging in "significant corruption".

Washington said Fijian national Zhao used his public position to pay bribes aimed at advancing Chinese government, business and criminal interests.

The prominent local businessman furiously denied the allegations.

And on Friday the Fijian government urged Washington to share "credible information or evidence of alleged offences committed in Fiji".

"While respecting the United States' sovereign right to make decisions under its own laws and policies, the government emphasises that any allegations of unlawful conduct within Fiji must be addressed through the appropriate Fijian legal and law enforcement processes," it said in a post on its official Facebook.

"Allegations do not constitute proof of wrongdoing, and any action taken by Fijian authorities must uphold due process, the presumption of innocence and the rule of law," it added.

An investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project in 2024 alleged Zhao operated as a key pointman for Beijing's interests in Fiji and was a naturalised citizen of the Pacific nation.

It also said Zhao was suspected by Australian law enforcement to be a top player in a transnational syndicate linked to human trafficking, money laundering and drugs smuggling.

His lawyer Nikheel Nambiar told AFP he denied those claims and that allegations of influence-peddling for Beijing were "false and misleading".

Beijing's foreign ministry said while it was not aware of the specifics of his case, "we have always opposed any slander and smear directed at China".

China has sought in recent years to deepen its influence among Pacific Island nations, to the consternation of the United States and its ally Australia.

(B.Smith--TAG)