Mining group officials admit accepting bribes in Shanghai

AN Australian executive and three Chinese officials with mining giant Rio Tinto have pleaded guilty to accepting bribes in a Shanghai court.

Lawyers yesterday said Stern Hu and the three Chinese nationals – Liu Caikui, Ge Minqiang and Wang Yong – pleaded guilty, but disputed the amounts they are alleged to have accepted. They still face charges on stealing commercial secrets.

The case has led to strained relations between China and Australia.

“Like the other three executives, Hu also pleaded guilty to the bribery part. He was very calm when the case was under the trial,” said Tao Wuping, the lawyer for Liu.

The case has been used as an example of the hazards of doing business in China, but the guilty pleas may be an embarrassment for Rio Tinto, which has been saying its employees were innocent and which is again involved in tough iron ore price negotiations with China.

Australia’s consul-general in Shanghai, Tom Connor, told reporters that “during the course of the trial, Mr Hu made some admissions concerning those two bribery amounts. So he did acknowledge the truth of some of those bribery amounts.”

Rio Tinto has urged authorities to handle the case quickly and openly. In the meantime, it is moving ahead with its business in China, the world’s biggest steel maker and its biggest consumer of iron ore.

China accounted for 24% of Rio Tinto’s revenues last year and the company recently appointed a new top executive for China. On Friday, it announced an agreement with China’s state-run aluminum giant Chinalco to develop an iron ore reserve in the West African country of Guinea.

The case comes as many foreign executives complain of a chilling of what was once a warm welcome in China.

The American Chamber of Commerce released a report yesterday showing a growing number of foreign businesses in China – 38% of those surveyed – feel shut out under new government policies promoting homegrown technology.

The data portrays a steadily worsening environment for foreign firms in China over the past three years. Only 23% said they felt unwelcome in the chamber’s 2008 survey.

Zhai Jian, the lawyer for Ge, said his client pleaded guilty, but the bribery part of the trial will not end until today.

Wang’s lawyer Zhang Peihong said his client admitted accepting a “small amount” of money, but denied charges that he took $9 million (€6.6m).

Hu and the other three also face charges of stealing secrets in the trial which is expected to end tomorrow.

The four were arrested nine months ago when Rio Tinto was acting as lead negotiator for global iron ore suppliers in price talks with Chinese steel mills. Hu was Rio Tinto’s senior executive in China in charge of iron ore.

The trial was closed to foreign media.