Senior Chilean lawmaker investigated over actions involving Chinese businessman

A high-ranking Chilean lawmaker is facing renewed scrutiny after records showed she helped arrange for a Chinese businessman to join an official parliamentary trip to China, where he coordinated logistics and took part in meetings with mainland authorities. Messages revealed by investigators on Thursday showed Karol Cariola, a member of Chile’s Communist Party and former president of the country’s Chamber of Deputies, may have used her position to benefit a Chinese national on several occasions. Prosecutors are now examining whether her actions amount to influence peddling, an allegation she denies. No formal charges have been filed. The businessman, Bo Yang, does not hold public office. But messages obtained by prosecutors and revealed by local media on Thursday showed that during a July 2024 trip to Beijing, he issued instructions to lawmakers, organised schedules and meals, and was present at formal events alongside Chinese officials. Investigators say Yang was included in the delegation at Cariola’s request. Little is publicly known about Yang, who is referred to in many messages as “Emilio”. He owns a retail centre in Santiago called Chinamart and has appeared frequently at events involving Chinese-Chilean business relations. Investigators described Yang as an “informal political operator” who maintained close ties with Cariola and was involved in coordinating activities with multiple lawmakers. He is also said to have prepared briefing materials for government officials and to have gifted Cariola items following the birth of her son. The case began in 2022 after a message surfaced in which Cariola asked the then-mayor of Santiago, Irací Hassler, to help renew a liquor licence for a business owned by Yang. While the request was denied, it prompted prosecutors to open a formal inquiry. Authorities seized Cariola’s phone during a court-ordered operation in March. Investigators say the contents revealed a pattern of interactions between the lawmaker and various Chilean government officials, including efforts to secure meetings or support on Yang’s behalf. In one message, Cariola told Nicolás Grau, the country’s economy minister, that she had passed a confidential memo, prepared by Yang, to President Gabriel Boric ahead of Boric’s trip to China in 2023. In another exchange, she contacted a former interior ministry official to ask for help with a Chinese traveller connected to Yang and detained at Santiago’s airport. Prosecutors said the messages reflected a consistent effort by Cariola to use her position for private assistance. A second investigation is under way involving separate messages in which she asked two former Chilean mayors to help resolve Yang’s unpaid fines and a suspended licence. Cariola has said none of her actions were illegal. Her lawyers say the evidence includes personal messages that should not be part of the investigation. On Thursday, her defence filed a formal complaint accusing the prosecutor’s office of violating a March court order that limited how the phone data could be used. The complaint says the case file includes private exchanges between Cariola and her mother, including messages discussing gifts from Yang. Her lawyer, Juan Carlos Manríquez, said the disclosure of those messages represented a breach of privacy and due process. A hearing has been scheduled for July 8. Yang’s presence on the 2024 China trip has drawn particular attention. According to investigative documents, Cariola added Yang to the delegation’s internal chat group. Messages showed him taking a lead role in coordinating travel and events. He also appeared in photos with lawmakers during meetings with Chinese officials. Although his role was informal, Yang’s involvement in official events prompted the Chinese embassy in Santiago to issue a statement in March publicly distancing itself from him. “The channels of communication of this diplomatic mission with the government and National Congress of Chile are direct and fluid,” the embassy said. “Under no circumstances does the embassy use any intermediary to communicate with Chilean authorities,” it added, saying that while Chinese citizens were encouraged to engage with Chilean society, suggestions that Yang operated under the embassy’s authority were “not true”. Yang has not commented publicly since the investigation began. Lawmakers who travelled with him said he helped with logistics and protocol, but it remained unclear whether he held any formal status during the trip. Cariola, who stepped down as president of the Chamber of Deputies in March following the scandal, has long maintained ties with Chinese officials through the Interparliamentary Group Chile-China. She has met with senior Communist Party leaders in Beijing, supported Chinese-led trade initiatives and called for expanded investment from Chinese companies in Chile. Last year, for example, she met with Zhao Leji, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, and said she was committed to “Chile-China friendship”, which, according to her statement, is “based on shared values such as upholding international law, multilateralism and free trade”. Xinhua also reported at the time that, during the meeting, she told Zhao that “Chile firmly upholds the one-China principle and that political parties and all sectors of society in Chile are highly consistent in developing their relations with China”. Boric has said the courts must be allowed to act independently but expressed concern about the timing of the police search at Cariola’s residence, as Chile will have national elections in November. Jeannette Jara, the Chilean Communist Party’s presidential hopeful, said the facts must be clarified and acknowledged that “not everyone has the ability to call a mayor to make requests”, though she added she did not view the messages as improper. Lautaro Carmona, general secretary of the Chilean Communist Party, defended Cariola and backed her claim that the investigation was politically motivated.

Senior Chilean lawmaker investigated over actions involving Chinese businessman

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Records show ex-president of country’s lower house helped arrange for retail centre owner to join official parliamentary trip to mainland

Records show ex-president of country’s lower house helped arrange for retail centre owner to join official parliamentary trip to mainland