By Richard Silk
BEIJING--Chinese anticorruption agents are investigating a
senior official at a government agency that has probed Microsoft
Corp. and global pharmaceutical majors amid China's tougher
enforcement of its anticompetition laws.
Sun Hongzhi, vice minister of the State Administration for
Industry and Commerce, has been put under investigation, the
Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said
in a one-line statement posted on its website Friday.
The 49-year-old Mr. Sun is accused of "serious discipline
violations," the statement said, a standard euphemism for
corruption. Under usual procedures, the Communist Party
investigates officials internally first, before handing them over
to civil authorities.
The SAIC didn't respond to a request for comment.
The agency, China's antimonopoly and business standards
watchdog, gained a higher profile this year with a series of
investigations into foreign companies.
In July, Chinese investigators conducted surprise inspections at
Microsoft offices in Beijing and other cities. The SAIC said
Microsoft had failed to disclose information on the security
features of some of its products. The investigation has yet to be
completed.
Microsoft said in September that it was "committed to complying
with China's laws and addressing SAIC's questions and
concerns."
The SAIC was also involved in bribery investigations into a
clutch of foreign drug companies, including GlaxoSmithKline PLC.
Glaxo was fined nearly $500 million by a Chinese court in September
after an investigation lasting more than a year. Foreign auto
makers and chip manufacturers have also been probed by the
SAIC.
The head of the agency told a conference in Beijing on Thursday
that cracking down on monopolies and commercial espionage would
remain the SAIC's priority in 2015, according to the state-owned
China Daily newspaper.
A wide-ranging campaign against corruption and waste has been
the signature policy of Chinese President Xi Jinping, who took
office last year. Among the thousands of officials snared so far,
the highest ranking is Zhou Yongkang, a former head of China's
internal security apparatus long considered untouchable.
Write to Richard Silk at richard.silk@wsj.com
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