In a recent reply to the International Association of Lawyers (UIA), which was released on Thursday, Macao's Commission Against Corruption (CCAC) denied UIA' s accusation of its abuse of power, stating that its investigation is subject to the scrutiny of the Public Prosecution Office and the court.

The UIA sent a letter to CCAC on May 11, 2009 and expressed its concerns over the "extensive legal powers" of CCAC, saying the approach the CCAC carried out some procedures related to the case of Ao Man Long led to a "violation of some basic principles of international and domestic law."

Ao Man Long, the disgraced former secretary for transport and public works of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), was the highest-ranking official ever convicted of corruption-related crimes since the establishment of the SAR in 1999. The case of Ao, who has already been sentenced to a 28-year imprisonment, was mainly investigated by the CCAC, which found that Ao received millions of dollars in kickbacks when he was in office. Ao's family members were also involved in the case and were also convicted of different charges.

If special powers are required, such as facilitating extensive search and seizure, not only of the suspects' records but those of his or her relatives, then there must be valid reasons for such requirements and a recognition of the need for robust procedures that stand up to judicial and courtroom scrutiny, UIA said in the letter.

It also said,"An anti-corruption agency with extensive legal powers can not be established in the absence of effective oversight."

In its reply to UIA's letter on June 5, the CCAC said it was established directly under the command of the Basic Law of Macao SAR, functioning as an independent institution, and it has only the power to investigate, not the power to prosecute or to judge, and it is subject to judiciary scrutiny.

As for Ao's case and other related cases, when a search in the official residence of Ao was necessary, the CCAC obtained the order from the investigating judge before doing it, and the search was conducted in conformity with the law, said CCAC.

Meanwhile, all suspects of Ao's case enjoyed the right of defense in accordance with the law and all trials were held in public, the CCAC also said.

Ao was detained by the CCAC in December 2006, and he was prosecuted by the Public Prosecutions Office on June 6, 2007. CCAC previously said that Ao's ill-gotten fortune, a large amount of which had been transferred to overseas accounts, has not yet been fully recovered by the SAR government.

(Xinhua News Agency June 12, 2009)