On the last day of 2019, when people all over the world were immersed in the atmosphere of the New Year's Eve, Japan was disturbed by this man named Ghosn. He disappeared from the eyes of the Japanese police, and by the time he reappeared, he was already in Lebanon. So, who is this Ghosn who has been on the international media hot search list overnight? What kind of bizarre story is behind the "great change of life"?
A few hours ago he was under japanese police surveillance, awaiting trial; a few hours later, he was in Lebanon, thousands of miles away. The experience of Ghosn, the former chairman of Nissan Motor Company, fleeing Japan has become the focus of the global media in recent days.
The People's Daily quoted the British "Guardian" as saying that this was a Hollywood movie-style escape. The New York Times, The Washington Post, the French "Echo" and other media have asked how Ghosn fled from Japan to Lebanon when three passports were confiscated, his home was monitored, and his contact was cut off.
The Japanese government was blown up by this incident. You know, japanese prosecutors have been opposed to Ghosn's bail before, just for fear of such a situation, even if he has paid a total of $13.8 million in bail. Abe's political enemies say that Ghosn's escape shows the incompetence of the government, saying that the Abe government is already in an isolated situation internationally compared to Ghosn's rich relations in the international community.
Ghosn fled, what is the reaction in Japan? Jiang Feng, editor-in-chief of the "New Overseas Chinese Daily" of Japan, pointed out that Ghosn's escape was like a thunderbolt on a sunny day for Japan, and almost all the media in Japan reported on it in an important position on the front page and the social page, and some media directly reported on it with the headline of "The Great Escape", saying that it also brought shock to overseas, and some media used the topic of the Great Escape to explain the shock brought to the world. Japan has always thought that it is a country that is strictly guarded by the judiciary, and the world's legal system is basically a positive evaluation of Japan's legal system, so the Japanese media reported that Ghosn's escape was a sunny day for Japan. A suspect from a foreigner ran away on bail in this way, something that would never have been imagined. Moreover, after this matter came out, all departments of the Japanese government were unwilling to take responsibility. Since there is no record of going abroad when Ghosn fled, then this matter involves Japan's Ministry of Justice, and now Japan's Ministry of Justice also says that he does not take responsibility; the ministry of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism in Charge of managing the airport is Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, and now the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has also stood up and said that it is not responsible; in addition, the Japanese procuratorate has also stood up to say that the procuratorate has opposed his bail from the beginning. Therefore, after this kind of thing happens, although they are not willing to carry the pot, in the end, someone must stand up and take responsibility.
Born in Brazil, the Frenchman Ghosn, whose parents are Lebanese, is very legendary. The 24-year-old Ghosn joined the Michelin tire company, and won the reputation of "cost killer" for many years of hard work; in 1996, he switched to Renault Automobile, bringing the hard-working atmosphere into the French company; in 1999, he took over the nearly bankrupt Nissan Automobile in a suspicious look, helping the company turn losses into profits and staged a surprising counterattack. However, after becoming the top celebrity in the global automotive field, Ghosn, who is a European, began to deepen the contradiction with Japanese companies because of his incompatibility with Japanese culture. Ghosn loves to swing wide, which is completely contrary to Japanese culture. He once complained about "practicing a 30- to 60-degree bow" to accommodate Japanese companies, but ultimately believed that the "repair company" was the reason for him to take over Nissan.
In November 2018, Ghosn was arrested shortly after arriving in Japan on a private jet. He faces four charges, including concealing income and enriching himself through deals with dealers in the Middle East. He has denied the allegations and spent more than 120 days in detention until he was released on bail for the second time at the end of April. In order to obtain restricted freedom in Japan, Ghosn paid a deposit of 1.5 billion yen in two installments. But the conditions for his freedom were extremely harsh, and Ghosn not only handed over all his passports, but was also forbidden to meet his wife, could only move around in a house in Tokyo, and even had to go to a designated office to access the Internet.
On January 2, prosecutors in Tokyo, Japan, searched Ghosn's residence to investigate the details of his escape.
Under previous bail conditions, Ghosn's residence in Tokyo was closely monitored by cameras outside his residence in Tokyo, and he could only use a designated computer to access the Internet in his lawyer's office, almost cutting off all contact with the outside world.
Details of how he passed through Japanese customs and successfully flew to Lebanon remain unclear. The French, Lebanese and Brazilian passports he holds are currently seized in Japan and held in the custody of his lawyers. According to the Washington Post, his chief lawyer, Koichiro Hironaka, said Ghosn's escape stunned him like a thunderbolt on a sunny day.
Lebanese media MTV TV restored Ghosn's escape process, the media said that on the eve of the New Year's Eve, Ghosn invited a band to perform the New Year, and the real identity of the band members is actually some former special forces members, they came specifically to rescue Ghosn. After the performance, Ghosn hid in a special instrument case to escape, after which they avoided the heavily guarded Tokyo airport, drove all the way to Osaka Kansai Airport, deceived customs officers with fake passports, and left in a private plane. The Japanese government was unaware of Ghosn's escape, and it was not until Ghosn arrived in Lebanon and issued a statement that various Japanese departments knew he had escaped.
Ghosn, who successfully fled to Lebanon, did not choose to keep a low profile, and as soon as he arrived, he issued a statement saying that he was now in Lebanon and was no longer bound by the unfair Japanese judicial system. He accused Japan's judicial system of ignoring international obligations under international law and international treaties, presupposing guilt, extensive discrimination and denying basic human rights. He argued that his escape was not an escape from trial, but from injustice and political persecution. He also predicted that a press conference would be held on the 8th, and the outside world predicted that he would launch a new round of accusations against Japan.
The Lebanon where Ghosn fled was where his career began, and he had a huge popularity in the local area. After Ghosn was arrested in Japan in 2018, a huge poster with his head was erected to support him, and the line at the bottom read "We are all Ghosn".
Reuters reported that after Ghosn arrived in Lebanon, he met with the Lebanese president and was "warmly welcomed". But the Lebanese presidential palace denied the meeting between the two. However, the Lebanese Foreign Ministry issued a statement on December 31, 2019, saying that Ghosn had entered the country legally, saying that in Ghosn's case, the Lebanese Foreign Ministry had repeatedly tried to contact the Japanese government and had not received a response. On the same day, the Lebanese security services also issued a statement confirming that Ghosn would not face any legal proceedings in Lebanon.
Ghosn fled to Lebanon, what can the Japanese Abe government do with him? And how will you clean up the mess? Jiang Feng, editor-in-chief of Japan's New Overseas Chinese Daily, said that there are many factors behind this matter, or there are many forces. According to reports in the Japanese media, the Lebanese government was directly involved in this matter and sent so-called elite troops. At present, it should be said that there is no completely certain statement on this matter, but in any case, such an important foreign suspect can escape under the close surveillance of the Japanese police, which is a shame for the Japanese police, a shame for Japanese law, and a shame for the Japanese judiciary. Now Japan is discussing whether to negotiate with the Lebanese government, or to issue a red wanted notice to Interpol, or to try Ghosn in absentia, all kinds of possible solutions are being prepared, but in the context of people who have fled, the difficulty coefficient of this problem is really great, and this matter is also a major touchstone to test Japan's position in international relations in 2020.