Manuel Chang extradited to the US from South Africa
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The government of South Africa has handed over Manual Chang to the United States early on Wednesday morning to stand trial in New York for his role in the “Secret Debt” scandal. The former Mozambican minister of finance is alleged to have played a central role in the corruption that triggered a sovereign default in that country. He was handed over to members of the FBI, who arrived on a US Dept of Justice jet on Saturday. Chang remained incarcerated as the final details of the extradition were put into place.
In May 2023, the South African constitutional court denied the Mozambican government leave to appeal a 2021 high court ruling that overturned the decision by the South African justice minister to surrender Chang to Mozambique. The high court had ruled that Chang be turned over to the US instead.
The South African minister of justice, Ronald Lamola, was challenged by a Mozambican civil society organisations, who argued that Chang has immunity from prosecution as a member of Mozambique’s parliament. They further argued that his position in society would provide him with cover from facing any real consequences.
Chang was indicted in a New York district court on 19 December 2018 on charges that include conspiracy to commit fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit money-laundering.
The charges stem from an elaborate fraud scheme that led to Mozambique defaulting on debt payments in 2016.
Mozambican SOE’s
Three years prior to this, then-Finance Minister Chang signed off on state guarantees for €2 billion of loans extended to Mozambican state owned enterprises by foreign banks, including Credit Suisse.
Some of this money originated from US investors, which was intended to support and develop the tuna fishing industry of the country, including purchasing coastal patrol vessels and trawlers. US prosecutors allege that this money flowed to Chang as well as a network politically connected people associated with him. This network is said to include the son of former president Armando Guebuza.
Ten days after the indictment, Chang was arrested in Johannesburg. The US filed a formal extradition request in January 2019 and Mozambique followed suit in February that year.
Competing interests
Faced with two competing requests, South Africa’s then-minister of justice, Michael Masutha decided in May to surrender Chang to Mozambique.
Shortly afterwards, Masutha was replaced by Lamola, who asked the high court to set aside the decision and refer the matter back to him. The minister opposed an application by Chang demanding that he either be returned to Mozambique or released.
The court held, in a ruling that would become known as Chang I, that it “would make no sense to extradite a person to a place where he cannot be prosecuted” and that hence the only valid request was that filed by US authorities. It referred the matter back to Lamola.
