Endless Anti-Corruption Hunt in China... Authorities Say "Crackdown Will Continue"

China's disciplinary authorities have declared that the country's anti-corruption campaign, known as the "tiger hunt," will continue with increased intensity.

The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), the Chinese Communist Party's top disciplinary body, contributed an article to the party's official newspaper, the People's Daily, on the 6th stating that anti-corruption crackdowns will persist. The CCDI emphasized, "We must firmly block any mistaken expectations of changing direction or relaxing controls," and added, "We will maintain a strict tone, strict measures, and a strict atmosphere in the long term, carrying out the Party's great self-revolution to the end."

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According to the Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP), the term "self-revolution" used by the CCDI is mainly employed when referring to the Party's efforts to discipline individual misconduct.

In particular, the CCDI specified that it will apply strong pressure on key sectors such as finance, state-owned enterprises, universities, sports, and agriculture, identifying targets for the crackdown. Recently, the CCDI revealed that it is investigating Li Xiaofeng, former head of the state-owned large bank Everbright Group, and Liu Lianjie, former chairman of the Bank of China, for "serious legal violations."

The importance of political loyalty was also emphasized. The CCDI stated, "We will continue to fight against political conspiracies and factions, eliminating political risks that threaten the Party's unity." This effectively calls for enforcing political discipline within the Party and loyalty to President Xi Jinping's governing ideology. In September last year, Sun Lijun, former deputy minister of security who was charged with leading a political faction, was sentenced to life imprisonment on corruption charges. Five senior police officials related to this case were all detained following a series of purges.

President Xi Jinping also stressed the anti-corruption campaign at the Party Congress held in October last year. At that time, Xi said, "As long as the breeding grounds and conditions for corruption remain, we must continue the fight against corruption without a moment's rest, blowing the trumpet continuously."