China’s top military command body has moved to tighten Communist Party control over the armed forces with updates to disciplinary rules for party members in the People’s Liberation Army.
The PLA Daily, the military’s official newspaper, reported on Saturday that the revisions were to “actively respond to key concerns” in disciplinary enforcement practice.
It did not specify the changes, but the report came just two weeks after the announcement that top general Zhang Youxia, first vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, was under investigation for corruption, along with another senior officer, Liu Zhenli, chief of the CMC’s Joint Staff Department.
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Analysts said the revisions were a clear effort to “mend the loopholes in military discipline”, with investigators digging deeper into corruption cases in the PLA and passing on any lessons to Chinese President Xi Jinping, the CMC’s chief.
Xi and CMC vice-chairman Zhang Shengmin, who oversees the anti-corruption drive within the military, are the two remaining members of the commission.
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The PLA Daily said the CMC approved the changes and they would take effect from March 1.
