Live conference unveils official anti-graft efforts

Source:Global Times Published: 2013-1-11 0:58:01

The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of the Communist Party of China and the Ministry of Supervision Wednesday televised live a news conference to brief the public on its investigations in 2012, which was widely interpreted as a sign of more transparency in the fields of discipline inspection and supervision.

The CCDI said it investigated into over 150,000 cases last year and more than 160,000 people were punished. The number indicates that the discipline watchdog is the main force of China's anti-corruption campaign.

The public has been deeply impressed with the anti-corruption storm on Weibo, but in fact, the number of officials caught by Web users has been much fewer. But anti-corruption campaigns via Weibo draw all Web users into supervision efforts, creating quite a media sensation.

It seems the low key approach of discipline authorities makes online anti-corruption efforts appear more overwhelming, despite the former actually achieving more than the public knows. However, the discipline watchdog's work will be more transparent and regularly release information of those high profile cases in the future. This is an irreversible trend.

The increased number of investigated cases and punished officials doesn't mean corruption is getting worse in China. Instead, this is the result of the firm and decisive attitude of authorities fighting against corruption. The work of the CCDI reassures the public, making them believe the country is serious about cracking down on corruption.

Public engagement has become a feature of anti-corruption work. Publicizing official anti-corruption information is a positive response to changes in modern society. Otherwise, rumors are more likely to spread.

Publicizing official anti-corruption work is very sensitive, as it involves the fates of officials, but authorities initiated the change. This is inspiring. It symbolizes that the management style of the Chinese government is undergoing profound changes.

Corruption is a prominent problem in China. The public is confused as to the severity of corruption and whether corruption could be wiped out. One of the reasons is that Chinese officialdom is still too mysterious. But in today's society, such mysteries cannot help officials build authority, but instead bring suspicion upon them.

The government needs to be more transparent. As long as cases don't involve State secrets, they should be publicized. Blocking the message or playing down incidents are the worst choices.



The article is an editorial published in the Chinese edition of the Global Times Thursday.



Posted in: Observer

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