China Media Group:

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in the report to the 20th CPC National Congress that we have launched an unprecedented anti-corruption campaign. How should we view the achievements of the past decade in the fight against corruption?

Xiao Pei:

Corruption is the easiest way to overthrow a government. As such, anti-corruption is the most thorough self-reform. It is an important judgment made in the report to the 20th CPC National Congress that we have launched an unprecedented fight against corruption in the new era, and an overwhelming victory has been achieved during this anti-corruption campaign and consolidated in an all-round way. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, among the 553 officials registered at and supervised by the CPC Central Committee who have been examined and investigated by the CCDI of the CPC and the National Supervisory Commission, there were 49 full members or alternate members of the 18th CPC Central Committee, 12 members of the 18th CCDI, 12 full members or alternate members of the 19th CPC Central Committee, and six members of the 19th CCDI. A total of 207,000 leading officials at all levels have been examined and investigated by the discipline inspection and supervision departments nationwide. Relying on the advantages of our system and the rule of law, the Party has written a new chapter in the history of the fight against corruption with a firm resolve to "root up rotten ones." The anti-corruption campaign has been carried out for 10 years and never stops, just as a blacksmith spends years in honing the perfect blade. The Party has always insisted that all those involved in corruption and embezzlement must be prosecuted and punished, fulfilling General Secretary Xi Jinping's statement after the 18th CPC National Congress that: "Without exception and regardless of how high their position, no one will be immune from investigation, and violators will be heavily punished for any contravention of laws and Party discipline. It is by no means an empty promise."

First, the CPC has strengthened the centralized and unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee over anti-corruption work. The CCDI has been working together with the National Supervisory Commission which was established during the restructuring of the Chinese government. That has helped to reshape the anti-corruption leadership system, the organizational structure, the work force, the responsibility system, and the discipline enforcement mechanism.

Second, the spread of corruption has been decisively stemmed. Since the 19th CPC National Congress, discipline inspection and supervision departments have investigated and prosecuted more than 74,000 people suspected of corruption and bribery. Among them, 48% were involved in corruption for the first time before the 18th CPC National Congress and 11% after the 19th CPC National Congress, which shows that the continuous endeavors to fight corruption have made effective achievements, greatly reducing corruption and curbing its occurrence. Inspired by strict constraints, deterrence and policies, more than 80,000 people have voluntarily turned themselves into the discipline inspection and supervision departments since the 19th CPC National Congress. At the same time, the number of tip-offs and complaint letters has declined for four years in a row, with a drop of 29.9% in 2021 compared with that in 2018.

Third, cracking down on corruption of low-ranking officials which directly affects ordinary people's lives. At the second plenary session of the 18th CCDI held after the 18th CPC National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping required that we should target both "tigers" (high-ranking corrupt officials) and "flies" (low-ranking corrupt officials). It won the respect and trust of the Chinese people. Over the past decade of the new era, the Party has always put the people first. We have cracked down on "tigers" and "flies." Moreover, we have firmly tackled the problems that were ignoring the people's interests. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, discipline inspection and supervisory authorities nationwide have investigated and handled over 650,000 cases of corruption and misconduct in areas related to people's livelihoods, such as education, medical care, pensions and social security, law enforcement and the judiciary. It has made the people feel that they have benefited from the Party's efforts to follow the full and rigorous self-governance and to fight against corruption. People's satisfaction has been significantly improved. The CCDI and the National Bureau of Statistics have jointly conducted public opinion surveys for the past 10 years. This year's survey shows that 97.4% of the respondents believe that the full and rigorous self-governance of the Party has been effective, up 22.4 percentage points from 2012. Furthermore, 99% of the respondents believed that the measures taken by the CPC Central Committee to tighten discipline, improve Party conduct and fight corruption reflected the Party's spirit of self-reform.

The report to the 20th CPC National Congress points out that full and rigorous self-governance is an unceasing endeavor and that self-reform is a journey to which there is no end. As long as the breeding grounds and conditions for corruption still exist, we must keep sounding the bugle and never rest, not even for a minute, in our fight against corruption. The anti-corruption campaign can only be advanced, not retreated. We will endeavor to win the tough and protracted battle against corruption. Moreover, we will take coordinated action to make officials not dare, not able, and not want to commit corruption. We will improve systems and mechanisms to prevent the spread of corruption so that severe punishment, regulation of the use of power, education and guidance will be coordinated and linked, and we can achieve more institutional results and greater effects in governance. Thank you.