CHINA-PLA: ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN
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Xinhua reported on August 10, 2015, that a military court had that day sentenced Gu Junshan, former deputy head of the General Logistics Department of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, to death with a two-year reprieve for corruption. Gu Junshan was found guilty of embezzlement, accepting bribes, misuse of state funds, bribery and abuse of power. He has been deprived of his political rights for life and had all his personal assets confiscated, according to a statement from the court. Gu Junshan has also been stripped of his rank of Lieutenant General. Gu Bochong, an officer with the PLA's General Political Department (GPD) and member of the China Writers' Association, wrote an article which was published in the CCP's official mouthpiece People's Daily on August 10, 2015, which carried a rare denunciation of the continuing influence of retired leaders. The People's Daily commentary criticised unnamed "retired leaders" for clinging to power and causing rifts within the party.It said "Some leaders not only installed their cronies (in key positions) to create conditions for them to wield influence in future, but also wanted to intervene in the major issues of the organisation they formerly worked for, even many years after they retired." It added that such actions made new leaders feel that their "hands and feet" were fettered by having to work within "unnecessary concerns" and "also has made some organisations... split up into groups and become demoralised... undermining the party's cohesion and capabilities." Comparing a leader's retirement to the waning temperature of a hot drink, it said "The tea must cool after the guest left, otherwise it will go bad," and "It should become a norm that when you leave office, you leave your opinions behind."
(Comment: Publication of the signed commentary coincides with announcement of the sentence against dismissed Lt General Gu Junshan and has triggered speculation within China of the existence of factions led by retired veteran cadres, especially Jiang Zemin.)
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