In China, Xi鈥檚 purge targets corruption 鈥� and rivals
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Ann Scott Tyson Staff writer
| Beijing
Chinese leader Xi Jinping is intensifying a major purge of top military and Communist Party officials that he began two years ago, a move expected to bolster his already formidable power.
While ostensibly aimed at rooting out corruption and enforcing party discipline, the purge is nearly unprecedented in terms of both the number and rank of the toppled officials. This suggests the removals are as much about Mr. Xi鈥檚 strategy to control China鈥檚 military and political elite as they are about individual malfeasance.
A plenum of the party鈥檚 ruling Central Committee last week expelled more members from its ranks 鈥� 14 members and alternates 鈥撀爐han any such meeting since 2017. Nearly 1 in 6 of the 376 officials named to the committee when its term began in 2022 were absent from the plenum. That was the lowest attendance at such a meeting since the late 1970s, experts say, and an indication of the scope of officials who have fallen into disfavor.
Why We Wrote This
Top Chinese leaders generally keep their machinations to themselves. But the current purge of top generals and Communist Party officials suggests that President Xi Jinping is maneuvering to ward off potential rivals for the top job, as well as to curb corruption.
Perhaps most striking was the formal ousting of nine generals, including He Weidong, who was a member of the party鈥檚 24-man Politburo and the No. 2 official on the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC), chaired by Mr. Xi. General He was the first vice-chairman of the CMC to be purged in decades 鈥� since Marshal He Long was removed at the start of Mao Zedong鈥檚 radical Cultural Revolution in 1967.
That leaves the CMC, the pinnacle of China鈥檚 military leadership, which oversees its 2-million-strong armed forces, with only four of its seven seats filled.
鈥淚t鈥檚 quite jarring 鈥� these are very, very senior people,鈥� says Lyle Goldstein, director of the Asia Program at Defense Priorities, a U.S. think tank. 鈥淚t is almost unprecedented, the removals at this level.鈥�
The recent purges of Chinese generals reflect the challenge that Mr. Xi faces to ensure he keeps the military in check. Mr. Xi understands well Mao鈥檚 dictum that, in China, 鈥渢he party controls the gun,鈥� says Dr. Goldstein, 鈥渂ut in practice it鈥檚 quite difficult because the military has so much power and prestige.鈥� Mr. Xi, he says 鈥渨ants this very complete control.鈥�
Corruption long a target
Since coming to power as China鈥檚 top leader in 2012, Mr. Xi has made anti-corruption a signature policy 鈥� with the dual purpose of rooting out the graft that is endemic in China鈥檚 opaque, one-party state while also eliminating perceived political rivals.
Under Mr. Xi, millions of party, government, and military officials have been investigated, sacked, and jailed for corruption, a crackdown largely welcomed by ordinary Chinese citizens.
When he won a rare, third five-year term as head of the party in 2022, Mr. Xi vowed to push the anti-graft drive further. In 2023, that campaign targeted the People鈥檚 Liberation Army鈥檚 rocket force and equipment department, eventually netting two defense chiefs and numerous generals.
Mr. Xi has 鈥渞eal concerns about old-fashioned corruption,鈥� says Jonathan Czin, a fellow in the John L. Thornton China Center at the Brookings Institution. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a ton of money sloshing around the system as they build out their nuclear forces and go through all this procurement,鈥� he says.
But since 2012, Mr. Xi has also used the campaign to crush opponents, eliminate rival political factions, and steadily consolidate power, to emerge today as arguably the most dominant Chinese leader since Mao. Though he has surrounded himself at the top with a coterie of hand-selected loyalists, Mr. Xi continues to wield purges as a tool to maintain control 鈥� even if it means sacking people he appointed.
鈥淭his is 鈥� a sign of [Xi鈥檚] dominance, that even the people he鈥檚 picked for the top of the system 鈥� they鈥檙e disposable,鈥� says Mr. Czin, a former senior analyst of Chinese politics for the U.S. intelligence community.
鈥淭his is a feature, not a bug of how he rules,鈥� he says, designed to keep people on their toes. 鈥淗e can make them 鈥� he can break them.鈥�
A self-cleansing Communist Party?
On a more philosophical level, Mr. Xi鈥檚 purges reflect his theory of 鈥渟elf-revolution鈥� 鈥� the idea that the Communist Party must renew and police itself from within. Convinced that tight, Leninist-style party control over Chinese society, the economy, and politics is the country鈥檚 best hope for his goal of national rejuvenation, Mr. Xi is betting on 鈥渟elf-revolution鈥� to buttress the party鈥檚 legitimacy.
Yet one key question hangs over what this will ultimately mean for Mr. Xi鈥檚 own succession. Many China watchers believe the escalating purge could reflect Mr. Xi鈥檚 concerns that, as he gets older, more competitors will emerge to jockey for his post.
Last week鈥檚 plenum issued a communique that called on 鈥渢he whole Party, the entire military, and Chinese people of all ethnic groups to rally more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core.鈥�
While the inner workings of China鈥檚 party leadership are largely hidden from view, personnel moves will continue to be closely scrutinized with the approach of 2027 鈥� the year Mr. Xi would seek a fourth, five-year term.
