Anti-Corruption

Beyond anti-corruption: Xi Jinping’s next push to tighten control over China’s officials

As the Chinese Communist Party prepares for its Fifth Plenum, the leadership is looking beyond its anti-corruption campaign to tighten discipline, enforce political loyalty and rein in bureaucratic dysfunction. Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong gives her analysis.

Han Yong Hong

23 Oct 2026

[Big read] China’s fifth plenum: What ongoing purges reveal about Xi Jinping’s power layout

From purged top generals to bypassed central cadres, China’s personnel arrangements are at their most chaotic in years. What can the upcoming fifth plenum tell us about its future leadership pipeline? Lianhe Zaobao journalist Miao Zong-Han speaks to analysts to find out more.

Miaw Zong-Han

20 Oct 2026

Former Chongqing mayor who outlasted Bo Xilai meets his downfall

Huang Qifan survived the downfall of two Chongqing party bosses and earned a reputation as a political untouchable. Now, nearly a decade after leaving office, he is under investigation. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei examines his career.

Sim Tze Wei

15 Oct 2026

Prof Daniel A. Bell: Ancient Chinese thoughts asked questions that still matter today

Professor Daniel A. Bell has spent decades studying China, its political system and philosophies. In an interview with Lianhe Zaobao video producer Audrey Jiajia Li, he shares his views about leadership, anti-corruption and Confucian principles.

Audrey Jiajia Li

01 Oct 2026

Zhu Rongji’s death triggers China’s ‘superpolitics’

The close proximity in timing of the death of former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji, the commemoration of former President Jiang Zemin’s 100th birth anniversary and the upcoming fifth plenum may give Zhongnanhai some cause for worry, says commentator Deng Yuwen.

Deng Yuwen

13 Aug 2026

Zhu Rongji: A legacy of transforming China’s economy and forging relations with ASEAN

A key standard-bearer of 1990s economic reform, former Premier Zhu Rongji, who passed away on 12 August, leaves a lasting imprint on China’s taxation, state-owned enterprises, accession to the World Trade Organization, and even on ASEAN. Lianhe Zaobao’s Sim Tze Wei and Tan Ke-Yang take a look at his legacy.

Sim Tze Wei, Tan Ke-Yang

13 Aug 2026

From property boom to AI: China’s next corruption risk

The downfall of former Politburo member Ma Xingrui exposes how political influence and commercial interests became intertwined during China’s property boom. In the AI age, can new forms of public resources be governed without creating new opportunities for rent-seeking? Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei explores.

Sim Tze Wei

23 Jul 2026

Purged generals, flying missiles: China’s military paradox

As sweeping anti-corruption investigations continue to shake the People’s Liberation Army, Beijing has responded not with words but with high-profile missile tests, seeking to demonstrate that its strategic nuclear deterrent remains intact despite the ongoing purge. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei explains.

Sim Tze Wei

09 Jul 2026

Top tigers fall in Xi’s endless purge

A fresh wave of high-level investigations suggests Beijing’s anti-corruption drive is no longer a periodic campaign but an enduring mechanism for strengthening party discipline and political control. Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong analyses China’s efforts.

Han Yong Hong

03 Jul 2026

China’s military purge is reaching the heart of Xi’s reformed PLA

China’s military purge has widened with six senior PLA officers removed from the National People’s Congress, signalling that the anti-corruption campaign is still expanding. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei reports on the crackdown’s reach and implications.

Sim Tze Wei

01 Jul 2026

[Big read] Inside China’s arts exam shadow market

Behind China’s arts entrance exams lies a costly world of influence and opaque deals, where talent alone rarely secures a place. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Qi Lu speaks to those who have lived through such experiences, and to academics who explain how the system works.

Qi Lu

23 Jun 2026

China delivers its harshest military corruption sentences in years

China’s crackdown on corruption among high-level officials has recently meted out one of its most severe punishments for two former military leaders. Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong takes a look at the downfall of the top brass over the years.

Han Yong Hong

08 May 2026