Top Chinese prosecutor highlights self-discipline among procurators

China's top prosecutor Cao Jianming on Thursday promised zero tolerance for graft among procurators themselves, as the country tightens its grip on rampant corruption.

Speaking at a high-level conference of the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP), Cao said prosecutors are an important force in the anti-corruption drive, and stricter standards should be applied to the monitoring of supervisors.

He said Chinese prosecutors should have zero tolerance for graft cases among their own, and that there should be no blind spots in the anti-graft campaign.

The top prosecutor called for greater scrutiny and harsher punishments in cases in which procurators bend the law for personal gains and favors.

Special attention should focus on prosecutors' powers in personnel promotion and demotion and decision making, Cao said, adding that the power of prosecution should be contained within a "cage of regulations".

China is in the middle of a high-profile anti-graft campaign that has seen dozens of provincial-level government officials toppled.

More than 10,000 officials were investigated by the SPP for corruption between January and March this year.