China drafts law to curb 'naked officials'

China's southern Guangdong Province has drafted the country's first provincial-level law that vows to place no "naked officials" in leading positions.

Referring to officials who have moved their spouses and children abroad, "naked officials" are targeted as high-risk groups in the ongoing crackdown on corruption initiated by the Chinese leadership.

The Guangdong Corruption Prevention Rules (Draft), which is soliciting public opinions, say such officials should not assume leading positions and other "important and sensitive" posts in areas like security, finance and personnel.

The draft also bans leading officials from going into business or getting hired by companies in regions or sectors under their administration in a three-year stint after their retirement or resignation.

Their spouses and children will be prohibited from doing business or taking up senior posts in foreign companies in the same regions or sectors in an attempt to prevent power peddling.

Moreover, officials to be promoted to leading posts will be required to report their financial status including properties and investment, as well as employment of their spouses and children. Such information should be made public "to some extent," the draft said.

Liu Cheng, associate professor at the Sun Yat-sen University and a drafter of the legislation, said the law was the first in China to specify the positions off-limit for "naked officials."

The legislation is not free from controversy, though. Some questioned the law for being too harsh and unfairly targeting officials whose spouses came from Hong Kong and Macao, which abut on Guangdong, Liu said.

But Li Chengyan, professor at the Peking University who also took part in the drafting, said the law shows resolution against corruption. It was vital to destroy the routine for corrupt officials to use their emigrated families to transfer assets overseas and prepare for their own flights, he said.

EXAMPLE SETTING

Much spotlight was trained on the new law drafted by Guangdong, which has long taken the lead in the country in toughening up on "naked officials."

The wealthy coastal province is reported to be one of the country's worst for "naked officials". In July, the province ferreted out 2,190 "naked officials," including 22 in senior positions.

The province also reported in June that 866 such officials had been demoted or asked to resign or retire early, while about 200 others agreed to bring back their emigrated families.

China has tightened its grip on the group in recent years following a spate of corruption cases involving "naked officials."

Among the high-rank "naked officials" were Zhang Shuguang, former deputy chief engineer of the now-gone Ministry of Railways, who was given suspended death penalty for taking bribes, while at the lower end were many village and community-level officials trying to escape punishment for their corruption.

In January, the Communist Party of China issued regulations that ruled out promotion for "naked officials."