The Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE),one of the country's top academic institutions, warned against election fraud as it kicked off its biennial recruitment of new members on Tuesday.
In an open letter, the CAE required its members to "politely turn down" any activity they suspect is intended to seek votes, such as visits paid by candidates or their organizations, and to refuse gifts or cash from them.
The academy has issued a circular to deal with misconduct in the recruitment of new members.
According to a document released to standardize recruitment, candidates this year may be nominated by an incumbent member, an academic group, or both. Previously, candidates could only be nominated by CAE members or academic groups, but not both.
Meanwhile, rules are being tested to identify civil servants or Party officials who are ineligible as candidates in a bid to reduce interference.
CAE members, called "academicians" in China, hold the highest national academic title in the field of engineering. It is a lifelong honor.
In 2015, 70 prominent scientists were elected as CAE members, including satellite, big data, and next-generation Internet scientists.
