CPC advances discipline education campaign(3)

Fighting corruption

Sergey Suverov, an associate professor at the Financial University under the Government of Russian Federation, said like any other country, corruption is a big drag on China's economic growth. It is very important, therefore, that Chinese authorities have consistently and decisively fought this evil, he said.

"We have observed that the CPC is conducting a ruthless fight against corruption, which is deeply respected. It will increase the pace and quality of economic growth and increase confidence in officials," he said.

James Gomez, regional director at the Asia Centre think tank, said anti-corruption measures are important, and any efforts to eradicate corruption by and within the CPC will be welcomed both locally and internationally.

Oleg Timofeev, an associate professor at Russian RUDN University, said over the past decade the CPC has made great achievements in its crackdown on corruption. The fight against graft has become one of the core elements of China's political system.

He said the activities and results achieved by the National Commission of Supervision, China's highest-level anticorruption body, are being researched all over the world.

In March, Timofeev was invited to the Great Hall of the People in Beijing to participate in the Second Plenary Session of the 14th National People's Congress of China when the president of the Supreme People's Court, Zhang Jun, delivered a plenary report. "I witnessed the real enthusiasm of usually restrained Chinese legislators and a burst of applause every time the chief justice's report tackled the fight against corruption," he said.

He added he was sure the newly launched CPC discipline education campaign would double the government's efforts in the war against corruption, and accelerate the development of law-based governance structures needed for the nation's social and economic prosperity.

Tough challenge

Sourabh Gupta, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Institute for China-American Studies, said corruption is a "tax "on law-abiding citizen.

In developing countries, where incomes are modest, corruption is a key factor in deepening inequalities.

Reining in corruption is an arduous challenge, which is why disciplinary inspection and supervision need high-level support, as is the case currently in China, he added.

Ky Sereyvath, director-general of the Institute of China Studies at the Royal Academy of Cambodia, said since Xi took over as president, China has tackled corruption and also reduced unnecessary government expenditure.

The government has used funds more efficiently, especially in the construction of highways, roads, and other infrastructure, and also provides some funds for projects in countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative.

In recent years, China has helped strengthen global anti-corruption governance. In October, China announced that it would hold anti-corruption workshops for BRI partner countries, and train more than 300 graft fighters in Asia, Africa and Latin America within five years.

Chheang Vannarith said it's critical for countries to keep fighting corruption and building a strong government as geopolitical competition is also a competition between different governance models.

The question of which government remains strong and resilient is what will be important in the future, he added.

Chheang Vannarith said China is at the next phase of fighting corruption through disciplinary measures. This will be strongly emphasized by the CPC in the next 4 to 5 years, as it is the right time to strengthen the Party and good governance.

China will see intensive domestic reforms with anti-corruption at the top of the agenda, he said. If the reforms can be achieved, China will be a much more resilient nation.

"When you have a resilient nation, even when there's a storm outside China can stand firmly on its own feet," he said.