context: The PLA (People’s Liberation Army) has undergone a rampant purge against corruption. Former Ministers of Defence Li Shangfu 李尚福 and Wei Fenghe 魏凤和 have been expelled from the Party and deprived of their military honours due to corruption allegations. To reassert Party control and prune corrupted factions, Xi Jinping 习近平 Central Military Commission chair called a Political Work Conference in June, calling for thought rectification and expanding Party Committee leadership in the PLA.
The CMC (Central Military Commission) released a ‘Decision on advancing political rectification in the military by comprehensively implementing the New Era political military build-up strategy’.
According to the Decision, since the 18th Party Congress, and after the Gutian Military Political Work Meeting, the Party Centre has
- gained complete oversight over the strategic arrangements for Chinese national rejuvenation
- clarified demands for military development
- advanced theoretical innovation and practical implementation of political-based military-build-up
- formed the New Era political military build-up strategy
The Decision states the need to intensify political rectification in the military
- sternly guild military build-up via political requirements
- centre on realising the strategic targets for the PLA’s (People's Liberation Army) 100th Centenary
- retain loyal to Xi Jinping 习近平 and the Party Centre
- build a military commission chair responsibility system
- rectify thinking
- reform personnel selection
- restructure the oragnisation
- upgrade political culture and discipline
- centre supervision on high-level Party committee members and cadres
- build a military commission chair responsibility system
Overall, political rectification in the PLA is a vital mission that needs to be implemented thoroughly, integrated into other forms of struggles, war preparation and military build-up. The PLA should progress step by step, and gain practical results.