Corruption Report
Title: Corruption amongst
senior leadership: Zhang Dejiang
By:
Jeff Rocero
As
a result of the Bo Xilai ousting from the Communist Party of China, a spot was open for
someone to take. The one who was selected was Zhang Dejiang. Bo Xilai was
ousted after corrupt notions were brought up against him, such as trying to pay
off a police officer to cover up the story that his wife murdered an English
businessman. Zhang Dejiang has now taken over Bo’s place, but there are
instances in which Zhang has also acted corrupt. Before going into what types
of corruption he has been involved in, it is first important to note Zhang’s
background and upbringing.
A
princeling, Zhang is the son of Zhang Zhiyi, a former PLA major general, who
served as deputy commander of the Artillery Force in the Guangzhou Military
Region.[1] Zhang is considered to be a protégé of Jiang Zemin. He received an
undergraduate education in economics at Kim Il Sung University in Pyongyang,
North Korea (1980). He served as Vice-Premier in
charge of energy, telecommunications, and transportation. Zhang was promoted to
the Politburo Standing Committee, China’s paramount authority, in 2012 and
appointed Chair of the National People’s Congress in March 2013.[2] After
replacing Bo, many believe that Zhang would be more transparent than Bo was,
however Zhang shows similar characters and views with Bo. A senior journalist
said, "Zhang Dejiang is like Liaoning governor Bo Xilai. Bo Xilai
manipulates the media to promote himself, while Zhang Dejiang manipulates the
media to promote his grandiose plans."[3] It is widely believed that
Zhang owes his appointment as Guangdong party chief to Jiang Zemin, but is not
considered a part of the "Shanghai gang" surrounding Jiang.[4]There
is speculation that Zhang was allowed to remain in power in Guangdong because
he loyalties were with Hu Jintao. Critics of Zhang say he obtained power
through his good relationships with senior leaders instead of obtaining power
through merit achievement. From the limited available information, it seems
that Zhang Dejiang, like Bo, embraces the authoritarian hand and has no desire
to liberalize speech or press freedom.[5] He has various similarities with the
ousted official and had his own share of corruption. Zhang has been known to
cover up stories that would shine a bad light upon him; this is exemplified
through the Chinese SARS outbreak.
Dejiang
has a strong hand on the regulation of media and can restrict it whenever he
pleases, an example of this would be the media covering the SARS outbreak.
Zhang's political record is alleged to have been blemished by incidents while
in Guangdong, according to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review
Commission, which claimed he was implicated in efforts to conceal the SARS
epidemic. [6] The SARS virus spread rapidly within day and the virus seemed to
be everywhere within the country. Mainland rumors became a Hong Kong reality as
hospitals were overwhelmed with contagious patients who were deteriorating in
just 24 hours from high fever to oxygen deprivation.[7] The epidemic was
missing from the headlines, due to the Chinese government; involving Zhang
Dejiang imposed a news blackout. As the first cases were reported on the eve of
the Chinese New Year, Zhang Dejiang halted the spread of the media. As he
explained to his deputy, according to a source who requested anonymity, "If
the newspapers are not going to responsibly cover the matter, then why should
we let them write about it?" [8] The way in which Zhang completely
censored any media from covering the SARS can be partly to blame for the spread
of the virus. From the limited available information, it seems that Zhang
Dejiang, like Bo, embraces the authoritarian hand and has no desire to
liberalize speech or press freedom. This is an example of how corruption is
still prevalent among the high-ranking officials. Although Zhang is a less
corrupt official than Bo was, he is still a corrupt official nonetheless.
Endnotes:
[3] Leu Siew Ying, "Guangdong's Leaders Pass Muster," South China
Morning Post (2012).
[4] Mimi Lau, "Zhang
on the ascent as he takes Chongqing Post," South China Morning Post (2012).
[8] Ibid.
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