The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) nearly 100 million members are studying a newly revised set of “Disciplinary Regulations.” The regulations contain over 100 provisions, leading Hong Kong media outlet Ming Pao to sarcastically comment that members who can avoid violating any of them are almost “saints” or “perfect people.”
According to the commentary in Ming Pao, the revised regulations list 158 disciplinary violations for party members. These include bans on religious beliefs, stock trading, and joining alumni or hometown associations without approval.
First introduced in 2003 and frequently revised since, the latest version of the CCP’s “Disciplinary Regulations” took effect on January 1st, 2023 after the latest revisions were finalized in December 2022. Violations span six categories: political, organizational, integrity, mass relations, work, and life.
On the political discipline front, publicly expressing “right-wing” views that “adhere to the position of bourgeois liberalization and oppose the Four Cardinal Principles,” as well as “ultra-leftist” opposition to China’s reform and opening up policies, are considered violations. Newly added are violations like “opportunistic networking” and “associating with ‘political fraudsters.'”
“Political fraudsters” refer to those who claim high-level connections to officials, those who claim to have “special backgrounds” as experts/masters, and those who ingratiate themselves with local politicians to facilitate promotions or to resolve legal cases for personal gain.
The Ming Pao commentary noted that, while some violations like “failing to resolutely implement central policies” are clear, others like “pursuing sensual pleasures and vulgar interests” or “inaction, false action, and slow action” are more vague and hard to interpret.
Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), June 11, 2024
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202406110039.aspx