China’s top military newspaper PLA Daily published an article discussing the principles and directions of army administration under the new leadership. The article emphasized that, for the top officials, political correctness trumps everything else.
It said, “Facing the new situation and tasks, we need, more firmly and consciously, to implement the requirements of developing the army politically and ensuring a firm and correct political direction for the army’s development.”
The article explained that, as Former Vice Chairmen of the Military Commission, Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou’s fundamental problem was that they violated political principles. The article said, “[Because] cadres [government officials] are high up in position and heavy in power, any mistake, however small, won’t be small and will be costly. A political mistake will be even more damaging. Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou’s corruption problems were appalling, but this was not the crux of their problems. The key issue was that they violated the political bottom line.”
The article was also republished in other major Chinese state media such as People’s Daily. The key message of the article was widely circulated on the Internet.
Source: PLA Daily, May 25, 2016
http://www.81.cn/jfjbmap/content/2016-05/25/content_145667.htm
http://military.people.com.cn/n1/2016/0525/c1011-28377961.html