The Perfect Soldier: Special Operations, Commandos, and the Future of Us Warfare by James F. Dunnigan
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Heads Are Rolling With Greater Frequency
by James Dunnigan
January 18, 2015
The Chiinese government has punished over a thousand senior officials (usually with a demotion) for refusing a government order to have all family members living overseas return to China. As part of its anti-corruption drive China found that many corrupt officials tended to hide much of their stolen money overseas and often had members of their immediate family living overseas to keep an eye on these assets (and be safe from arrest). The government identified 3,000 senior officials with family living overseas and ordered all of them to bring their wives and/or children back to China. Most complied but a third did not and are now under more intense investigation for corruption. The government believes that since leaving the country became easier in 1978 over 4,000 corrupt officials have left the country taking over $50 billion with them.
Some officials are openly calling for a crackdown on corruption (or the use of political influence) in the court system. Too many judges can be persuaded, or bribed, to let corrupt officials go free. This is a problem that has been around for a long time but is rarely mentioned. The government realizes that the corruption, especially among Communist Party (the only political party allowed) members threatens continued communist rule. Anti-corruption efforts have escalated in the last few years and now even very senior (among the top hundred leaders) officials are being prosecuted. Some say this is just another side effect of internal power struggles. Perhaps, but there is a need for senior heads to roll and those heads are rolling with greater frequency.
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