China Anti-Graft Probe Puts Chief Spy in the Spotlight

President Xi continues anti-corruption campaign as the Party's disciplinary committee targets senior officials.

MOSCOW, January 16 (Sputnik) – Ma Jian, a top Chinese intelligence is being investigated by China's top anti-graft agency, the South China Morning Post reported.

The official, a deputy minister of state security who dealt with counter-intelligence regarding foreigners, particularly diplomats, businessmen and journalists is being investigated by the Chinese Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, according to Reuters.
This indicates that China's anti-corruption campaign among senior officials initiated by President Xi Jinping has reached the top echelons of the party and state apparatus, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The official reason for the investigation on Ma is "serious violations of discipline," which generally means corruption, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. According to the Wall Street Journal, the investigation is part of a campaign to overhaul the Ministry of State Security, which has a budget higher than that of the military.

Prior to Xi Jinping's appointment as president in 2013, sex scandals were used to disgrace corrupt officials, according to Xinhua. However, under Xi, the focus has shifted more toward actual corruption investigations rather than forcing officials to resign through scandal. However, that was not enough according to a 2012 Xinhua editorial, which stated that "The fundamental question is how [corrupt officials] have abused their power to amass wealth or obtain favors."

The trend of investigating sex scandals alongside corruption persisted, and Zhou Yongkang, once minister of public security and later a senior party official, was according to Xinhua declared guilty of "committ[ing] adultery with a number of women and trad[ing] his power for sex and money."

Xi Jinping insisted on Tuesday that more inquiries are made into corrupt officials. "Drastic remedies to cure ills must not ease off, at all times and under any circumstances, there must be a high degree of unity with the party center in thoughts, politics and deeds," he said at a meeting of the disciplinary commission, according to the New York Times.

The campaign is an attempt to quell public discontent over corruption in China, according to the Wall Street Journal, and has become a definitive aspect of President Xi's rule.