Li Xi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, speaks at a conference on national disciplinary inspection work and the 20th CPC Central Committee's first round of inspection in Beijing on March 27, 2023.Photo: Xinhua

A total of 405,000 officials at all levels were punished over the first nine months of this year, according to a statement posted on the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of the Communist Party of China and the National Supervisory Commission on Sunday, adding that 34 of them were senior officials at provincial or ministerial levels.

China dealt with more than 36,000 corruption-related cases impacting the public interest in the first half of 2023, with more than 52,000 individuals receiving criticism, education, assistance or punishment, China's highest supervisory and anti-corruption authority announced. 

From January to September 2023, discipline inspection and supervision authorities across the country received 2.617 million reports, of which 819,000 were tip-offs or accusations.

Of the 470,000 filed, 133,534 officials at all levels were involved.

Discipline inspection and supervisory authorities have consistently strengthened their inspection work covering the implementation of policies supporting the public interest while punishing acts of embezzlement, misappropriation, false reporting and extortion, according to the statement.

Education and rectification covering the national discipline inspection and supervision official team also remains ongoing. In the first half of 2023, the national discipline inspection and supervision system received a total of more than 20,200 tip-offs or public reports involving discipline inspection and supervision officials.

In addition, more than 18,700 tip-offs related to discipline inspection and supervision officials were handled, with 2,482 officials subject to disciplinary reports, 1,647 punished and were 73 transferred to judicial organs.

In addition, the discipline inspection authorities also focused on investigating bribery cases, filing 12,000 bribery cases and transferring 2,365 criminal suspects to the procuratorial organs.

Zhuang Deshui, deputy director of the Research Center for Government Integrity Building at Peking University, told the Global Times that it is urgent to stipulate the operation system, work responsibilities and mechanism of the discipline inspection commissions of the Party and State institutions.

All departments of the central and state organs need to improve the system of discipline inspection in accordance with actual conditions, promote Party organizations and Party members to strictly implement, and strengthen awareness of taking the initiative to carry out supervision and consciously accepting supervision, Zhuang said. 

Global Times