Tight Secrecy Surrounds China’s Purge of Top Military Leaders as PLA Is Pressed to Show Loyalty

The CCP’s Politburo on Sept. 21 expelled former Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) Zhang Youxia and former CMC Joint Staff Department Chief Liu Zhenli from the CCP and the military and stripped them of their status as delegates to the Party’s rubber-stamp congress.

The CCP accused the two generals of factionalism, using their positions to help others secure promotions, and corruption. Their alleged criminal offenses were referred to military prosecutors for review and possible prosecution.

The simultaneous removal of Zhang and Liu, who occupied some of the military’s most senior positions, represents a major disruption to the leadership structure of the CCP’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

Zhang, Liu Remain in Military Custody

A civilian employee in the Chinese military surnamed Sun told The Epoch Times that Zhang and Liu remain under military custody somewhere near Beijing.

“As for exactly where they are being held, probably only the military discipline inspection commission knows. I heard that even most Politburo members don’t know,” Sun said.

The PLA’s handling of the two men differs from an ordinary criminal investigation, according to Sun, because of the political sensitivity surrounding the case and the men’s former positions.

The investigation into Zhang is also being handled under an unusually high level of secrecy.

An insider who has contact with retired Chinese military generals and officers told The Epoch Times that some retired generals have recently compared the Zhang and Liu investigation with the cases of former senior party officials Zhou Yongkang and Bo Xilai.

“From what I know, Zhang Youxia’s case is being supervised by the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee,” he said. “The level of secrecy is no less than, and perhaps even greater than, that surrounding the investigations of Zhou Yongkang and Bo Xilai.”

Zhou, a former member of the Politburo Standing Committee, was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of bribery, abuse of power, and intentionally disclosing state secrets. Bo, a former Politburo member, was also sentenced to life in prison for bribery, embezzlement, and abuse of power. Both were among the highest-ranking members of the Party.

According to the insider, the restrictions are intended to prevent details of the investigation from leaking from within the military. The tighter the regime keeps the case under wraps, he said, the less information is available to military personnel about what happened.

PLA Daily Calls for Support

The PLA’s official newspaper, PLA Daily, has repeatedly urged military personnel to support the Party leadership’s handling of the case.

In an article published Sept. 23, the newspaper said the problems involving Zhang and Liu had damaged the military’s political environment and combat effectiveness. It called on military personnel to maintain unity in their thinking and instructed senior officers to treat those who had been investigated as negative examples.

The renewed campaign following the announcement of their expulsion has shifted the issue beyond allegations of corruption and toward political loyalty and obedience to the Party leadership, according to the military insiders.

Some military personnel have nevertheless remained silent in response to the latest demands for expressions of support, the insiders said.

A retired military officer surnamed Zhao told The Epoch Times the language used by PLA Daily amounted to a political indictment that was more significant than the corruption allegations.

“Besides giving Zhang and Liu a political characterization, I estimate that the Politburo Standing Committee will also have accusations such as ‘usurping the Party and seizing power,’” Zhao said.

He said he had not heard of grassroots military units organizing study sessions on the PLA Daily article and that officers and soldiers were reluctant to comment publicly on the Zhang and Liu case.

“A military of more than a million people has its top commanders removed from office, and the first accusation is violating the Communist Party’s political rules and forming cliques,” Zhao said. “You can’t find that in the criminal law. Party members all know that this means having different opinions about the top leader and privately saying things in opposition to him.”

The continued demands for military personnel to support the leadership’s decision, while providing few details about the allegations, have left questions inside the PLA unanswered, according to several insiders familiar with the situation.

Some military personnel are dissatisfied with what they view as the regime’s tight control over information and the pressure to publicly endorse the decision, the insiders said.

Sun Chen contributed to this report.