China gives suspended death sentences to two former defense ministers
The court said the former ministers were convicted of bribery and will have their sentences commuted to life imprisonment after two years.
- On Thursday, Chinese Defence Ministers Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu were sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for bribery, with sentences to be commuted to life imprisonment without parole, according to Xinhua.
- Chinese President Jinping's anti-corruption drive, launched in 2012, has punished over a million officials to clean up the Communist Party and PLA, though critics argue it serves as a tool to purge political rivals.
- Following investigations into graft, Rocket Force leaders Wei and Li were expelled from the Communist Party in 2024 after placement under investigation in 2023, with their roles in the unit established in 2015 central to the charges.
- The suspended sentences align with standard practice in China, where such penalties are routinely commuted to life imprisonment; state media said the verdicts will 'remove toxic influences' and strengthen military modernization.
- Data from the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies shows 52% of the PLA's top leadership positions have been affected by Jinping's shake-up since 2022, including the January removal of Zhang Youxia.
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In China, two former defense ministers have been sentenced to death for corruption, which was ruled by a military court, but the execution of the two generals is unlikely, by Eva Lamby-Schmitt.
A military court in China has imposed the death penalty on two former defence ministers for allegations of corruption on parole.
Due to corruption charges, two ex-defense ministers in China receive the death penalty – on parole. Both are said to have accepted bribes.
In China, two former defense ministers have been sentenced to the suspended death penalty. The two ministers, who served in the government between 2018 and 2023, were convicted of corruption and accepting bribes. In practice, their sentences will likely be commuted to life imprisonment.
Minister of Defense Wei Fenghe was followed by Li Shangfu in 2023, who disappeared only months later. Now both former ministers have been sentenced to death for corruption. The sentence is probably converted into life imprisonment.
In a surprising move amid the ongoing purge of its armed forces, China on Thursday commuted the death sentences of two former defense ministers convicted of corruption.
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