Opinion | Don't let sex scandals distract from the bigger fight against corruption
Hu Shuli says Chinese investigators must expose the links between sexual transgressions and corrupt dealings, which remain the target
A string of sex scandals has brought down a number of Chinese officials recently. Such is the technology today that the photos, videos and salacious details about the affairs spread quickly once they are posted online. The authorities were quick to react, sacking a number of senior party cadres and executives at state-owned companies. There's probably more to come.
The crackdown on misbehaving officials - part of the anti-corruption drive that has gathered speed after the 18th party congress - targets the symptoms but not the causes of corruption. Even so, the government must be thorough in its investigation into these and other related crimes, no matter how high up they reach in the hierarchy, and hold all guilty parties responsible.
When announcing the dismissal of officials, the government said "problems with their lifestyle" had made them unfit for their job. We ask that investigators do not stop at these "lifestyle problems".
This demand has a basis in law. China's system of public service differs from that elsewhere. Article 2 of its Law on Public Servants defines public servants as "workers who perform official duties according to law, are members of the administrative establishment of the state, and whose salaries and welfare benefits are paid by the government".
Mature jurisdictions make a distinction between executive and administrative officers. But in China, they are all public servants, along with members of the judiciary. Chinese law does differentiate leading posts from non-leading posts, but both operate within the same framework.
In short, while in other countries executive officers are different from civil servants, in China they are the same. The sex scandals must be seen in this context.