China names new justice and environment ministers
- Liaoning governor appointed to justice post while deputy chief promoted to take lead on environment
Beijing has announced the appointment of a new justice minister and named a non-Communist Party member as its environment boss.
Tang, 59, spent almost four decades climbing the political ladder in Zhejiang province in the country’s east, where President Xi Jinping served as provincial party secretary for five years from 2002.
While in Zhejiang, Tang held senior party positions in the security apparatus both at the provincial and municipal levels. He was promoted to be an alternate member of the party’s Central Committee, its policymaking body, three years ago.
Wang Jiangyu, director of Centre for Chinese and Comparative Law at City University of Hong Kong, said that unlike in Western democracies, China’s Ministry of Justice traditionally played a limited role in the party-led state’s hierarchy.