China’s ex-Tibet propaganda chief charged with bribery
- Dong Yunhu, who was once responsible for spreading China’s official position on human rights, is accused of corruption stretching back to 1999
- Dong, who went on to become head of Shanghai’s legislature, was placed under investigation last year and indicted in Anhui province on Wednesday
A former Chinese propaganda chief who was responsible for promoting its official line on Tibet and human rights is facing bribery charges, prosecutors said on Wednesday.
He was first placed under investigation for suspected corruption in July last year, making him the first ministerial level official to be purged after a major Communist Party reshuffle at the 20th party congress in October 2022.
His alleged crimes date back to 1999, when he was in charge of planning and publicising Beijing’s official message on human rights and Tibetan affairs as the bureau chief at China’s State Council Information office, according to prosecutors.
The corruption is alleged to have continued in other leadership roles.
The indictment accused Dong, 61, of taking advantage of his positions to seek “undue benefits for others and illegally accept large amounts of property” although it did not say how much he is alleged to have taken in bribes.
He was trained as a philosopher and started his career at the Communist Party school, where he managed its School of Marxism and Human Rights Research Centre in the 1990s.