Wave of suicides among bureaucrats due to the anti-corruption campaign
Since 2012, when Xi Jinping came to power, at least 120 government representatives have committed suicide. From 2003 to 2012, under Hu Jintao, 63 killed themselves. The suicide as a gesture of love for the family, which can save money coming from the bribes.
Beijing (AsiaNews /Agencies) - They drown into rivers; drink poisons; jump from bridges or from the upper floors of their offices: these are some of the ways that bureaucrats of the Chinese Communist Party choose to die to escape investigation and inspections. This is a bitter fruits of the anti-corruption campaign launched by President Xi Jinping.
Since 2012, when he rose to power as Secretary general of the Party and as president, he tried to stop the rampant corruption spread at all levels of government, putting tens of thousands of bureaucrats under investigation and punishing many with lengthy prison sentences.
In this period, the number of deaths of government officials for "abnormal reasons" rose up to 120. That is almost double the 68 recorded suicides from 2003 to 2012 under his predecessor Hu Jintao.
On the surface, the deaths of persons under investigation is an attempt to escape the humiliation of interrogations and public confessions. But it is also a way out for their families.
If the bureaucrat dies before the end of the investigation, his case is closed and the members of his family can keep the money or bribes gained through corruption.
News of government officials’ suicides do not produce any sympathy in the population, as they think all bureaucrats are corrupt.
The anti-corruption campaign, however, is having its effects: many bureaucrats, for fear of falling into the trap and under investigation, do not dare to take any decisions or leave the government job to work in the private sector. This generates a paralysis in the permits and the launching of new projects.
.png)
08/08/2019 10:59
