More than 1.5 million members of the Communist Party of China have been punished for “misconduct” since 2012, an official from the party’s corruption agency said on Thursday.
Yan Xiaodu, deputy secretary of Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, said that the agency dealt with 2.6 million reported cases over the last five years.
“1.537 million Party members have been punished with misconduct, and 58,000 have been transferred to the judicial department on suspicion of breaching laws or committing crimes,” Xiaodu said in a media briefing as part of week-long 19th Communist Party Congress in the capital Beijing.
The congress, which held every five years, began on Oct. 18 and brought together thousands of delegates.
China's high-ranking ruling members including Communist Party’s Central Committee as well as members of Politburo is expected to be elected during the congress, which will run until Oct. 24.
On Wednesday, speaking at the congress opening, China's President Xi Jinping said that Socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, according to China’s state-owned Xinhua news agency.
