The sentences of the two former generals will be converted into life imprisonment, without the possibility of parole, after two years
China on Thursday sentenced two former defense ministers to suspended death sentences, in a surprising decision that comes against the backdrop of the ongoing purge in the Chinese military.
Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu were both convicted of corruption and given the death penalty suspended for two years by a Chinese military court, according to state media. The court announced that the sentences of the two former generals will be converted into life imprisonment, without the possibility of parole, after two years.
Wei, 72, was Minister of Defense between 2018 and 2023. Li, 68, succeeded him in the position and held the position for less than eight months in 2023. Both were the target of an investigation by the anti-corruption arm of the Chinese armed forces that same year.
The Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, took the military purge to the highest levels of the hierarchy, having recently removed, in January, Zhang Youxia, the highest-ranking general, who surpassed Wei and Li in the chain of command and who came to supervise the daily operations of the armed forces.
The reorganization promoted by Xi affected a vast part of China’s People’s Liberation Army, which has around two million soldiers. Since 2022, more than 100 officers may have been dismissed.
According to a report published in February by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, 36 generals and lieutenant generals have been officially removed since 2022, while another 65 officers are considered missing or potentially purged.
According to the same report, when counting positions that were subject to replacement more than once, around 52% of the Army’s top leadership positions were affected.
This sweeping operation is part of Xi Jinping’s long-running campaign to eliminate corruption in the military, while strengthening his grip on power and advancing deep military modernization.
However, the scale of this “unprecedented purge” raises doubts about the Chinese military’s operational capacity to execute complex operations, the report’s authors wrote.
After the fall of Zhang and his main ally in January, an editorial published in the official PLA Daily newspaper accused the two former military leaders of undermining Xi Jinping’s highest authority, while reinforcing the message of zero tolerance towards corruption.
The investigations will “eliminate toxic influences” within the Army and “help the popular armed forces undergo a profound renewal, injecting a strong impetus into building a strong army”, the editorial said.
