Reuters:

I have three questions. First, does China plan to establish an independent anti-corruption system that doesn't report to the CPC? Second, is China going to sign an extradition treaty with the U.S？Do you have a timetable for that? Third, why hasn't China formulated an anti-corruption law? Thank you.

Liu Jianchao:

In retrospect to our law-enforcement cooperation with foreign countries in the past few years, extradition treaties are a very important instrument in fighting corruption, especially in fugitive repatriation and asset recovery, which can be highlighted in the following two aspects. First, it provides legal basis for suspect pursual and handover. Second, it will deter the corrupt officials who attempt to evade legal punishment by fleeing to other countries. Therefore, the cooperation of law enforcement will be more effective with the signing of extradition treaties. So far, China has signed extradition treaties with 48 countries, including France, Spain and Italy, among others. As for the U.S. and other countries, China is willing to discuss such a treaty with them on the basis of mutual respect, equality, and shared benefit and mutual accommodation of each other's major concerns. In this way, China can better join hands with foreign countries to combat various cross-border crimes including corruption and make sure that not a single country will be used as a "safe haven" by corrupt elements or other criminals.

Wu Yuliang:

Leadership by the CPC is the essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics, as well as its greatest strength. It's the consensus of the 1.3 billion Chinese people that the successful handling of China's affairs lies in the Party. It's also a consensus among the whole Party. Both supervision within the Party and on the government are carried out under the unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee. The 10th article in the newly released "Regulation on Supervision Within the Communist Party of China" stipulates that "the supervision within the Party is totally under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau." The aim of deepening reform of the national supervisory system is to strengthen the Party's leadership in combating corruption. Just now, Mr. Xiao has already answered the question regarding whether or not we are going to establish a centralized, unified, authoritative and efficient national supervisory system that will cover all the government employees who exercise public power. So, there will be no so-called independent supervisory organs beyond the Party's leadership.

I think your question about the independent supervisory organ stems from the thinking of separation and balance of powers. The Chinese people have confidence in our culture. Chinese culture enables us to have confidence in our chosen path, guiding theories and political system. It is the DNA and lies in the blood of the Chinese nation. Our culture is different from yours.

Establishing an independent supervisory organ (in China) is like cutting one's toes just to fit his shoes. Here I want to cite an ancient Chinese story. The tasty orange, grown in southern China, would turn sour once it is grown in the north. The leaves may look the same, but the fruits taste quite different, because the north is a different location with a different climate. Such similar questions (about Chinese systems and policies) have been raised from time to time. The reason is due to differences in the way of thinking. I don't think those who raise such questions have an understanding of traditional Chinese culture, nor the Chinese path, theories and system. I suggest them to read books about Chinese culture and stories.

Wu Yuliang:

As for your third question about the anti-corruption law, we have attached great importance to improving institutions and tried to learn from other countries. Like the vast ocean admitting all rivers that run into it, we have absorbed foreign experiences in spite of different national conditions. However, legislation takes time. It requires summarization and abstraction of practical experiences. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the Central Committee has been unswervingly fighting corruption and attained noticeable effects while laying a foundation for legislation of the anti-corruption law. Now, under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee, we are pushing forward the reform of the supervisory system and carrying out pilot programs in the city of Beijing and provinces of Shanxi and Zhejiang. The national supervisory commission is the national level anti-corruption institution. The essence of formulating a law on national supervision is to promote legislation on national anti-corruption. In the future, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress will conduct two reviews of the draft supervisory law before the law is finally published. Thank you.

China National Radio (CNR):

The seventh plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) proposed that the confessions of high-ranking corrupt officials should be issued and circulated within the units where their offences were committed. Besides, the communiqué released yesterday also put forward the idea that confessions should be made public as much as possible. I would like to ask: what the next step will be in making confessions open to the public?

Zhu Guoxian:

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CCDI has edited the confessions of high-ranking Party officials gravely violating discipline and the laws. The approach fully reflects the consistent principle of our Party of "helping the people learn from past mistakes and avoid future ones, and curing the sickness to save the patient."

The confessions of corrupt officials were given at the cost of their own painful lessons. The idea of issuing and circulating the confessions of corrupt officials within the units where they committed their offences is to make the negative examples serve as a lesson in the democratic life meetings of leading groups during the campaign of "Two Studies, One Action" – namely "studying the Party Constitution and regulations and studying and implementing the spirit of a series of important speeches made by General Secretary Xi Jinping, and being a qualified Party member."

The approach is also to educate the wider public through highlighting the negative examples, and thus to effectively achieve the aim of rectification improvement. In the next step, we will open a special column on this topic in the CCDI's media outlet, and we will gradually make the confessions of corrupt officials open to the public before the 19th CPC National Congress. Thank you.

Today's ria novosti news agency (Russia):

By November 2016, China had hunted down a total of 2,442 fugitives in 81 countries and regions and reclaimed a total of 8.54 billion yuan (about US$1.23 billion). I would like to ask: what measures has the Chinese Government taken to punish corrupt officials fleeing overseas? What do you think of the situation regarding the second round of the anti-corruption drive in 2017?

Liu Jianchao:

The numbers you mentioned just now were the numbers of corrupt officials we hunted down and the stolen money and property we managed to reclaim from 2014 to November 2016. Actually, from 2014 to the end of 2016, a total of 2,566 fugitives were hunted down in more than 70 countries, 37 of whom were on the list of the 100 "most wanted" persons. We also made considerable progress in the last month of 2016, so that the 8.54 billion yuan you mentioned just now has become 8.64 billion yuan. This is the latest situation in reclaiming stolen money and property.

The number of additional fugitives fleeing overseas has declined by a big margin year-on- year. The number reached 101 in 2014, dropping to 31 in 2015 and then 19 in 2016. So, it can be seen that reclaiming stolen money and property is a very important part in the anti-corruption drive, and it has played an important role in curbing the incidence and spread of corruption.

We have worked closely with law enforcement agencies in relevant countries, and a very important point is based on political will. Adapting an old saying, as long as there is the political will, there is a way in law. In this regard, I believe we will continue to deepen law enforcement cooperation with other countries in tackling corruption, so that more fugitives fleeing overseas can be brought to justice. At the same time, I would like to emphasize that China's hunting down corrupt officials and reclaiming the stolen money and property has always been in strict accordance with the law, and has been conducted strictly in accordance with legal procedures. Thank you.