China has built or expanded over 200 specialized detention facilities across the country as part of President Xi Jinping’s ongoing anti-corruption campaign, which now extends beyond the Communist Party to a broader swath of public sector officials, private entrepreneurs, and administrators in sectors like healthcare and education.
A CNN investigation reveals the scope and nature of this expansion, which reflects Xi’s tightening control over both the party and the nation.
Xi’s Expanding Anti-Corruption Drive
Since Xi Jinping assumed power in 2012, he has led a sweeping anti-corruption campaign that has not only targeted corrupt officials but also political rivals, consolidating his control over the Communist Party and the military. Now in his third term, Xi has made this crackdown a permanent fixture of his rule, institutionalizing it to reinforce his authority.
The anti-corruption drive has evolved over time, now focusing on a wider array of individuals beyond the party. It includes private business leaders, school administrators, and hospital officials—many of whom are not members of the Communist Party but are subject to the same punitive measures.
The Liuzhi Detention System
The expanded detention regime, known as “liuzhi” or “retention in custody,” is central to this broader crackdown. This system involves specialized detention centers with padded surfaces and round-the-clock guards, where detainees may be held for up to six months without access to lawyers or family visits. It has become a potent tool in Xi’s broader anti-corruption strategy, instilling fear both within and outside the Communist Party.
Historically, the party’s disciplinary arm, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), employed a secretive, extralegal detention system, holding Communist Party members suspected of corruption or misdeeds in undisclosed locations for extended periods without legal counsel. In 2018, amidst rising criticism of the system’s abuses, Xi abolished the controversial “shuanggui” system—known for its lack of legal oversight and its use of forced confessions.
Little Improvement in Detainee Rights
The liuzhi system retains many of the troubling features of its predecessor, including the ability to detain individuals without contact with the outside world and the absence of independent oversight. A criminal defense lawyer representing Chinese officials in corruption cases shared with CNN that little has improved regarding the protection of detainees’ rights under the new system.
Unlike its predecessor, which focused primarily on Communist Party members, the liuzhi system casts a much wider net. It now targets anyone in a position of “public power,” including civil servants, hospital and school managers, as well as business figures who may have been involved in corruption cases. High-profile individuals such as billionaire investment banker Bao Fan and former footballer Li Tie, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for corruption this month, are among those detained under the liuzhi system.
Criticism of the Expanding Detention System
Since its inception, at least 127 senior executives of publicly listed firms, many from private businesses, have been detained, with the majority of these arrests occurring in the past two years alone. State media has argued that the expanded jurisdiction addresses gaps in the party’s anti-corruption efforts, targeting systemic abuses of power across China’s vast public sector, from bribery in hospitals to embezzlement in schools.
While the government insists that the extended reach of the liuzhi system is necessary to combat corruption in the public sector, critics see it as a further tightening of the Communist Party’s control over society. They argue that the system reflects Xi’s increasingly authoritarian leadership and a broader erosion of rights, with the Chinese leader consolidating his power over both the state and its citizens.
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