2 more Chinese generals fall after anti-corruption drive delivers big changes to military

NPC Standing Committee announces Lieutenant General You Haitao and Vice-Admiral Li Pengcheng removed from China’s top legislature

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Lieutenant General You Haitao is one of two senior Chinese military officials announced by the NPC as suspected of “serious violation of laws and discipline”. Photo: Weibo/清華國防

Published: 2:03pm, 26 Dec 2024Updated: 4:21pm, 26 Dec 2024

Beijing has stripped two more generals in the People’s Liberation Army of their lawmaker status, as China continues a wider anti-corruption drive into the country’s military.

In a notice on Wednesday, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) confirmed that Lieutenant General You Haitao, former deputy commander of China’s army, and Vice-Admiral Li Pengcheng, former naval commander of the PLA Southern Theatre Command, had been removed from the country’s top legislature.

Li Pengcheng, former naval commander of the PLA Southern Theatre Command, is no longer a member of the NPC. Photo: people.com.cn

A separate NPC statement said You and Li were suspected of “serious violation of laws and discipline” – a phrase that usually refers to corruption.

The downfall of the two generals comes amid a slew of personnel changes within the PLA, with several senior officers brought down by corruption charges. Miao Hua, a member of the powerful Central Military Commission and the director of its political work department, was placed under investigation for corruption in November.

You, 66, became the deputy commander of the army in early 2016. Previously he was deputy commander of the Nanjing Military Region and was promoted to lieutenant general in 2014.

Li, 61, previously served in roles including the deputy chief of staff of the PLA Navy’s North Sea Fleet, director of the Navy Equipment Research Institute, and chief of staff of the East Sea Fleet.