| 中国共产党中央委员会政法委员会 | |
 | |
| Abbreviation | Chinese:中央政法委;pinyin:Zhōngyāng Zhèngfǎwěi;lit. 'Central Poli-Legal Commission' |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | CentralLeading Group for Political and Legal Affairs |
| Formation | March 6, 1990 |
| Type | Commission directly reporting to theCentral Committee Ministerial level agency |
| Headquarters | 14 Beichizi Street (北池子大街),Dongcheng District, Beijing |
Region | Mainland China |
| Chen Wenqing | |
Deputy Secretary | Wang Xiaohong |
(Other) Members | 5 |
Secretary-General | Yin Bai |
Parent organization | Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party |
| Website | www |
| Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 中共中央政法委员会 | ||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 中共中央政法委員會 | ||||||
| Literal meaning | Chinese-Communist Central Politics-Law Commission | ||||||
| |||||||
| Abbreviation | |||||||
| Chinese | 中央政法委 | ||||||
| Literal meaning | Central Poli-Legal Commission | ||||||
| |||||||
TheCentral Political and Legal Affairs Commission (CPLC), commonly referred to asZhongyang Zhengfawei (Chinese:中央政法委, literally "Central Poli-Legal Commission") in Chinese, is the organization under theCentral Committee of theChinese Communist Party (CCP) responsible for "political and legal affairs".
The commission was preceded by the Politics and Law Leading Group, established in 1958. In 1980, the modern commission was established. In 1988, the commission was downgraded to aleading small group, though it was turned back to a Commission in March 1990. The organization acts as the overseer and coordinator of all legal enforcement authorities, including the Ministries ofState Security,Public Security andJustice, as well as theSupreme People's Court andSupreme People's Procuratorate. All provincial, municipal, county and autonomous region CCP committees have their own political and legal affairs commissions. The commission is headed by a secretary who is usually aCCP Politburo member.
The commission was preceded by aPolitics and Law Leading Group (Chinese:政法领导小组;Zhèngfǎ Lǐngdǎo Xiǎozǔ) which was set up in 1958, withPeng Zhen as its leader.[1] During theCultural Revolution it was led byJi Dengkui, who served as group leader until 24 January 1980, when the commission was established, with Peng Zhen back as its secretary.[1]
In 1988, the commission was downgraded to aleading small group. This was part of the result of efforts by reformistZhao Ziyang to separate the CCP from state institutions. The Small Leading Group on Political and Legal Affairs focused on a narrower set of policy and research concerns, and did not take as active a role intervening in cases or issuing directives, resulting in a degree of increased independence of the judiciary. The crisis precipitated by the1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre resulted in a reversal of these reforms, and the Small Group was reverted to its Commission status in March 1990, with the goal of maintaining stability through tighter control of public security and legal systems.[2]
After the18th National Congress of the CCP in 2012,Meng Jianzhu replacedZhou Yongkang as the head of the commission. However, Meng, unlike Zhou, was not elected to the 18thCCP Politburo Standing Committee.[3] The apparent downgrading of the post followed Zhou's connection with theWang Lijun incident, which has discreditedChongqing politicianBo Xilai's method of using the internal security apparatus for political ends. As a result, the independence of thejudiciary in China increased.[4] Reforms under CCPgeneral secretaryXi Jinping emphasizing simultaneous need for rule of law and stability have subsequently affected the commission. The commission now has a more policy-and-research oriented focus, although the CCP still maintains control over the legal system.[2]
In March 2018, it was put in charge of maintaining comprehensive public security after the abolishment of the Central Committee for Comprehensive Management of Public Security and its office as part of thedeepening the reform of the Party and state institutions. It also took over the responsibilities of the Central Leading Group on Dealing with Heretical Religions and its executive organ, the610 Office, after their abolition.[5]
In May 2021, the commission was criticized after an account belonging to it posted an image onSina Weibo of a rocket launch in China next to a photo of mass cremations in India as a result of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[6] In 2021, it was reported that the commission operates apredictive policing system againstUyghurs and others.[7]
The CPLAC coordinates the work of law enforcement, internal security, and social stability in China.[8] It acts as the overseer and coordinator of all legal enforcement authorities, including the Ministries ofState Security,Public Security andJustice, as well as theSupreme People's Court andSupreme People's Procuratorate.[9] All provincial, municipal, county and autonomous region CCP committees have their own political and legal affairs commissions.[8]
The CPLC functions as "the general chief of staff of the party committees, and represents the party in overseeing the country’s intelligence, law enforcement, judicial, and to a lesser extent, lawmaking systems".[9] The CPLC maintains effective control over the court system and its personnel.[10] The CPLC ensures that courts implement CCP policies and vets law enforcement officers for political reliability.[11][12] It is the "organizational linchpin of the Chinese surveillance state," according toMinxin Pei.[13]: 94 Its control of China's justice system has been especially useful and important for the CCP since the beginning ofreform and opening up, because the CPLC has acted, through judges and prosecutors, to seize the assets and imprison those businesspeople who were becoming economically powerful enough to acquire a base independent from that of the party.[9]
The Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission has the following organization:[14]
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