The Communist Party cannot tolerate corruption and the crackdown on it must be strengthened, Hu Jintao said yesterday in his political report.

"The CPC never tolerates corruption or any other negative phenomena," Hu said on behalf of the 16th CPC Central Committee, stressing that "resolutely punishing and effectively preventing corruption is crucial to the popular support of the Party and its survival."

Pointing out that fighting corruption will be a protracted, complicated and arduous task, Hu called on Party members to carry out the campaign in a comprehensive way, addressing both corruption's symptoms and root cause and combining punishment with prevention.

Resolutely cracking down on corruption, the Party should work harder to remove its root cause and take preventive measures through improving the relevant institutions, Hu said.

Since 2002, when the 16th CPC National Congress was convened, the Party has punished a large number of high-ranking officials, including former Shanghai Party chief Chen Liangyu and China's former top statistician Qiu Xiaohua.

Statistics show that more than 110,000 Party members were punished in 2005, accounting for 0.16 percent of all members. The number being punished dropped to some 90,000 last year, about 0.14 percent of the total members.

Founded in 1921, the Party has governed the country since 1949, and its current membership is more than 70 million.

Hu told the congress that "the task of educating and managing its members has become more arduous than ever before".

Xinhua

(China Daily 10/16/2007 page6)