China ex-presidential aide Ling charged

China ex-presidential aide Ling charged
A top aide to former Chinese President Hu Jintao has been arrested and stripped of his Communist party membership — the latest target of Beijing’s anti-corruption purge. 前中国国家主席胡锦涛的头号助手令计划已被逮捕并被开除党籍，成为北京方面反腐整肃运动的最新斗争对象。

Ling Jihua, who was placed under investigation in December, has been accused of a broad range of crimes, including bribery and “trading his power for sex”, according to the Central Committee of the Communist party. 据中共中央消息，去年12月开始接受调查的令计划被控严重违纪，包括收受贿赂以及“进行权色交易”。

Mr Ling came to symbolise the excesses of the Communist party elite, which Beijing seems to fear might eventually undermine the legitimacy of the entire governing system if left unchecked. 令计划已成为中共精英荒淫无度的象征，北京方面似乎担心，如果任由这种现象发展下去，可能最终会破坏整个统治体系的合法性。

He came under scrutiny two years ago, following the death of his son at the wheel of a Ferrari sports car in a crash that also injured two semi-clad female passengers, one of whom later died. 令计划是两年前开始接受审查的。在此之前，他的儿子在驾驶一辆法拉利跑车时发生车祸死亡，那场车祸还造成跑车中两名半裸女性乘客受伤，其中一名伤者后来不治身亡。

The incident, which was initially hushed up by the Communist party, became a social media sensation amid the attempted cover up and is thought to have been one of the main inspirations for President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption probe, which started later that year. 这起中共起初秘而不宣、企图掩盖的事故，变成了社交媒体上的轰动事件。它还被认为是促使中国国家主席习近平在当年晚些时候发起反腐败调查的主要原因之一。

Mr Ling joins a growing list of high-ranking figures targeted for corruption probes since late 2012, including General Xu Caihou, who once oversaw promotions in the Peoples’ Liberation Army, and Zhou Yongkang, the former head of the domestic security service. 2012年底以来，有越来越多的高级别人物成为反腐败调查的对象，包括曾负责中国人民解放军(PLA)人员晋升的徐才厚上将、以及国内安全系统的前负责人周永康，令计划成为了其中最新的一个。

Overall more than 250,000 Communist party officials have been punished amid a widening purge of top officials with the goal of both buttressing the party’s tarnished public image, but also, many suspect, eliminating political rivals of Mr Xi, who has pledged to go after both “tigers and flies”, a reference to corrupt officials at all levels. 在这场不断扩大的对高级官员的整肃中，总计有超过25万名中共官员遭到惩处。这场运动既是为了修复中共受损的公众形象，（许多人怀疑）也是为了清除习近平的政治对手。习已发誓要“老虎和苍蝇”（指代所有级别的腐败官员）一起打。

Mr Xu, Mr Zhou and Mr Ling have been close to previous leaders or contenders for political leadership within the party. Mr Ling was effectively the chief of staff for President Hu and one of the most powerful figures behind the scenes in official Beijing. 徐才厚、周永康和令计划与前领导人或党内最高政治领导职位的竞争者关系密切。令计划曾是前中国国家主席胡锦涛事实上的幕僚长，是北京官场幕后最有权势的人物之一。

So far Mr Ling’s downfall has happened according to what by now has become the standard template used to purge high ranking officials: in December, the party announced an investigation, followed this week by arrest and expulsion from the party. Accordingly, the case is likely to be tried in a party court where he is likely to be found guilty and the sentence, usually a prison term, will be handed down. 到目前为止，令计划的落马遵循了目前整肃高级官员时所采用的标准套路：去年12月，中共宣布对令计划展开调查，本周又宣布对其予以逮捕和开出党籍。接着，该案很可能会移交党控制下的法院审判，并在法庭上认定其有罪、判处通常是一定刑期的徒刑。

In an unusually detailed and lurid denunciation, the Central Committee said that Mr Ling “took advantage of his posts to seek profit for others and accepted huge bribes personally”. It also alleged that he “obtained a great deal of the party and state’s core secrets in violation of laws and discipline” and “committed adultery with a number of women and traded his power for sex”. 中共中央对令计划的谴责异乎寻常的详细和猛烈，称他“利用职务便利为多人谋取利益，本人或通过家人收受巨额贿赂”，还称他“违纪违法获取党和国家大量核心机密”，并“与多名女性通奸，进行权色交易”。

The People’s Daily, the Communist party’s mouthpiece, said on Tuesday that Mr Ling’s arrest was aimed at “eliminating hidden problems inside the party, maintaining strict party discipline and purifying party organisations”. 中共喉舌《人民日报》周二表示，逮捕令计划旨在“消除党内隐患、严肃党纲党纪、净化党的队伍”。

“Party rules and discipline are not only the firewall in anti-corruption campaign, but also the party’s lifeline,” the paper said. “党规党纪是反腐败的防火墙，政治纪律和政治规矩是我们党的生命线，”《人民日报》表示。

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