appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

liveArticle

appConfig

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sectionsV2

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

json

Yuanyue Dang

Ma Xingrui, a member of China’s Politburo and the former Communist Party boss of Xinjiang, is being investigated by the anti-corruption watchdog, state news agency Xinhua reported on Friday.
He is the third member of the ruling party’s elite political body to come under investigation in the current term that began in 2022, a situation unseen in decades.
He Weidong, former vice-chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC), is also being investigated and was expelled from the party and military in October.
Another CMC vice-chairman, Zhang Youxia, also a member of the Politburo, was placed under investigation for suspected serious violations of party discipline and law, the defence ministry said in January.
The Politburo is now down to 21 members.




Xinhua said the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection was investigating Ma for “serious violations of discipline and law” – typically a euphemism for corruption.
Ma abruptly stepped down as party secretary of the far western Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in July last year, with Xinhua stating he would be “assigned to another post”.
Chen Xiaojiang, former executive deputy minister of the United Front Work Department, took over as party chief in Xinjiang.
But there was no announcement about Ma’s new role in July’s announcement.
He has also been absent from several key party events since November, fuelling speculation about his whereabouts.
These events include a Politburo study session in late November; the Central Economic Work Conference and a Politburo meeting in December; the CCDI plenary session in January; and the annual “two sessions” legislative meetings in March.
Ma’s name was also absent from a list of serving Politburo members who sent wreaths for former senior officials Wang Bingqian and Peng Peiyun after they died in December.
On Friday, Xinhua said Ma had served as deputy head of the Central Rural Work Leading Group, indicating he was given the post after he was removed from Xinjiang last year.

As an aerospace expert, Ma spent many years working at the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, serving as its general manager from 2007 to 2013.
During that time, Ma was both the deputy commander-in-chief of China’s manned space programme and commander-in-chief of the new-generation carrier rocket project.
Several of his former subordinates in the aerospace sector have been caught in the anti-corruption net in the past few years.
In 2013, after a brief stint at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ma took up the job of deputy party secretary of Guangdong province. He became party secretary of Shenzhen, the provincial vice-governor and then governor.
Ma succeeded Chen Quanguo as party boss of Xinjiang in 2021, and became a Politburo member the following year at the 20th party congress.
Several officials with links to Xinjiang have been placed under investigation in recent months.


They include Chen Weijun, former executive vice-chairman of Xinjiang whose case was announced in December, and Li Xu, former deputy commander of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, whose investigation was made public in January.
Details of accusations against Ma remain unclear, but a protege of Ma, Guo Yonghang, party secretary for Guangzhou from June 2023 until December, was put under investigation last week.
President Xi Jinping’s sweeping anti-corruption campaign has brought down numerous officials – from lowly “flies” to elite “tigers”.
Since the 2022 party congress, at least 24 members of the Central Committee – the party’s highest political-executive organ – have been expelled or placed under investigation.
Xi and the top leadership have signalled that there will be no let-up in the campaign.
Last year, the clean-up drive netted a record 65 high‑ranking officials – from top party and government leaders and ministry heads to financial regulators, state‑enterprise executives, university presidents and senior military officers.


The strategic logic of Xi’s historic meeting with Taiwan’s Cheng Li-wun

The winners from China’s growing intercity football rivalries may surprise you

What next for the struggling rural mothers in China who helped to build AI?

Ma Xingrui becomes China’s third Politburo member investigated for corruption

China’s Communist Party

Ma Xingrui abruptly stepped down as party boss of Xinjiang in July and has missed several key events since November. Photo: AP

Chen Xiaojiang took over as party secretary of Xinjiang in July. Photo: Handout

China puts Ma Xingrui protege Guo Yonghang under investigation for corruption

Guo Yonghang is suspected of “serious violations of discipline and law”, according to China’s top anti-corruption watchdog. Photo: VCG via Getty Images


Former defence exec Tan Ruisong given death sentence for ‘exceptional’ corruption

Former AVIC chief Tan Ruisong has been given a suspended death sentence for corruption. Photo: Weibo/ 长安街知事

Senior Chinese financial regulator and ex-graft fighter Zhou Liang under corruption probe

Zhou Liang, vice-chairman of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, is under investigation for “serious violations of discipline and law”. Photo: Reuters

Chongqing mayor under investigation as China’s anti-corruption crackdown gathers pace

Hu Henghua, mayor of Chongqing, is one of four full-ministerial-level officials to be investigated by anti-corruption authorities so far this year. Photo: Handout

J-20 fighter jet designer scrubbed from Chinese Academy of Sciences website

Yang Wei led the design of the J-20 fifth-generation stealth fighter jet. Photos: Handout, AP

News

China

Politics

Former Communist Party chief of Xinjiang is under investigation for ‘serious violations of discipline and law’, according to state news agency Xinhua


Former Communist Party chief of Xinjiang is under investigation for ‘serious violations of discipline and law’, according to state news agency Xinhua.


Ma Xingrui becomes China’s third Politburo member investigated for corruption

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Former Communist Party chief of Xinjiang is under investigation for ‘serious violations of discipline and law’, according to state news agency Xinhua

Former Communist Party chief of Xinjiang is under investigation for ‘serious violations of discipline and law’, according to state news agency Xinhua