The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has recently issued an outline for the establishment of an anti-corruption work mechanism that serves to punish and prevent corrupt activities by CPC members.

The mechanism will be established to educate and supervise party members, punish those who turn corrupt, and prevent corruption, says the outline, noting that building such a mechanism is a strategic decision by the CPC Central Committee.

"It's the CPC Central Committee, with Hu Jintao as the General Secretary, that has proposed to establish a mechanism to punish and prevent corruption," said the outline, proclaiming that the anti-corruption is a matter of life or death for the Party.

According to a schedule set by the outline, a basic framework for the mechanism should be installed by 2010 and a long-term education system, power-operation supervision system and a mechanism-based anti-corruption system will be completed later.

The outline says the construction of the mechanism should be scientific, systematic, feasible and practicable.

"At the same time, we should pay closer attention to the prevention or elimination of corruption problems from its sources," it says. "The anti-corruption education should be oriented towards the whole Party and the whole society, but with leading cadres as focus."

According to the outline, the construction of the anti-corruption mechanism is a pressing but lasting task given that the anti-corruption situation remains serious.

"Practices indicate that lack of sufficient education, shortage of mechanisms curbing graft and weak supervision are the key causes for corrupt activities," it says.

Editor: Olivia