The scope of the anti-corruption campaign in Shanghai, as happens everywhere in the country, eventually ran up against the Party itself and its monopoly on power, and the investigation was brought to a close. The Party catches and kills–and protects–its own for good political reasons. Exposing its members to investigation by outside bodies would be intolerable, as it would be akin to ceding the Party’s monopoly on power. As officials freely acknowledge in private, an independent anti-corruption campaign, following up leads beyond the Party’s control, could bring the whole edifice tumbling
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