China’s Communist Party meeting ends with legal reforms

China's ruling Communist Party ended a four-day meeting of its powerful Central Committee yesterday, outlining a raft of legal reforms,

including making judges more independent. But there was no mention of former security czar Zhou Yongkang, who is being investigated for corruption.

There were reports that Mr Zhou would be expelled from the party during the closed-door meeting, known as the fourth plenum, making him the highest profile scalp yet of president Xi Jinping's corruption crackdown.

The party's anti-corruption watchdog, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), will hold its fourth plenary session on Saturday, the state news agency Xinhua reported.

Powerful Politburo

It is possible that there will be more news on Mr Zhou, who was a member of the party’s all-powerful Politburo standing committee until 2012, after the CCDI meeting.

A communique was issued after the plenum, an annual event which gathers about 370 members of the central committee. It said the overall target of the Communist Party’s current drive to advance the rule of law is to form a system serving “the socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics” and build a country under “the socialist rule of law”, Xinhua reported.

The plenum meeting pledged better supervision of China's constitution under the National People's Congress, China's parliament. The supreme court would also establish circuit courts in a move to boost judicial independence.

However, the communiqué was low on detail about how the process of reform in China, seen as vital to keeping the world's second biggest economy on track, was progressing.

Corruption campaign

Mr Xi

has waged a campaign against corruption, which some say is focused on particular rival factions within the party, since he assumed control of the main offices of the party in late 2012.

Since he made his pledge to root out graft in China, whether it involves massive wealth accumulated by the powerful “tigers” of the elite or backhanders palmed over to the “flies” at the bottom of the Communist Party, tens of thousands of officials have been arrested.