CHINA-LEADERSHIP: TAIWAN AFFAIRS OFFICE
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The official website of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s Central Discipline Inspection Commission (CDIC) on January 20, 2016, posted a notice that Gong Qinggai, a Deputy Head of the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, has been placed under investigation on suspicion of "serious violations of discipline," which is an euphemism for corruption. (Comment: Observers note that the announcement came three days after Taiwanese voters elected an independence-leaning president in a landslide and as Beijing's policies toward the island come under renewed scrutiny. Some reports claim that President Xi Jinping is believed to be deeply unsatisfied with the office's failure to obtain results in Beijing's quest to win over Taiwanese to China's goal of political unification.57-year old Gong Qinggai joined the Communist Party in 1979, starting his political career in Fujian province. He has been Deputy Mayor of Quanzhou, Party Chief of Jinjiang, as well as Director of Administration of the Pingtan Comprehensive Pilot Zone. He was named Deputy Director of the Taiwan Affairs Office in 2013.)
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