Senior Chinese military official ousted from central military commission

ISTANBUL

A senior Chinese military official has been ousted from the country’s central military commission (CMC), state media reported Friday.

He was one of the six members of the CMC and the decision to remove Miao Hua from the top military body was taken by Chinese lawmakers during the 14th National People’s Congress Standing Committee meeting which concluded in Beijing.

In November, China’s Defense Ministry said Miao was suspended from his duties after being probed for “serious violation of rules.”

“Serious violation of rules,” in Chinese state jargon, usually refers to cases of graft.

Miao is an admiral in the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) Navy and had been serving as director of the commission’s political department.

Led by President Xi Jinping, the CMC oversees the Chinese military in general.

Miao was “last seen in public” on Oct. 7 last year when he attended the 70th anniversary celebrations of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.

He is one of several high-profile uniformed men to have been ousted from their official positions as well as legislature in recent years.

Earlier, former Defense Minister Li Shangfu and former PLA Rocket Force commander Li Yuchao were expelled from the Chinese Communist Party for "serious violations of discipline and law.”