[JURIST] The Chinese Ministry of Supervision on Sunday announced plans to investigate Jiang Jiemin, director of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission [official websites, in Chinese]. The investigation stems from Jiemin’s alleged involvement in an undisclosed “serious discipline violation” [South China Morning Post report]. While the precise reason for the investigation is reportedly unknown, authorities investigated Jiemin in November [South China Morning Post report] when he was chairman of the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) [official website], an oil and gas producer currently embroiled in graft scandals. Sources alleged that Jiemin used his position to transfer large sums of money to prevent details of a car crash that killed a top official’s son from leaking to the public. Authorities have yet to indicate whether the CNPC investigation is related to its current investigation of Jiemin.

The Chinese government has worked in recent years to reform its judicial system and combat corruption. In July China’s former Communist Party leader Bo Xilai was formally charged [JURIST report] with corruption, embezzlement and abuse of power. Also in July Chinese activist and lawyer Xu Zhiyong was arrested [JURIST report] by Chinese authorities on suspicion of having “gathered crowds to disrupt public order.” In March 2012 the President and Chief Justice of China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) told the National People’s Congress (NPC) that the country must continue to implement legal reform [JURIST report] to combat corruption and foster social and economic growth. A former Chinese corruption official was executed [JURIST report] in December 2010 for accepting more than 4.7 million USD in bribes. China’s chief administrative authority, the State Council, released a report [JURIST report] in December 2010 outlining steps to fight corruption and build a cleaner government.