[JURIST] A former general in China’s People’s Liberation Army, Gu Junshan, on Monday was sentenced by a Chinese military court to death with a two year reprieve for corruption charges. Gu is one of the first to face trial [Xinhua report] under the president’s recent efforts against corruption in the military. The court’s sentence [BBC report] will most likely be commuted to life in prison, but was nonetheless imposed because the court “determined the amount of bribes Gu Junshan accepted was huge, the harmful consequences especially grave, the amount of misappropriated public funds immense, and the details of his abuse of power especially serious”. The ex-general was charged after investigators found gold statutes and high-end spirits in his mansions, and was convicted of embezzlement, accepting bribes, misuse of state funds, bribery and abuse of power. In addition to the death sentence with reprieve, Gu has lost his political rights for life, had his title stripped, and had all of his personal assets confiscated.

China’s efforts against corruption increased upon the appointment of President Xi Jinping [BBC profile] in 2013. In March, the country began investigating [JURIST report] 14 generals for corrupt financial practices. In February, Chinese officials announced [JURIST report] the impending prosecution of Su Rong, former vice chairman of China’s top parliamentary advisory board, for graft. At the end of last year, Zhou Yongkang [BBC profile], former head of China’s domestic security apparatus, was arrested and removed from the Communist party for accepting bribes, leaking state secrets and using his power to enrich himself and his family. However, efforts by anti-corruption activists have not been met with support. Last April a court sentenced [JURIST report] activists with the New Citizens Movement [WSJ backgrounder] group to jail for gathering a mob to disturb the public. That same month the Beijing Supreme People’s Court denied [JURIST report] an appeal by the group’s leader, resulting in criticisms from rights groups.