China targets middlemen in renewed crackdown on ‘hidden’ corruption

China's top judicial bodies have issued new guidelines to target corrupt middlemen as part of a renewed crackdown on "hidden" corruption. The Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate jointly released a judicial interpretation on Friday detailing how criminal law can be applied to these intermediaries. The guidance refines the criteria for tackling new forms of corruption by clarifying the legal responsibilities of all participants in corruption schemes. This includes bribe-givers, bribe-recipients, intermediaries, officials, and management personnel. The aim is to enforce the law more effectively across the entire corruption chain.