Full coverage: The Sixth Plenum of the 18th CPC Central Committee

The strict governance of the Communist Party of China has entered a new era, with the two regulations that were passed at the 6th plenary session of the Party's central committee. They pave the way for the Party's national congress next year and its future development.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, speaks at the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China.

For more, I am joined by Tang Bo, who has been following this issue. Tang Bo, can you share with us more about the communique released after the four-day plenum?

The communique released on Thursday in Beijing used some interesting phrasing. It referred to -- quote,“the Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core.” This is the first time China’s senior cadres have used the title “core leader” for Xi Jinping. But the Communist Party also decided to carry on with the collective leadership system. The system was introduced in 1981 to prevent individuals from dominating the party. The communique stresses that the collective leadership system--quote, "must always be followed and should not be violated by any organization or individual under any circumstances for any reason." The meeting also issued a revised code of conduct for top Party leaders. It applies even to the members of the Party’s Politburo Standing Committee. It is widely regarded as part of President Xi’s continuing efforts to build a disciplined, advanced, and honest ruling party.

You just mentioned building a disciplined ruling party. This time, cracking down on corruption is one of the major focuses at this year's Plenum. Can you elaborate?

The plenary session endorsed prior decisions to expel four former senior officials from the Party, including the former Party chief of Northeast China’s Liaoning Province, and the former Beijing deputy Party chief, as well as two senior military officials. That sends a strong message of strict intra-Party discipline. According to the communique, the Party will stick to the policy of "no restricted zones, full coverage and zero tolerance" in its fight against corruption. A Pew Research survey conducted early this month found that nearly half of the Chinese public believes corrupt officials constitute a very big problem for the country, and 83 percent said corruption was a big problem. That's further motivation for the Party to tackle this problem.