After Liaison Offices, What's Next?

The official Outlook Weekly, run by Xinhua News Agency, has an article this week about the possible closing of thousands of local liaison offices in Beijing. The policy, if carried out, is the latest move to stamp out now rampant graft. But many doubt the policy's effectiveness. Swathed in mystery, these offices might be a result, not the cause, of graft and shady back-room deals. A crackdown on these offices with no meaningful fix on systemic abuse of influence only injects vitality to this behavior.