Why Are More and More CCP Officials Secretly Reading Banned Political Books? What Are These Banned Books?

The CCP is busy every year banning books. Pictured is an archival photo. (Yu Gang / Dajiyuan)

[People News] On September 25, the website of the CCP Heilongjiang Provincial Discipline Inspection Commission and Supervision Commission announced that Li Bin, a former member of the Party Leadership Group and Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress of Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province, was expelled from the Party.

One of the charges that led to Li Bin’s expulsion from the Party was "privately reading illegal publications containing content that damages Party unity," in other words, secretly reading banned books.

As of the end of October 2024, at least 15 senior CCP officials have been accused by the CCP’s disciplinary inspection system of reading or possessing banned books. In 2023, eight were similarly accused. Extending the timeline further back, since 2019, 29 officials have faced internal Party accusations of circulating banned books. The actual number is likely much higher.

The 15 CCP officials implicated in banned books in 2024 come from provinces including Gansu, Chongqing, Guizhou, Jiangxi, Henan, and Guangdong, covering both economically strong and relatively underdeveloped western regions. Their fields of work range widely, from government functional departments to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, institutions, media, and financial institutions.

It is evident that in recent years, CCP officials secretly reading banned books has not only become common but also increasingly prevalent.

So, what kind of books are these banned books that CCP officials are secretly reading?

Based on official information, they are mainly political banned books. To put it simply, these so-called political banned books do not conform to the CCP's political standards and are considered to have political issues.

The Regulations on Disciplinary Measures of the Chinese Communist Party make it clear that banned books with serious political problems mainly include: books that uphold bourgeois liberalization, oppose the Four Cardinal Principles, oppose the Party’s reform and opening-up policies; criticize central policies, undermine Party unity; defame the Party and state image, or slander, vilify, or distort the history of the Party, military, or leaders, or malign heroes and models.

Open reports indicate that, over the past decade, banned books mentioned in CCP case disclosures include at least:

Regarding CCP leaders — Mao Zedong, the Mischievous Lord: Unceasing Subversion and Adventure, Mao Zedong and His Women, The Complete Biography of Mao Zedong, The Complete Biography of Zhou Enlai, The Complete Biography of Lin Biao, The Truth About Lin Biao’s Escape, Focus on Party and Military History: Declassified Files of Major Domestic Events, Qincheng’s Cold Moon: Secrets After Jiang Qing’s Arrest, The State’s Prisoner: The Secret Recordings of Zhao Ziyang, Inside Zhongnanhai, and Big Events Behind the Red Wall: The Origins of Major Historical Events of the Republic.

On the CCP bureaucratic ecosystem — Public Mistress: No Abstinence in Chinese Officialdom, High-Ranking Officials and Feng Shui, etc.

On major events — Around June Fourth: A Political Analysis of the 1989 Protests.

On ethnicity and border regions — The Tibet Uprising: Hidden and Distorted Truth.

On the Kuomintang and KMT-CCP relations — Complete Decryption of Whampoa Academy Leaders, Complete Records of KMT Generals, and The Final End of High KMT Officials.

The Regulations on Disciplinary Measures of the Chinese Communist Party explicitly prohibit Party members and officials from privately reading, browsing, or listening to materials with serious political issues. These materials include but are not limited to newspapers, books, audio-visual materials, e-books, as well as online texts, pictures, audio, and video materials. If Party members and officials secretly read, browse, or listen to such materials, they may face disciplinary measures, including warnings, serious warnings, or removal from Party positions if the circumstances are severe.

It is clear that secretly reading banned political books carries risks; if discovered, the person involved is likely to face Party disciplinary actions, impacting their career. Yet, intriguingly, more and more CCP officials continue to take this risk.

I believe this phenomenon reflects two main points.

One is that a significant number of officials do not believe the CCP’s narrative about its own history. The other is that they also do not believe in the CCP’s portrayal of its leaders. In short, they do not believe in the CCP’s self-crafted image of greatness, glory, and righteousness, nor in the so-called communist ideals that the CCP promotes. Of course, in public, these officials parrot the CCP's propaganda, but in their hearts, they simply don’t believe in it. This shows just how much of a failure the CCP’s political propaganda has been.