BEIJING -- China is in the throes of the harshest crackdown on corruption in decades, but officials in Shenzhen apparently didn't get the memo.
While officials across China have been fleeing the country and hiding their money and other traces of their formerly luxurious lifestyles, reporters caught several Shenzhen police officers at a lavish meal, feasting on a giant salamander.
The salamander -- a protected endangered species that can grow up to 6 feet long, the size of an adult human -- is coveted by some in China for its supposed abilities to improve skin and fortify the heart.
Caught on camera by three undercover reporters with salamander in hand, the Shenzhen officers responded by beating up the journalists, according to their newspaper, Southern Metropolis Daily, based in Guangzhou.
Fourteen police officers have been suspended for the assault pending an investigation, according to Shenzhen police on its department's official social media account of the attack.
One of the reporters was kicked and slapped; another was scratched bloody. The one taking pictures was choked and had his camera broken and taken away by force, the newspaper said.
The incident illustrates how high the stakes are these days in the realm of anti-corruption. Since President Xi Jinping took power and launched the current anti-corruption campaign two years ago, he has sent his secretive and powerful watchdog agency after some of the most powerful officials in China. While many of the investigations at higher levels are whispered to be politically motivated, no one at the lower levels appears to be safe.
Luxury alcohol, food and gifts have been especially hot targets. One of Xi's first edicts after taking power was that all government banquets should be curtailed to just four dishes and a soup.
Banquets financed by public funds quickly disappeared from the public view. European-brand watches officials used to frequently flash were replaced by domestic brands.
That made the salamander banquet particularly egregious.
The banquet was attended by 28 officials from Shenzhen police, including the bureau chief of its Dongshen branch, according to the Southern Daily report. The total cost of the meal: $865, not including drinks and the salamander.
Making things worse, each attendee as a parting gift received a bag of fish caught from a nearby reservoir where conservation laws have banned all fishing, the report said.
A Section on 02/01/2015