‘Fear is the weapon’: Intel sources warn how Xi Jinping's CCP deploys secret detentions and torture to stay in power

China's President Xi Jinping attends a meeting with his Russian counterpart at the Kremlin in Moscow on May 8, 2025. (Photo by Pavel Bednyakov / POOL / AFP)

China’s Communist Party has erased the traditional separation between Party, state, and military institutions under President Xi Jinping, transforming the country into a tightly centralised authoritarian regime, according to top intelligence sources who spoke to CNN-News18.

The intelligence assessments paint a picture of a political system where legal frameworks are increasingly subordinated to ideological control, with state institutions, from the courts to law enforcement and the military, now functioning primarily to uphold the supremacy of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

“Under President Xi Jinping, law has become subordinate to political control, with courts, law enforcement, and the military serving the Party’s supremacy rather than the public interest,” top intelligence sources told CNN-News18.

Anti-corruption as a political weapon

The sources noted that anti-corruption drives under Xi, as well as earlier campaigns under Mao Zedong, have often served political motives.

“Anti-corruption campaigns, from Mao Zedong to Xi Jinping, have historically served as tools to eliminate political rivals rather than to correct genuine wrongdoing,” CNN-News18 reported, citing intelligence sources.

The CCP’s disciplinary agency — the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) — functions outside the legal system, using secret detention systems such as Shuanggui and Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location (RSDL).

“Xi’s anti-graft body, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), operates outside legal oversight and frequently uses secret detention mechanisms such as Shuanggui and Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location (RSDL)—methods often involving forced confessions and torture,” intelligence sources confirmed to CNN-News18.

Military purges in military and government

More than 100 high-ranking officials from China’s military and political elite have been imprisoned or disappeared under opaque allegations.

“More than 100 senior officials from the political and military sectors have been imprisoned or disappeared under vague charges, including over 70 generals from the PLA, Rocket Force, and Air Force,” according to military intelligence assessments.

Even those appointed by Xi himself have not been immune, suggesting that political loyalty outweighs professional competence, especially within the People’s Liberation Army.

“Even Xi’s own appointees have not been spared, reflecting a cycle where loyalty is prioritised over military expertise,” CNN-News18 reported.

Lawyers, activists and the collapse of rule of law

Legal professionals and civil society activists have faced a similar fate. Intelligence sources pointed to the infamous 709 Crackdown as a turning point for judicial independence in China.

“The 709 Crackdown, as noted by intelligence sources, saw over 300 lawyers and activists arrested, tortured, or forcibly disappeared.”

Subsequent legal reforms have further cemented CCP control over the judiciary, effectively erasing the independence of courts.

“Subsequent legal reforms have placed all judicial actors under CCP ideological supervision, effectively eliminating rule-of-law independence.”

Private business under party control

The crackdown has extended into the business world, with a number of high-profile entrepreneurs, including Jack Ma, Bao Fan, Xiao Jianhua, and Hui Ka Yan, detained or made to vanish from public view.

“Top intelligence sources highlight cases like Jack Ma, Bao Fan, Xiao Jianhua, and Hui Ka Yan—each either detained or disappeared after challenging CCP policies or losing political favour,” CNN-News18 reported.

The CCP’s grip over private enterprise has deepened, with loyalists embedded even in publicly traded or internationally backed tech giants.

“Intelligence assessments also indicate that the CCP embeds loyalists within companies like ByteDance, Tencent, and Alibaba, regardless of ownership structures, turning private enterprise into instruments of surveillance and propaganda.”

Global surveillance and political policing

The intelligence sources also warned of the CCP’s growing international reach, targeting exiled dissidents through abductions, cyberattacks, and manipulation of Interpol Red Notices.

“Dissidents like Gui Minhai and Lee Bo were abducted overseas, while others face cyberattacks and harassment, often facilitated through Interpol Red Notices,” CNN-News18 cited intelligence sources as saying.

Their conclusion is stark: the CCP is operating with the tools and tactics of a political mafia.

“Intelligence sources warn that the CCP enforces political control through a mafia-like structure that criminalises dissent, both domestically and abroad.”