Former senior political adviser sentenced to 15 years for bribery

Liu Kuanren, former vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the China Association for Promoting Democracy, was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Monday by a court in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region for bribery and embezzlement.

Liu, also a former senior political adviser in Shaanxi province, was sentenced to 13 years in prison and fined 3 million yuan ($446,433) for accepting bribes, and sentenced to six years in prison and fined 500,000 yuan for embezzlement, according to a ruling by the Urumqi Intermediate People's Court.

The court combined the sentences, resulting in a 15-year prison term and a fine of 3.5 million yuan. It also ordered Liu's illicit gains and related interests to be confiscated and turned over to the State treasury or returned to the victims.

From the first half of 2006 to April 2025, Liu was found to have taken advantage of his positions in Shaanxi and the China Association for Promoting Democracy to seek benefits for certain departments and individuals in matters including project contracting and job promotions. In return, he accepted bribes totaling more than 41.46 million yuan.

From November 2013 to December 2017, when he served as head of the Shaanxi provincial department of culture, Liu took advantage of his position to embezzle and defraud public funds totaling more than 7.39 million yuan through others by fabricating performance events, signing bogus contracts and falsifying expenses.

The court found that Liu had committed the crimes of bribery and embezzlement and should be severely punished because of the "extremely large" amount of bribes he had accepted. However, it also said that Liu voluntarily reported most of the bribes that had not been uncovered by investigators, confessed to his crimes and actively returned his illicit gains, and therefore received a lenient sentence.

Public records show that Liu, 62, a native of Shaanxi, started working in July 1987 and joined the China Association for Promoting Democracy in October 1998. Before becoming deputy head of the Shaanxi provincial department of culture, he taught for years at the Xi'an Conservatory of Music.

In 2013, Liu became head of the Shaanxi provincial department of culture. In 2018, he began serving as vice-chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Shaanxi Provincial Committee. Four years later, he became vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the China Association for Promoting Democracy.

Liu was placed under investigation in May 2025 and removed from public office in November that year.

In April, he was indicted on charges of suspected bribery and embezzlement, and the court heard the case in June.