ABSTRACT
China's civil-military relations since 1949 are characterized by both high military intervention in politics and remarkable loyalty to the party regime. Both of these two aspects of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA's) role in politics can be explained by a historical fusion between the civil and military organizations. Officially entitled the Military Commission of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the Central Military Commission (CMC) actually enjoys a great deal of autonomy from the jurisdiction of the Central Committee or the Politburo. Its membership usually consists of the defense minister, the chief of the general staff, the directors of the general political and logistic departments, the commanders of the air and naval forces, and commanders of some major military regions. Directly under the authority of the CMC are party committees at each level of the PLA. As the highest authority in each unit, they decide on all promotions, political education, and military training.
