Political Work

A Unit of the Joint Logistic Support Force Strictly Enforces "Discipline at the Tip of the Tongue"

联勤保障部队某部严抓“舌尖上的纪律”

PLA Daily (解放军报) 25 July 2026

Summary

A unit of the Joint Logistic Support Force formalized a 'Three Absolutes' (三个一律) rule — no separate cooking, no differential dining, no disguised preferential treatment — after discovering that grassroots canteens were stir-frying the same ingredients separately and plating them more attractively for visiting headquarters cadres, a practice the Party committee labeled a 'new variant of bureaucratism' (官僚主义). The article documents a specific enforcement problem: work-style violations that survive initial crackdowns by mutating into forms that technically comply with the letter of the rule while preserving its spirit — same ingredients, better presentation — which the institution found harder to detect and more corrosive to unit cohesion than overt special treatment. The framing, published in PLA Daily under the banner of 深化政治整训 (deepening political rectification training), points to the JLSF using canteen discipline as a legible, low-stakes entry point for a broader campaign against hierarchical privilege, though the article gives no indication of how widely the 'Three Absolutes' rule has been adopted across the force.

Translation

A Unit of the Joint Logistic Support Force Strictly Enforces "Discipline at the Tip of the Tongue" —— Eating from the Same Pot, a Clean Breeze Sweeps In

■ Han Yutang, Xiao Qian, PLA Daily Reporter Sun Xingwei

Introduction

How much weight can a meal carry?

In the eyes of the leading cadres of a certain unit of the Joint Logistic Support Force, it is not merely three meals a day to replenish energy — it is also a mirror reflecting work style, and a ruler measuring discipline.

From once racking their brains to "entertain" inspection work groups, to "eating from the same pot" now becoming an iron rule; from treating the "small private kitchen" (小锅灶) as unremarkable, to officers and soldiers sharing the same serving ladle; from "personal favors" (人情往来) consuming working energy, to the clean breeze of "going by the rules" sweeping in — the officers and soldiers of this unit have felt, at an ordinary dining table, that discipline is iron: only by holding discipline in awe and strictly observing rules can the unit maintain a clean and upright atmosphere, and can combat effectiveness become truly solid.

In the height of summer, a work group from the headquarters of a certain unit of the Joint Logistic Support Force went to a grassroots unit to conduct research. At lunchtime, the leader heading the work group and several headquarters cadres walked into the canteen, voluntarily scanned the code to pay their meal fees, then picked up their trays and joined the officers and soldiers in the queue to collect their food.

They found an empty table and sat down, eating while exchanging thoughts on the morning's research — the atmosphere was relaxed and lively.

Turn the clock back, and the dining tables in grassroots unit canteens once presented an entirely different scene —

In those days, whenever a higher-level work group came down for inspection or research, grassroots units, in order to leave a better impression, would often make something extra of the food.

The waters near the garrison were clear and the fish were plump; the hills yielded an abundance of fresh wild vegetables. These seasonal delicacies from nature required no additional expenditure from the mess budget, neither harmed the interests of the officers and soldiers, and yet allowed the leaders to enjoy something fresh — and so they became the "standard supplementary fare" (加餐标配) for entertaining work groups.

On one occasion, when two carefully prepared specialty dishes were brought to the table, a leader set down his chopsticks and asked: "Do the soldiers have these two dishes on their tables at lunch today?" The room fell instantly silent. The two dishes were then taken away.

Some people grumbled inwardly — it was just two dishes, and they hadn't cost anything; there was no need to make such a fuss. But the Party committee leadership took the matter to a Party committee meeting for serious analysis: adding two local dishes when a leader visits, setting up a small private kitchen when a work group arrives — such extra fare imperceptibly establishes the unhealthy orientation of "leading cadres receiving special treatment."

After deep reflection, they came to recognize further that while this unhealthy work style manifested at the grassroots level, its roots lay in the headquarters. A member of the Party committee standing committee frankly acknowledged that only if the headquarters takes the lead in firmly stopping the culture of ingratiation can the grassroots stop spending their energy on "entertaining."

In conjunction with deepening political rectification training (深化政治整训), the unit's Party committee used the halting of "specialty dishes" as an entry point to strictly clarify disciplinary rules, explicitly stipulating that inspection and research visits must not disrupt the grassroots unit's normal rhythm, require no special arrangements, require no personnel escorts, and must not schedule unrelated activities. Party organizations at all levels launched discussions and analysis around the question of "for whom do we serve as soldiers, for whom do we serve," discarding the erroneous notion of "treating leaders' satisfaction as the standard and reception standards as a measure of achievement."

It is easy to stop work-style problems that are visible; rooting out the erroneous thinking of "seeking special treatment" is not the work of a single day. For a period, a more concealed form of "special treatment" quietly raised its head.

On one occasion, a headquarters work group went to a grassroots unit to conduct a random inspection. As lunchtime approached, the head of the cooking squad quietly instructed a soldier: "Set aside the best-looking dishes, stir-fry them separately in a small pot, and remember to plate them nicely."

When mealtime arrived, the work group members entered the canteen to find that a dining table had already been set in advance with several dishes — stir-fried tomato and egg, pork with garlic shoots, and red-braised pork — each dish plated with care and visually appealing, accompanied by several small plates of refreshing pickled vegetables. Looking over at the soldiers queuing for their food nearby, their trays held the same dishes, but the presentation seemed somewhat inferior.

A work group member went into the back kitchen and found a soldier busy stir-frying at the stove. "Aren't all the dishes already out?" The soldier hemmed and hawed, saying this was being prepared for the leaders' table.

The work group immediately ordered a halt and reported the situation to the Party committee. After thorough investigation, the Party committee leadership recognized that this kind of hidden, mutated work-style problem was harder to detect than openly adding dishes, and more liable to lull people's thinking: the ingredients had not changed, the variety had not changed — it was only a difference in preparation and plating — yet it unmistakably transmitted the erroneous signal that "leading cadres are simply different."

"This is a new variant of bureaucratism (官僚主义), a new hidden risk of rule-breaking and disciplinary violation — we cannot turn a blind eye and allow this kind of work style to breed and spread." At the Party committee meeting, the leadership pointed directly to the root: some leading cadres felt that eating a little from the "small private kitchen" was harmless, and that if a grassroots unit did not arrange something "special" it had failed to show proper regard — the result could only be that they gradually relaxed their own standards, shed the constraints of discipline, and allowed power to go unchecked and behavior to go uncorrected.

The commanding officer of that grassroots unit, leading the group in reflecting on the problem, also came to recognize: in the past they had thought that as long as no additional mess funds were spent it did not count as a violation; now they understood that any differential treatment draws a gulf in the hearts of the officers and soldiers.

The loopholes must be closed through institutions, and the root of the disease must be pulled out through ideology. The unit's Party committee took a clear-cut stance and established hard rules, explicitly requiring that leading cadres conducting grassroots research and visits must observe the "Three Absolutes" (三个一律): absolutely no separate cooking, absolutely no differential dining, and absolutely no disguised preferential treatment. Grassroots units post QR codes in prominent locations in the canteen; leading cadres must scan the code and pay their meal fees before eating; canteen accounts are regularly publicized and subject to supervision by all officers and soldiers.

Not long ago, when a leader of the unit brought several headquarters cadres to a grassroots unit for research, he made a point of going to the canteen kitchen — first to inspect the quality of the officers' and soldiers' food, and second to check whether anyone was paying lip service while covertly arranging special treatment. "Whatever the officers and soldiers eat, we eat; however well the officers and soldiers eat, that is how well we eat," he earnestly instructed.

At that meal, leading cadres and soldiers shared the same ladle, stood in the same queue, and ate from the same pot. A company political instructor (指导员) said with feeling: "In the past, when leaders came for inspection and research, we always worried about failing to provide adequate hospitality. Now it's different — the leaders sit among us with their trays, everyone eats and talks together, and the soldiers dare to speak their minds. This meal — we ate it with a clear conscience!"

Reporter's Notes

The Chopsticks of "Special Treatment" Must Not Be Touched

■ Sun Xingwei

Do leading cadres queue together with soldiers, collect food together, and eat at the same table — or do they set up a separate kitchen and receive differential treatment? The difference in a single meal is in truth a mirror of work style and a question of Party character (党性之问). A certain unit of the Joint Logistic Support Force, through the tenacity of sustained governance over a single meal, has illuminated the boundaries of power, measured the calibration of discipline, and reflected the true color of Party character.

For Party member cadres, consciously and proactively eating from the same bowl as grassroots officers and soldiers means setting down the chopsticks of "special treatment" and taking up the guiding principle of strictly observing disciplinary rules and discarding the thinking of privilege. For the grassroots, no longer having to spend energy pondering how to "entertain" means setting down the burden of personal obligations and consolidating the fighting spirit (兵心士气) of observing rules and discipline and focusing single-mindedly on war. When the legal and disciplinary concept (法纪观念) of observing discipline and following rules takes ever deeper root in people's hearts, special treatment in any form will have nowhere to hide, and the scale in the hearts of officers and soldiers will naturally balance.

The power of rules lies in extending from a single point to the whole, drawing inferences from one instance to all others. Wherever rules are established, there is something to follow. "Rules at the tip of the tongue" (舌尖上的规矩) are only the starting point, by no means the endpoint. No special treatment in eating means the bottom line must also be held in the use of vehicles and housing; no fanfare of send-offs and receptions during inspection and research means assessments and evaluations must be fair and impartial; no bending of the rules in matters of treatment means the selection and appointment of personnel, the use of funds, and the allocation of resources can be more equitable and transparent. When "seeking special treatment" has nowhere to hide and "going by the rules" becomes habit, deepening political rectification training can move from paper into practice, from slogan into conscious action, and from a momentary change into an enduring achievement.

Original Chinese

联勤保障部队某部严抓“舌尖上的纪律”—— 同吃一锅饭清风扑面来 ■韩玉堂肖茜解放军报记者孙兴维导读一顿饭，能有多大分量？在联勤保障部队某部领导干部看来，这不仅是补充能量的一日三餐，也是一面折射作风的镜子，一把丈量纪律的标尺。从曾经用心琢磨“招待”工作组，到如今“同吃一锅饭”成为铁律；从对“小锅灶”见怪不怪，到干部战士同用一把打菜勺；从“人情往来”牵扯工作精力，到“按规矩来”的清风扑面……该部官兵从一张普通的餐桌上，感受到纪律如铁，只有敬畏纪律、严守规矩，部队才能风清气正，战斗力才会更加过硬。盛夏时节，联勤保障部队某部机关一支工作组前往基层开展调研。午饭时间，工作组带队领导和几名机关干部走进食堂，自觉扫码交纳伙食费，然后拿起餐盘，与官兵们一起排队打菜。随意找到一张空着的饭桌坐下，几人一边就餐，一边交流着上午调研的心得，氛围轻松活跃。把时间的指针往回拨，在基层单位食堂的餐桌上，曾有过截然不同的景象—— 那时候，每当有上级工作组前来检查调研，基层为了给工作组留下更好印象，常会在吃上做些文章。驻地周边潭水清澈、游鱼肥美，山上野菜丰富鲜嫩，这些大自然的时令美味，无需额外开支伙食费，既不损害官兵利益，又能让领导尝尝鲜，于是成了招待工作组的“加餐标配”。一次，当两盘精心准备的特色菜端上餐桌，一名领导放下筷子问：“战士们今天中午的餐桌上都有这两道菜吗？”现场顿时一片寂静。随后，那两道菜被端下了桌。有人心里犯嘀咕，就是两道菜，也没花钱，不至于此。党委一班人却把这个问题搬上了党委会认真剖析：领导来了加两道土菜，工作组到了搞点小灶，这样的加餐无形中立起“领导干部搞特殊”的不良导向。经过深刻反省，他们更加认识到，这样的不良风气，表现在基层，根子却在机关。一名党委常委坦言，机关带头狠刹迎合之风，基层才能不把心思花在“招待”上。结合深化政治整训，该部党委以叫停“特色菜”为切口，严明纪律规矩，明确检查调研不打乱基层节奏、不需要特殊安排、不要求人员陪同、不安排无关活动。各级党组织围绕“为谁当兵、为谁服务”展开讨论辨析，摒弃“把领导满意当标准、把接待规格当政绩”的错误观念。刹住看得见的风气问题容易，根治“搞特殊”的错误思想却非一日之功。有段时间，一种更加隐蔽的“特殊化”悄悄冒了头。一次，一个机关工作组到某基层单位开展随机检查。临近午餐时间，炊事班班长悄悄叮嘱一名战士：“把卖相好的菜留出来，单独用小锅炒，记得摆盘好看些。” 就餐时间到了，工作组人员走进食堂见到，一张餐桌上已提前摆上了几道菜——西红柿炒蛋、蒜薹肉丝、红烧肉，每一道菜都装盘精致、色泽诱人，同时还配有几碟爽口咸菜。再看看一旁正在排队打饭的战士，他们餐盘中虽都是同样的菜品，品相却似乎差那么一些。一名工作组成员走进后厨，见一名战士正在灶台前忙着炒菜。“菜不都上齐了吗？”那名战士支支吾吾说，这是给领导那桌准备的。工作组当即叫停，并向党委汇报了这一情况。党委一班人深入摸排后认识到，这种隐形变异的风气问题比明面上的加菜更难以察觉，也更容易麻痹思想：食材没变、品种没变，只是做法和摆盘上的区别，却切切实实传递着“领导干部就是不一样”的错误信号。 “这是官僚主义的新变种，是违规违纪的新隐患，我们不能睁一只眼闭一只眼让这种风气滋生蔓延。”党委会上，领导一针见血指出，其根源还是部分领导干部觉得吃点“小灶”无伤大雅，认为基层单位不搞点“特殊”就是没尽到心意，结果只会导致自身逐渐放松要求、摆脱纪律约束，致使权力失控、行为失范。那个基层单位的主官带领大家反思问题时也认识到，过去以为只要不额外增加伙食费就不算违规，现在才明白，任何区别对待，都是在官兵心中划出一道鸿沟。必须从制度上堵住漏洞，从思想上拔除病根。该部党委态度鲜明立起硬规矩，明确领导干部在基层调研走访时，必须做到“三个一律”，即一律不准单独开灶、一律不准区别用餐、一律不准变相照顾。基层单位在食堂显眼位置张贴二维码，领导干部用餐先扫码交纳伙食费，食堂账目定期公示，接受全体官兵监督。前不久，该部一名领导带领几名机关干部前往基层调研时，专门来到食堂后厨，一是看官兵伙食质量，二是看有没有阳奉阴违搞特殊。“官兵吃什么，我们吃什么，官兵吃得怎样，我们吃得怎样。”他认真叮嘱。当天那顿饭，领导干部与战士们同拿一把勺、同排一条队、同吃一锅饭。一名指导员感慨地说：“过去领导前来检查调研，我们总担心招待不周。现在好了，领导端着盘子坐在我们中间，大家边吃边聊，战士们也敢说真话了。这顿饭，吃得踏实！” 记者手记 “特殊化”的筷子不能碰 ■孙兴维领导干部是与战士同排队、同打菜、同桌共食，还是另起炉灶、区别对待？一餐之别，实则是作风之镜、党性之问。联勤保障部队某部以持续治理一顿饭的韧劲，照见权力边界，量出纪律刻度，折射党性本色。对党员干部而言，自觉主动与基层官兵同吃一碗饭，放下的是“特殊化”的筷子，拿起的是严守纪律规矩、摒弃特权思想的行动准绳；对基层而言，不用再把心思放在琢磨“招待”上，卸下的是人情负担，凝聚起的是遵规守纪、一心向战的兵心士气。当守纪律、讲规矩的法纪观念日益深入人心，任何形式的特殊化都将无处藏身，官兵心中那杆秤自然就平了。规矩的力量，在于由点及面、触类旁通。规矩立在哪里，哪里就有了遵循。“舌尖上的规矩”只是起点，绝非终点。吃饭不搞特殊，用车、用房亦要守住底线；检查调研不搞迎送，考核、评比必须公平公正；待遇面前不搞变通，选人用人、经费使用、资源分配就能更加公道透明。当“搞特殊”无处藏身、“按规矩来”成为习惯，深化政治整训便可以从纸上落到实处，从口号变为自觉，从一时之变化为长久之功。