Bottles of baijiu are displayed at a store in Beijing. (Photo : Getty Images)
According to a report by People's Daily, the People's Liberation Army Air Force has punished more than 100 of its members for either violating the alcohol ban or failing to prevent subordinates from drinking.
The report indicated that 15 Air Force members who drank at their workplaces and 87 members that failed to make sure their subordinates followed the ban have been punished.
The punishments include administrative warnings, demotion from ranks and disqualification from promotion.
According to the newspaper, the 39th Group Army counter-chemical regiment and other military units installed alcohol detectors at every entrance to its office compound.
The Central Military Commission has issued an alcohol ban in Dec. 2012, a month after Xi Jinping became president. Since then, alcoholic beverages have gradually retreated from dinners that are attended by military members.
Several PLA officers stated that they have welcomed the ban, as it "saves" them from drinking a strong Chinese liquor baijiu. Baijiu is popular within the Chinese military for a long time in order to maintain or improve personal relations.
An anonymous Navy officer said: "We had to drink a lot in the past when there were visitors or guests. My superior officers and I didn't want to drink too much, and I believe our guests didn't want to drink too much either, but drinking baijiu was a kind of ritual at banquets to show our hospitality."
He added: "Now we are free of liquor. My wife and my daughter are the biggest supporters of the no-alcohol policy."
"At first, I didn't take it very seriously, but I gradually came to realize that this time we would really say goodbye to alcohol after some officers at my unit were punished for breaking the rules," said a PLA Ground Force technician who wished to be identified as Luo.
Luo said that his regiment spent a lot of money on baijiu before the ban was introduced.
