Weekly Review of Top Legal News Events in ChinaThe following are top legal news events that took place in China last week.China Publishes White Paper on Drug Control The Information Office of the State Council on June 26 published a white paper titled "Narcotics Control in China", on the government's position on the issue and the achievements it has scored in the work. The White Paper, the first of its kind ever issued by the Chinese government, is to mark the International Anti-Drug Day. It comprises a foreword and seven chapters. China Cracks Down on Drug-Related Crimes China said on June 26 that from 1991 to 1999, its drug-control organs cracked more than 800,000 drug cases and confiscated 39.67 tons of heroin, 16.894 tons of opium, 15.079 tons of marijuana and 23.375 tons of methamphetamine in the nationwide campaign in narcotics control. Ten Drug-Related Criminals Executed in China To mark the International Anti-Drug Day, the Supreme People's Court of China announced on June 26 that ten drug-related criminals were executed and another fifteen were sentenced to life or fixed-term imprisonment in three separate cases. The first case involves Chen Xinyuan, from Taiwan, Cai Dehui, a Hong Kong businessman and Gu Jianzhu, a farmer in Fujian Province, who trafficked 115,000 grams of heroin from the Chinese mainland to Taiwan in 1992 and 1993. The three were all sentenced to death by local courts in 1998. Another six accomplices were sentenced to fix-term imprisonment. Beijing Prisons Invite Supervisors Ten representatives from various walks of life in Beijing were invited to serve as supervisors by the Beijing Prison Administration on June 26. These representatives include deputies to the municipal people' s congress and the municipal committee of the people's political consultative conference, professors of law, journalists and family members of those serving sentences. China to Reform Police's Detention Centers The Ministry of Public Security plans to reform its detention centers to ensure that police carry out their duties in accordance with relevant laws and regulations. The remark was made by Zhang Weihang, director of the department in charge of detention and drug rehabilitation centers, at the opening of a national conference on guards for detention centers. Court Sentences Pimp to Life in Prison A court in east China's Zhejiang Province has sentenced a man to life in prison for organizing a prostitution ring. Cheng Haiqing was found guilty of procuring 16 women to work as prostitutes in a hotel in Shaoxing county. Beijing to Employ Legal Education Teachers Beijing's more than 2,000 primary and middle schools are to have full-time teachers for legal education, according to an official source here. This is part of the efforts to further raise awareness of the law among students in the Chinese capital. According to official figures, about nine percent of the crimes in Beijing are committed by school-age youngsters. Beijing Launches Drug-Control Publicity Campaign Beijing held on June 26 a series of activities to publicize the city's drug control campaign as part of International Anti-Drug Day. At a meeting, 100 individuals and 50 units were commended by the Beijing Drug-Control Committee for their contributions to the control of drugs in the past year. China Executes Drug Dealers Making a clear and compelling statement on International Anti- Drug Day, China executed a dozen traffickers and publicly burned two tons of confiscated narcotics. The dealers included three from Taiwan, one Hong Kong resident, two Shanghai heroin dealers and four drug sellers in northwest China's Shaanxi Province. Some 226 kg of heroin and 1,376 kg of methamphetemine, known as "ice," were burned in the open air in Fujian, east China. China to Reform Drug Rehabilitation Centers The Ministry of Public Security published on June 29 a circular ordering to reform drug rehabilitation centers and close down those that have been opened without official permission. According to the circular, the ministry will close down drug rehabilitation centers that are not run by public security departments. Drug Hotline Opens in China People in central China's Henan Province can now dial a hotline for information on dangers of drugs and national and local laws against drug abuse. The 24/7 service, available at #16800626, provides professional advice on drug abstinence, and brief explanations of local drug addiction treatment centers. HK Opens First Drug Resource Center Hong Kong's first ever drug resource center which aims to enhance preventive education for young people opened to the public Monday on the occasion of the United Nations International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Hong Kong's Secretary for Security Regina Ip said the government and Action Committee Against Narcotics (ACAN) of Hong Kong had taken a number of initiatives and actions to tackle the rising trend for psychotropic substance abuse. New Narcotics Control, Rehabilitation Center As the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Trafficking approaches, a narcotics control and rehabilitation center has formally gone into operation in China. Located in Xianghe County, Hebei Province, or some 40 km from Beijing, the North China Narcotics Control and Rehabilitation Center is financed by a farmer-turned-entrepreneur to the tune of 30 million yuan (about US$ 3.61 million). It covers an area of ten ha, and capable of accommodating about 1,000 people. The center is considered the largest private establishment of its kind on the Chinese mainland. South China Police Crackdown On Drug Abuse Police in Guangdong Province dealt with 1,648 narcotics-related cases and destroyed three underground drug-processing plants in the first five months of the year. Police detained 44 suspects, confiscated 221.9 kg of heroin, 1, 337.8 kg of "ice", 10,000 tablets of MDMA, a type of amphetamine, 8.7 kg of caffeine, and 500 kg of ephedrine, said local sources. Chongqing Police Arrest Drug Dealers The police in Chongqing arrested earlier this month four suspected drug dealers and confiscated more than 50 kg of heroin. The case is said to be the largest involving drug trafficking that has ever occurred in the city since the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949. |
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