China's national security efforts help build a safe society

BEIJING, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Thanks to the enhanced efforts in safeguarding national security, a safe and prosperous society has been forged for everyone in China.

Thursday marked the country's sixth National Security Education Day. Addressing a press conference, the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) said that China has seen no violent terrorist incidents for more than four consecutive years.

The country's fight against terrorism is progressing steadily as it has strengthened international counter-terrorism cooperation and maintained a tough stance against violent terrorist activities, said an MPS spokesperson.

As of last year, the annual number of criminal cases in the country has continued to drop for five years in a row, according to a document released at the press conference. The annual incidents of eight kinds of major crimes and that of minor offenses have also decreased for six consecutive years, the document showed.

In 2020, about 98.4 percent of the population said they feel safe while 83.6 percent of the people said they are satisfied with the public safety situation in China, the ministry said, citing figures from the National Bureau of Statistics.

The implementation of the national security law for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and a series of relevant measures in this regard have effectively combated national security-related crimes in the region, said Yue Zhongming, spokesperson for the Legislative Affairs Commission of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, on Thursday.

Yue added that the relevant measures have helped restore stability in Hong Kong and ensured lasting peace and prosperity in the region.

In an article published Thursday on the country's efforts to forestall and defuse major risks, the People's Daily stressed that it is a major principle underlying the governance of the Communist Party of China to ensure both development and security and be ever ready to protect against potential dangers in time of peace.

The article called for maintaining vigilance against all kinds of risks and challenges on the way forward, urging both proper precautionary measures and effective response in case of any unforeseeable occurrences.

Besides, it underscored measures to deal with major risks in political, ideological, economic, science and technology and social fields, as well as those involving the external environment and Party building.

The article also highlighted efforts to prevent and control major epidemic diseases and other public health emergencies that affect national development and security, as well as social and political stability.

The article called for efforts to uphold and improve the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and continue to modernize China's system and capacity for governance, so as to give full play to the strength of China's system to overcome the challenges.