China cracks down on bribe-offering crime

BEIJING, Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- China indicted 1,704 people in 1,208 cases nationwide for offering bribes in the first 11 months of 2022, according to an official with the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP).

Procuratorates across the country have strictly prosecuted those suspected of offering bribes, especially those who bribe officials in charge of key areas such as human resources, education and healthcare, said Shi Weizhong, a SPP senior prosecutor.

To protect the national interest, procuratorial organs have attached great importance to the pursuit of illicit gain from bribery. For instance, a loss of 215 million yuan (about 31.5 million U.S. dollars) in state assets was recovered in a case that occurred in east China's Jiangxi Province, the prosecutor noted.

In December, the SPP issued guidance on dealing with cases of bribery, helping procuratorates at all levels crack down on such crimes.

"The offering of bribes is a crucial inducement for officials to take bribes, and corruption can hardly be curbed unless bribery is eradicated," said Shi.