China prosecutes over 100,000 for offenses against minors since 2018

BEIJING - A total of 100,700 suspects were prosecuted for crimes against minors in China from January 2018 to October 2019, the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) said Friday.

During the period, Chinese procuratorates approved the arrest of 80,600 suspects involved in crimes targeting minors, said Shi Weizhong, a senior prosecutor in charge of underage cases, at a press conference.

The numbers of such arrests approved and charges pressed by the procuratorates in the first 10 months of 2019 increased 22.95 percent and 28.63 percent year on year, respectively.

"Amid a rising number of crimes against minors in recent years, procuratorates nationwide have taken severe measures to fight such offenses and achieved some progress," Shi said.

Efforts have been made to crack down on serious crimes against minors, including sexual assault and offenses committed by mafia-like organizations.

Meanwhile, prosecutors have focused on industries and communities prone to such crimes by fighting domestic violence, crimes committed at nurseries and training institutions, and assault against rural left-behind children.

During the period from January 2018 to October 2019, 32,500 suspects were prosecuted for sexual abuse against minors, while 6,962 were charged with violent crimes against minors in schools, SPP figures show.

The procurators have also developed and improved mechanisms to prevent and punish crimes against minors, including a database of sex offenders and relevant inquiry and restriction mechanisms for candidates seeking employment related to minors, a mandatory reporting system of such crimes, and an Internet platform handling affairs regarding such offenses.

A one-stop mechanism for obtaining evidence and providing victim relief has also been established in order to better collect evidence and protect victims, Shi noted.