Shock therapy not enough

(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-10-27 10:15

What the people really hope to see is a consistent crackdown on crime instead of a shock therapy, says an article in Wuhan Evening News. The following is an excerpt:

In recent days, the police in Chongqing have launched the largest campaign in the past 25 years to crack down on crime. Within 80 days, the police has cracked 32,771 criminal cases and arrested 9,512 suspects.

The large number of cases and suspects demonstrated the success of the campaign, but also frightened the local residents. People have found that so many criminal cases and suspects had existed before the crackdown.

No matter when the criminal cases take place, the police should immediately try to crack them. However, the fruits of the 80-day campaign, on the one hand, have proved the capacity of the police to deal with criminals; on the other, they have left people with the suspicion that the police may not be doing enough in their daily work.

The crackdown campaign is in fact a shock therapy trying to solve all the problems within a designated period. It might be useful sometimes, but it can't help build a safe society in the long run.

First, the shock therapy gives a hint to the criminals that the crackdown is not a routine and thus they would stop committing crimes when the police are making strikes and resume their criminal activities otherwise.

Second, this shock therapy mindset actually reflects the lack of consistency in social management. Third, the use of shock therapy gives the impression that there are too many accumulated problems.