There is still lingering shock and anger over the incident in Beijing on July 23 where a man snatched a two-year-old girl from her stroller and threw her to the ground, causing fatal injuries. But three days before, another baby girl in the central province of Henan was also thrown to the ground, causing serious injuries. This time the perpetrator was a policeman, Guo Zengxi, but shockingly, the incident was covered up for a whole month until the news was released on Saturday.

Guo snatched the seven-month-old infant from her father's arms and threw to the ground after making a drunken bet with friends that the baby was "just a doll." He was arrested on Saturday, but the public is still wrathful. In large part, this was because originally Guo received only 15 days confinement, then was allowed back to work. But his victim is still in hospital, and it's uncertain whether she will pull through.

When the incident could not remain concealed any longer thanks to a frenetic Weibo explosion, the all-too-familiar routine began again. The top leadership of the city started to "pay high attention;" a special investigation team was "urgently" formed by the law enforcement organs; several "caring" promises were made including sending the baby girl to Beijing's hospital for a better cure and punishing the perpetrator "without leniency."

Media reports will soon uncover every detail of the accident, and the officer, who was at last properly arrested and charged with intentional injury, will be given a just verdict.

But so far too many accusations have been laid on the perpetrator, while the people who covered up the event for so long are still "at large."

Perhaps we need to look higher. Judging by the 15 days of detention, Guo's actions must have been well known by his supervisors, who should have been fully aware of the severity of his act. Guo was probably just shielded.

"Shielding each another" has already become a survival philosophy in China's officialdom. "Maintaining stability" and "avoiding tarnishing the city's image" have become the rules local governments live by. They prevent real problems from being exposed, and even their interference with law enforcement is also "legitimized."

Such interference is very likely to produce a combination of vested interests, which results in a sealed group that's impossible for external supervisory bodies to manage.

Refraining and segmenting public power under an effective and balanced supervisory system is what really matters. Guo is the chief culprit in the criminal case but the system and the people who shielded him are equally to blame.

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