Policemen patrol in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Jan. 10, 2022. .(Photo: Xinhua)

 

China has launched a 100-day campaign to crack down on illegal behaviors to eliminate security problems, highlighting the protection of vulnerable groups including children and women. It came after the curtain call of special campaign against crimes in the wake of the brutality at a restaurant in the city of Tangshan in North China's Hebei Province. 

Public security organs across China such as Hebei, North China's Shanxi, Northeast China's Heilongjiang and East China's Shanghai have immediately responded to the campaign by the Ministry of Public Security (MPS). 

Action taken by the MPS is to further fortify the security barrier against gang crimes and reshape public confidence toward a secure China as the brutal case really cast a shadow to Chinese public, Zhi Zhenfeng, a researcher at the Institute of Law of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.

At a mobilization meeting on June 25, the MPS stressed the need to strengthen the allocation of police forces on streets, communities and patrols at night, so as to safeguard society security and guarantee the public wellbeing. 

The MPS said illegal behaviors that infringe on rights of children and women will be given extra attention. It urges public security organs to take a zero-tolerance policy in eliminating organized gang crimes and punishing their protection umbrellas. 

China's resolution in solving deep-rooted security issues such as gang crimes is firm and clear. People will understand that violent cases such as the one in Tangshan are really at odds with the national context that is broader safe, Zhi said. 

Ever since the brutal assault at a Tangshan restaurant on June 10, special campaigns on inspecting potential crimes at night markets, shopping malls and barbecue stalls have also sprung up in multiple cities including Baoding, Qinhuangdao in Hebei, Pingyao in North China's Shanxi Province, and others in Northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and Gansu Province. 

A police officer from Tangshan's Lubei district told the Global Times on Tuesday that local public security bureaus in Tangshan have already begun actions with the 100-day campaign, meaning the city will continue to maintain a tough stance in cracking down on illegal behaviors to eliminate security problems though the 15-day "Thunderstorm" has finished. 

The "Thunderstorm" campaign in Tangshan - launched after the grievous assault hit a raw nerve of the public when it happened against the background of a national campaign of cracking down on gang crimes - drew to a close on Monday. 

"Tangshan's campaign 'Thunderstorm' drew to a close" has become a trending topic on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo on Tuesday with people anticipating to see results of the campaign.

Tangshan has been studying and concluding tip-offs and clues that they have received during the campaign, said the police officer. He revealed that 24-hour hotlines for tip-offs will remain accessible. The number of tip-offs that the branch is now receiving has largely reduced compared with the days immediately following the assault incident, he said. 

Hebei provincial public security department had updated the investigation over the brutal case as a phased investigation statement on last Tuesday was released. It said local public security organs are studying the clues offered by the public, checking and solving them one by one. Clues related to organized gang crimes will be jointly inspected with police from other places.