Four Public Safety Problems in Rural China, Prostitution Rampant in Some Areas

According to the information released from China Ministry of Public Security Bureau, Mr. Liu Jin Guo, Deputy Minister, pointed out in the second plenary meeting of the Central Commision on the Comprehensive Administration of Public Safety in 2006, that the rural public safety at present is characterized by prominent violent crimes, frequent crimes against properties, prevalence of social evils in parts of the country, and serious phenomenon of making and selling of dangerous goods.

Mr. Liu Jin Guo announced that the rural crime rates are on a sharp rise, with higher incidences than in the urban areas. From January to September 2006, a total of 8,031 murder cases and 59,000 harm cases occurred in rural areas, a crime rate higher than those in the urban areas. Of these many are 'civil-turned-into-criminal' cases. Occurrence of severe criminal cases where several people were killed at once are not uncommon .

Following crimes include abundant theft and robbery cases. From January to September, 880,000 property-violation cases such as stealing of grains, animals-husbandry and production materials were filed, accounting for 31% of the total cases.

Mr. Liu also stated that, in part of rural China, gambling activities, in particular the underground "lottery" (Liuhecai) have spread rapidly, alongside the increasingly rampant prostitution in venues such as small hair saloons and KTVs, have led to many social problems.

In addition, the illegal production of dynamite in some rural and mining areas are very serious, inflicting significant risks to the public safety administration and safe production.