Sustained efforts in legal system credited for decline in abductions

The trafficking of women and children has been curtailed in the past few years, thanks to multipronged efforts that include harsher judicial rules, China's top court said on Monday.

While 3,631 people were found guilty of trafficking in 2010, that number fell to 1,362 last year, according to the latest numbers from the Supreme People's Court.

Meanwhile, the number of related cases in Chinese courts during 2015 also fell, from 1,919 six years ago to 853.

The two benchmarks were both well down from 2010, the first by 55.6 percent and the second by 62.5 percent, said the court, which added that it believed such abductions in the country had been brought under control.

"Such an impact on trafficking-related crime should be attributed to stricter rules, harsher penalties and the increasing awareness of the need to protect women and children in the Chinese courts," the top court said.

In 2010, the top court issued guidelines on dealing with the abduction of women and children. They call for police to immediately launch a criminal investigation as soon as a minor is reported missing. Adults who buy trafficked children are also now liable to be prosecuted as child abductors.

The judicial document that tightened and toughened the laws effectively solved problems from the past associated with delays in investigating disappearances and relatively lenient sentences, it said.

In addition, the top court also strengthened cooperation with the United Nations Children's Fund and a team that works against abductions in regions along the Mekong River, both aimed at reducing abductions with an international connection.

But the court confirmed that some new crimes against women and children have surged recently. For example, the number of parents who have sold their own children has risen, as has the prevalence of sexual assaults.

Chen Wei, a Beijing lawyer who specializes in family disputes and representing women, applauded the progress against child abductions, saying improvements can also be attributed to efforts on social media and the participation of the public.

"This is not just the job of judicial bodies, such as the police and the courts, it is everyone's responsibility," Chen said.

She expressed concern that sexual assaults seemed to be on the rise against children left behind in rural areas "while their parents work elsewhere in the country and elderly guardians, often grandparents, are not capable of protecting them".

The number of offenders sentenced for sexual offenses against children between 2013 and 2015 was 6,620, according to official data.

caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn