Missing women, children found through campaign

Public security ministry working to improve anti-trafficking mechanism

Public security organs nationwide have found 1,198 women and children listed as missing, and detained 1,069 suspects involved in the kidnapping and trafficking of women and children in the past four months, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

A yearlong nationwide campaign was launched in March by the public security and civil affairs ministries, the National Health Commission and the All-China Women's Federation, in order to crack down on the kidnapping and trafficking of women and children, and resolve accumulated abduction cases.

Since March, police have resolved 906 cases of kidnapping and trafficking of women and children, and initial success has been achieved in this campaign, Liu Zhongyi, head of the criminal investigation bureau of the Ministry of Public Security, said at a news conference held in Beijing on Monday.

Liu said that the ministry has deployed authorities nationwide to search for evidence related to abductions, focusing on the parents of missing and abducted women and children, suspected abductees and persons of unknown origin.

"The ministry released the addresses and telephone numbers of more than 5,000 free blood sampling spots around the country to facilitate the search for missing people," Liu said.

A group of criminal technology and intelligence experts nationwide has been selected to carry out online investigations, and data resources have been pooled to support the campaign, he said.

The ministry is working with 35 departments to promote the formation of a comprehensive social governance anti-trafficking workforce, and to gradually establish and improve the long-term anti-trafficking mechanism including prevention, crackdown, relief and rehabilitation, according to Liu.

Public security organs have always taken maintaining people's safety as the pursuit of the construction of a peaceful China, and a strong sense of security has remained constant among the Chinese people over the past decade, said Sun Maoli, a member of the Communist Party of China Committee of the Ministry of Public Security.

Public security organs have paid more attention to cases involving pornography, gambling, drugs, robbery and fraud, food and drug safety and environment protection, as well as the trafficking of women and children, so as to solve more major and minor cases quickly, said Sun.

They have put pressure on organized crime and smashed 16,600 criminal gangs since 2018, after the central government launched a three-year national campaign.

The number of serious criminal cases has decreased 64.4 percent from 2012, and the country is among those with the lowest homicide rates in the world, according to the ministry.

"Public security organs across the country have made great efforts to promote the Peaceful China Initiative, raise levels of socialization, intelligence, rule of law and professionalism, and enhance the people's sense of gain, happiness and security," Sun said.

He said the rate of sense of security among the Chinese people increased from 87.5 percent in 2012 to 98.6 percent in 2021, and China has become widely regarded by the international community as one of the safest countries in the world.