No Leniency on Organized Crime and Corruption.docVIP

No Leniency on Organized Crime and Corruption 　　“The crackdown on Chongqing’s underworld is part of a united deployment of the central authority.” 　　 ?C Bo Xilai, secretary of the CPC Chongqing municipal committee, during a talk with cadres of the local procuratorial, judicial and public security departments, 　　October 28, 2009 　　 　　CHONGQING has become an engine of development in southwestern China since it was designated a municipality under direct jurisdiction of the central government in 1997. Falling prey to the temptation to make exorbitant profits quickly, some people adopted violence to monopolize the market, forming an underworld of criminal forces reaching into important economic sectors. Criminal organizations have strict hierarchical structures and division of labor among their members: some carry out killings and robberies, some handle money laundering under cover of legitimate activities, and still others gather economic intelligence and “gray information,” or bribe officials to obtain protection. Sweeping them away was going to require some serious “new brooms.” 　　 　　Chongqing in Action 　　 　　In order to restore normal economic order and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the people, the Chong- qing police started a crackdown on organized crime and corruption in June 2009. By October 25, they had laid 2,328 criminal charges, arrested 2,915 suspects, eradicated 14 major criminal gangs, and sealed and frozen the proceeds and assets of the dirty dealing, amounting to US $260 million. 　　Sensational exposure of more than 200 judicial cadres under investigation for their involvement in the underworld included more than ten at the bureau or deputy-bureau level, such as Wen Qiang,former executive deputy chief of the Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau and chief of the Judicial Bureau, Peng Changjian, former deputy chief of the Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau, and Zhang Tao, former vice-president of the Chongqing Mu