A due salute to law enforcement

After multiple investigations and the use of new technologies, police officers in Sanming, Fujian province, eventually found DNA evidence to solve a 25-year-old murder.

A suspect was arrested in June with the help of improved DNA testing and fingerprint technology and data analysis algorithms, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

With the improvements in detection methods and technologies, public security organs nationwide have cleared a backlog of more than 5,200 cases involving death in 2020, about four times the number in the previous year, the ministry said.

China has also become one of the safest countries in the world in recent years.

The 2020 Global Law and Order report, released by the Washington-based Gallup organization in October covering 144 countries and regions, showed China ranked third in a global poll of people's perceptions about their personal security.

In August, at a ceremony to confer the police force flag, President Xi Jinping lauded the major contributions made by police in safeguarding national security, social stability and people's interests. He called them a mighty force that can be fully trusted by the Communist Party of China and the people.

Xi, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, said the police force must uphold a people-centered philosophy and remain committed to serving the people and relying on them in all endeavors.

Jan 10 marks the inaugural Chinese People's Police Day, which has the approval of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, China's Cabinet. The day recognizes police officers' "heroic struggle in the interests of the Party and the people", the Ministry of Public Security said on its website.

In November, at a work conference on the Peaceful China initiative, Xi urged efforts to promote the implementation of the initiative and constantly enhance people's sense of fulfillment, happiness and security.

He called for a greater focus on prominent problems affecting national security, social stability and people's tranquillity on the basis of pursuing collaboration, participation and common interests.

Over the years, the public security bodies have safeguarded the legitimate rights and interests of the public by cracking down on major crimes, promoting the Peaceful China initiative to a higher level.

The incidence of serious violence in eight categories－including murder, intentional injury and rape－dropped by 11.6 percent last year, compared with 2019, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

Guns and explosives

Public security bodies have recently worked with departments in other fields to control and severely punish illegal activities involving guns and explosives.

Last year, nationwide crimes involving guns dropped 12.5 percent from 2019 and 15.4 percent for explosives.

Police coordinated with authorities covering cyberspace, customs, market supervision and postal services to stem the sale of real and imitation guns on the internet.

Last year, more than 20,000 cases nationwide related to guns and explosives were solved, 90 gangs smashed and 20,000 suspects arrested. About 140 metric tons of explosives and 76,000 real and imitation guns were confiscated, according to the ministry.

In June, police officers in Xiamen, Fujian province, worked with their counterparts in Chongqing to bust an online gang trafficking guns and ammunition, arresting 9 suspects, seizing 50 guns, 11 grenades, TNT and several detonators.

The ministry organized 153 cities to destroy seized guns and explosives in November. It also launched a new three-year campaign the same month to further reduce the number of guns and explosives.

Organized crime

A three-year campaign against organized crime has seen 3,600 mafia-style gang cases and 11,600 other cases solved, with assets of more than 450 billion yuan ($69.6 billion) seized.

Police also launched an operation to target more than 5,824 fugitives involved in organized crime. According to the ministry, all of the 5,328 targeted fugitives in China have been captured, while 440 out of the 496 overseas fugitives have been brought back home as of the end of December.

A total of 1,759 criminal gangs using information networks and telephone systems to commit fraud were also busted.

Liu Zhongyi, director of the ministry's Criminal Investigation Bureau, said fraudsters use virtual identities to communicate and form criminal gangs.

Because the fraud is committed by a variety of people working from different locations, they are harder to trace than traditional gang members and can inflict more financial and social damage on their victims.

Students seeking easy loans are particularly vulnerable to dubious loan contracts with changing interest rates.

By cooperating with education and cyberspace authorities, the ministry has established a national monitoring and warning platform for suspect lending cases.

As of last month, the number of suspected online false lending operators had dropped 86 percent from its peak in 2019, the ministry said.

Over 3,490 suspects were arrested for online and offline fraudulent lending related to organized crime.

Cybersecurity

Public security bodies have stepped up efforts to tackle online crimes such as personal information infringement, gambling, fraud and hiring online trolls to hype or criticize events.

Police dealt with over 3,100 criminal cases involving infringement of personal information and arrested more than 9,700 suspects last year. The offenders usually targeted minors and the elderly and sometimes traded or used the stolen information on the dark web.

Police in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, arrested 26 people last year who cracked facial recognition security and sold the victims' information to criminal gangs.

Last year, about 256,000 telecom and internet fraud cases were solved and 263,000 suspects arrested in police operations. More than 140 million fraudulent phone calls and 870 million text messages were intercepted, and 316,000 fraudulent websites blocked, preventing estimated economic losses of 120 billion yuan, the ministry said.

Drug control

The overall drug control situation in China has steadily improved in recent years, the ministry said.

Public security bodies solved about 49,000 drug-related crimes, arrested more than 63,000 suspects and seized 43.7 tons of drugs nationwide in the first three quarters of last year, it said.

Authorities also conducted a series of anti-drug publicity and education activities and established a digital platform to educate young people on drug-prevention education, with over 96 million students from 228,000 schools registered on the platform.

They have also improved the drug rehabilitation model and strengthened services and management for drug users. By the end of 2019, more than 2.5 million drug users had not relapsed after three years of abstinence.

The number of drug users decreased by 8.4 percent from 2015, showing a downward trend for two consecutive years, the ministry said.