Compare And Contrast Different/Amount Of Crimes In China - Research Paper Example

Compare And Contrast Different/Amount Of Crimes In China Introduction The term crime in any ordinary and general language refers to an act that is considered as unlawful and worthy of punishment by the state through its responsible arm. However, in modern criminal law, the term does not have any simple definition that is accepted universally, for this reason, there are statutory definitions that have been made in order to help people know the extent of their actions and behavior1. One of the most popular views about crime is that which has been established by the legal institute. According to the legal definition of crime, an act can only be regarded as a crime if the law recommends or gives provisions for such,2 otherwise, it cannot be said to be. An act can be considered being a crime if it happens to cause harm not only to an individual, but also to a community or state (where it is regarded as a public wrong). A criminal act of whatever magnitude is also referred to as an offense or a criminal offense, and is not accepted in the general society. Criminal acts are not considered part of social norms in any society, they are highly discouraged with young people being taught and encouraged to live with full respect of the law. In fact, every government takes criminal acts seriously, it arrests and prosecutes people that are assumed to take part or associated with criminal activities. Different criminal acts have different forms of punishment; those acts that cause much severity to people and property attract grater punishments from the state. The law classifies different acts of crime, spelling out the kind of penalty that should be accorded to each In general, the work of the law is to correct and rehabilitate people convicted of criminal activities back into society. The government employs different strategies in order to counter different criminal offenses, it is important to appreciate that modern criminal activities are not similar to those that used to happen several decades ago. Changes in people’s lifestyle, the changing economic conditions as well as advances in information and technology have seemed to influence modern criminal activities. In the same way, governments have responded by using modern surveillance systems and security facilities in order to improve the security status of a country. Criminal activities in China It is important to appreciate the fact that crime is a universal concern affecting the international community as well. There are efforts being made in every nation as well as on the international front in order to minimize and stop criminal and terrorism activities, which are claiming the lives of many people and damaging property in equal measure. China as a country is not a different case, there are different kinds of crimes and criminal offences which the Chinese people are usually affected with.3 Some of the common crimes in the Chinese republic include drug trafficking, money laundering, human trafficking as well as corruption in both public and private places. In addition, the country’s economy has been suffering from increased cases of black marketing as well as circulation of fake currencies by people who do not want to adhere to proper systems of law. Crime in China, just like in any other country, has been the cause of several cases of under development in some places, with similar activities deprogressing the rate of economic growth in some sectors of the economy. Just like in other countries, increased cases of criminal activities have reduced the confidence of both local and foreign investors, with natives of such places suffering from poverty and other repercussions of criminal activities. However, the government of the Chinese republic has been doing all it can to make sure that people perpetrating criminal activities are brought to book and made to face the full force of the law. Statistics of criminal activities in China Law enforcement agencies are responsible for enforcement of various legal provisions that are enacted in order to enhance safety practices in China.4 This means that data about crime and criminal activities can only be found from such institutes. There have been fluctuating cases of criminal activities depending on the actions of law enforcement agencies as well cooperation of citizens in reducing such criminal activities. The figures below show statistics about criminal activities recorded between 1997 and 2007. Source5 According to the graph above, it can be observed that the mean provincial crime rate increased alongside GDP per capita during the period the study was being undertaken. From 1997 to 2007, the rates of criminal activities have risen from 4-76 to 7.42 per 10, 000 people respectively. From the graph, there was a peak in criminal activities in 2001, after which efforts of police and other law enforcement agencies saw the activities falling down in 2002 and 2003. Records from police have indicated that crime rates statistics are high in some of the municipalities namely Beijing, Tianjin, shanghai as well as Chongqing. It is thought that these outliers have the potential to significantly affect provincial mean crime rates of the economic zones.6 For this reason, they are separated from economic zones and combined together in order to form groups of municipalities according to the diagram below. In this statistical graph, it can be deduced that crime rate is high among the different economic zones. Source7 Comparison between the types and amounts of criminal activities in China before and after 1978 The types and number of criminal activities in China have significantly been changing over time. The republic of China came into existence in 1949, soon after, the period between 1949 and 1956 witnessed huge transformation of ownership as well as different forms of ownership. At the same time, the new government did all it could to destroy the influence that criminal gangs enjoyed in China.8 The government played an important role in clearing away all forms of narcotics as well as gambling activities that were affecting the growth of economic activities in the country. With all these efforts, the rate of crime went down significantly and because of many reforms that were being implemented. Between 1949 to 1956, some of the common crimes in the republic of China included larceny, arson, rape, murder as well as cases of robbery. These cases of crimes were considered as being non-political since they were common among ordinary people who did not hold positions in public offices. At the same time, the number of economic crimes in the republic by then was being committed by capitalists who were reluctant to pay taxes to the state; in addition, these people were responsible for looting public property as well as engaging in cases of bribery and corruption. Before 1978, majority of crimes in China was being committed by government officials, this had the effect of decreasing efficiency in government duties. Even when the government seemed to have done considerable efforts in reducing the types and levels of corruption, the vice is still a thorny issue in the present day governance of the republic of China. Many high profile public officers in government have continued to loot government property, although the practice is different from the way it was during the pre-reform period of 1978. Between 1957 and 1965, there were minimal cases of crimes in most rural areas in the new republic of China. During this time, the level of public security was considered very high, later on, the level and amount of criminal activities started going up reaching peak in 1981,9 which is considered the worst year in the history of crimes in the new republic of China. This took place immediately after economic reforms that started in 1978, in order to enhance the level of economic growth in an environment that was to be secure and safe for both local and foreign investors in China. Before 1978, it is evident that most of the crimes that were witnessed in the republic of China were from the non- political class. This is attributed to the fact that a large number of the population were not learned to manage public and corporate institutions. The level of development and economic activities was still rated very low; this means that the level poverty was high in several parts of the country. In a bid to manage comfortable and better lives, some people who could not work hard to build their economic welfare started engaging in criminal activities. Some of the common crimes that were prevalent included robbery, rape and some cases of murder as well. Those people who did their best to work in farms and trade in order to build their economic empire attracted jealous and hate among a majority of those who were not able to work hard and establish their own economic welfare as well. With few people slowly become economically stable in a large population, it was evident that robbery and related crimes would increase. Later on as the country’s economy started taking shape, there were improvements in education and other sectors, people who got education and skills to run public offices started taking care of economic activities. This took the level of bribery to high levels; those people who held public offices increased something that enhanced the practice of corruption in the republic, there was also looting of public property. Although the same thing is still going, the strategies used have seemed to be much advanced compared to how they were in the period before 1978. There seems to be a huge difference in the way crimes are taking places, as well as the kinds of people being involved.10 Currently, criminal activities seem to be getting a place among the elite of the society. Even for those who are not employed in the government, criminal gangs have found a new way to carry on with their criminal activities. Improvement in technology has seen criminal gangs in China able to take their criminal activities to higher levels; initially the criminal activities were confined to certain regions where the criminals could easily link up and conduct their activities. The fact that people can easily move from one country to another, and carry out their different personal and public businesses, criminal activities have also developed in the same line. In the past decade, criminal activities have also changed much in the way they are organized and executed. In the same way, the motivation to carry out different crimes also seems to have changed significantly. With improvements in social and economic systems, it is still unclear about the specific drives that cause an increased desire to commit different crimes by criminal gangs in the republic of China. In the past decade, activities of criminal gangs have been a subject of concern among several law enforcement officials in different countries across the world, for instance, in South Africa, Australia, Japan as well as South East Asia. At the same time, criminal activities by Chinese gangs have also been seen in Western Europe and several areas of North America including Russia.11 According to this development, it can be seen that Chinese criminal gangs have expanded their territory, at the same time; the range of activities by these criminal gangs has also changed significantly. Across the world, Chinese criminal gangs have been noted to be responsible for the increased trafficking of narcotics in many countries. Not only has it been for drugs, arms, and people trafficking, but also trafficking of endangered animals and plants too. The activities of these gangs have been noted to be widespread and covering a wide scope, the gangs have been involved in several cases of financial fraud, software piracy as well as loan sharking, something that has been considered a high-tech theft that never existed before 1978. Of all these criminal activities, there are two that have been considered the most profitable by Chinese gangs; they are narcotics and people trafficking.12 This activity seems to be the biggest difference between the kinds of crimes that were carried out before 1978, during this time, trade in narcotics was not as widespread as it is today, the criminal gangs had not discovered that they could make profits by trafficking them as well as people. However, the reforms that took place in 1978 seems to have ushered in a new era of enlightenment where criminal gangs gained impetus to perpetuate their criminal acts not only in China, but also in other countries across the world.13 It is evident that Chinese criminal gangs are transnational in the most literal sense, considering the extent to which the gangs have established their networks. Advances in technology have been significant in enabling these gangs to digitize their activities beyond the country’s borders. This means that efforts by the government and other law enforcement agencies have to use strategies that are able to effectively tackle the methods used by the criminal gangs. With the effects of these gangs being felt on the international scene, it means that there has to be collaborated and well-coordinated efforts by the Interpol as well as law enforcement agencies by individual countries. The membership in these criminal gangs is something that is still a subject of discussion by different stakeholders in this matter, however, there is considerable evidence that members of these gangs were born in the Republic of China but the recruitment in these gangs has continued to take place across the world. It is this recruitment of members across the world that has been crucial towards the increase in criminal gangs by these groups and their accomplices. The gangs seem to have understood that recruiting members and expanding their technological infrastructure is the main ingredient towards their growth and expansion. Since the start of the economic reforms in 1978, it can be said that China experienced a huge economic miracle that saw a revolution in most of the practices in public and well as private sectors. In as much as this miracle was highly welcomes by most of the Chinese people, there is still widespread inequality in the country, something that has brought disastrous consequences. The many effects of this inequality have greatly affected the rate of economic growth in China, prompting huge concerns by different policy makers. In any economy, whenever income distribution is skewed, there are increased opportunities for an increase in the types and levels of crimes. People will always want to look for easier methods by which they can meet their basic necessities of life, every government therefore has to do all it can in order to address the huge income disparities in its population. In China, the economic disparities have been projected to be a potential cause of moral degradation, corruption as well regional conflict and unrest14. In many parts of the world, whenever people have experienced inequalities in economic systems as well opportunities for development, criminal gangs have been known to take advantage of the situation and organize criminal activities. The social problems being experienced in the republic of China have the potential to affect economic growth and development in the country.15 For this reason, the government needs to adopt various models to address these concerns, ensuring that the Chinese people are able to enjoy maximum social advantage from various activities of the government. This way the level of economic growth and development will be high and criminal activities will decline by higher margins. Works Cited Ali, Ifzal and Zhuang, Juzhong. “Inclusive Growth toward a Prosperous Asia: Policy Implications. ERD Working Paper Number 97.” Manila: Asian Development Bank. 2007. Print. Borge Bakken. “Crime, Punishment, and Policing in China.” Lahman, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. 2007. Print. Cheong. Tsun and Yanrui Wu. Inequality and Crime Rates in China. Journal of Political Science. 13, no 12: 2005: 1- 42 Dworkin, Ronald. “Taking Rights Seriously.” Havard: Harvard University Press. 2005. Print.  Elizabeth, Martin. “Oxford Dictionary of Law.” Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2003. Print. Glenny, Misha. “McMafia,” New York: Vintage Books, 2009. Print. Han, Ai. Building a Harmonious Society and Achieving Individual Harmony. Journal of Chinese Political Science, 13 (2008): 143 – 164 Newton, Michael. “Gangsters Encyclopedia,” London: Anova Books, 2007. 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