China Marks UN Anti-Drug Day, Executes Dozens, Killings Come
in Wake of McCaffrey Visit and US-China Agreement
drcnet.org
According to reports from the Chinese government's state-run
media organization, Xinhua News Agency, China has executed in the
last week as many as 52 people found guilty of drug law
violations.
Ten drug offenders were executed the day after China, marking the
UN's International Anti-Drug Day, vowed "no mercy" for drug
crimes, state media said.
State media reported seven drug traffickers executed in Beijing
late last week, while 11 people were executed by gunshots Friday
following an anti-drug rally in Chengdu, capital of Guangdong
province. In southern Guizhou province, nine were executed for
heroin trafficking, and eight more in northwestern Xinjiang
province.
Anyone convicted of trafficking 50 grams or more of heroin in
China faces the death penalty.
Hang Ming, vice-president of the Supreme People's Court, said the
severe penalties were consistent with international standards.
The spate of executions came just days after US drug czar Barry
McCaffrey shared the stage with his Chinese counterpart, Yang
Fengrui, director general of the Narcotics Control Bureau of
China's Ministry of Public Security. The two jointly announced
agreements between the two countries to fight drug trafficking by
sharing evidence and intelligence on crime and drugs.
"This is an important moment," McCaffrey told reporters at the
Beijing press conference. The agreement will "open a door
leading to far wider cooperation against drugs," said McCaffrey.
Yang, standing at McCaffrey's side, added that the agreement
marked a new stage of cooperation, noting that "international
drug problems need international cooperation."
The agreements are expected to lead to much broader cooperation
in several areas, including money laundering and control of
precursor chemicals. McCaffrey also urged his hosts to allow the
FBI to open a Chinese office to assist in joint investigations.
"We want to see an FBI presence in China," he told reporters.
When questioned by DRCNet about his country's harsh measures
toward drug offenders, Chinese Embassy press councilor Chang Yuan
Yuan responded, "China, like some American states, still
practices capital punishment. Whether to have capital punishment
is a choice China will make." Chang added that, "Some drug
crimes are punishable by death."
When queried about how China would respond to any efforts to link
improved relations to changes in the Chinese criminal justice
system, Chang told DRCNet, "I don't see why there should be any
linkage." As for death penalty reforms, he said, "It will be up
to us. We will not yield to pressure from other countries."
The Office of National Drug Control Policy, as the drug czar's
office is formally known, did not respond to DRCNet's calls for
comment.
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