Senior judicial officials on Friday rejected claims that
bribe-givers are granted undue leniency compared with those who
receive bribes, saying that the penalties are in line with the
degree of social harm caused.
Officials launched a broadside at foreign media reports, adding
that the giving and taking of bribes "were two kinds of crimes with
very different characteristics".
While bribing and accepting bribes are related illegal
activities, Chinese law attaches particular importance to cracking
down on those who take bribes, as it is considered a "serious
crime", often involving State officials.
The government has taken an uncompromising stance against
bribery. Zheng Xiaoyu, the former head of the State Food and Drug
Administration, was executed on July 10 for accepting $850,000 in
bribes.
The court also ruled Zheng put people's lives at risk by
accepting bribes for approval-related favors.
Supreme People's Procuratorate spokesman Tong Jianming said any
official found accepting bribes "must be dealt with severely".
"The relatively lighter penalties to bribers and heavier ones to
the bribe takers has been based on the different degree of social
harm caused by each," Tong said.
"The position of the Supreme People's Procuratorate is very
clear that we also strike hard at bribers as bribery has a very
harmful social impact."
He was echoed by Ni Shouming, a spokesman for the Supreme
People's Court, who said that Chinese courts also handed down
severe sentences to "major" bribers whose activities resulted in
"serious social harm".
Small-time bribers, or those dealing with small amounts of
money, are not dealt with as severely, Ni said.
Authorities need bribers' assistance to help prosecute those
accepting bribes.
"A majority number of bribery cases cannot be carried out
without evidence or testimony from bribers," Ni said.
In one recent major graft case, former Shanghai property tycoon
Zhou Zhengyi was charged with misappropriation of funds, bribery
and forging VAT receipts.
Zhou was detained last October as prosecutors investigated the
Shanghai social security fund scandal involving 3.7 billion
yuan.
In early August, four prison officials in Shanghai were jailed
for taking bribes and "providing preferential treatment" to Zhou
during his incarceration.
However, Ni proposed the establishment of an official blacklist
of convicted bribers.
"Bribers found guilty should not be allowed to return to the
field of work they were previously engaged in," Ni said.
Chen Guangzhong, a legal expert at the Chinese University of
Politics and Law, said the fight against graft requires a
comprehensive property declaration system for State officials.
Chen said the establishment of an open, strict property
declaration system was still far off in China, even though some
Western countries had established such a system for people in
public office.
(China Daily September 1, 2007)