Criminal activities by migrant teenagers have been increasing in
south China's
Guangdong Province due to a lack of proper education within
families and schools, according to a recent survey.
The survey, conducted by the Guangdong Provincial Prevention and
Control of Juvenile Crime Organization, found that migrant teenage
criminal cases accounted for nearly 52 percent of the province's
juvenile crime last year, China Daily reported Saturday.
The survey was carried out across 10 major cities and over 20
counties in the province last year, including Guangzhou, Shenzhen
and Dongguan, which have seen hundreds of thousands of migrant
workers moving in over the last decade.
Guangdong currently has the largest number of migrant workers,
accounting for nearly one third of the nation's total.
Officials and experts blamed the lack of proper education and
protection by families and schools for the increase in migrant
juvenile criminal activity.
"Most migrant youngsters quit school after they move to the
province, and then begin roaming the streets," said Ou Hui, deputy
director of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of Caring for the
Next Generation.
"Protection of legal rights in terms of education and work is
key to preventing migrant youngsters from committing crimes," Ou
said.
Prefectural-level cities that still do not have drop-in centers
for homeless kids have been urged to establish them in 2006, so as
to protect children's interests and cut the number of teenage
criminals.
In 2005, China had about 150,000 homeless children, according to
statistics from the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
(Xinhua News Agency February 5, 2006)