The rise in traffic accidents throughout China caused by drunk drinking over recent months has provoked great indignation among the public over this irresponsible behavior.

The public and media's active participation in heated discussions about what penalties should be imposed for drunk driving fully demonstrates the important role the problem's resolution would play in improving people's livelihood and promoting the country's legal development.

Public opinion is unanimous that the country should make great effort to improve its law enforcement, judicial procedure and legislation in this respect.

Quite a few local governments have emphasized or reaffirmed their resolve to extend stricter punishment to violators after some grave cases of drunk driving invited extreme reactions from the public. In Zhejiang province, for instance, the local authorities have announced a variety of strict measures against serious traffic violations including that all drunk drivers would be put to a 15-day detention. According to Wang Huizhong, chief of the provincial department of public security, all these ruthless punitive measures demonstrate the government's zero-tolerance toward serious traffic violations.

Recently, the traffic management department under the Ministry of Public Security said a special campaign aimed at inflicting a severe blow against drunk drinking would be launched nationwide. It also said it would work together with relevant government agencies to include a city's traffic violations into the country's standards as an important index to assess and single out a city's urban civilization. Besides, it would coordinate with China Insurance Regulatory Commission, China Banking Regulatory Commission and other relevant departments to link a person's drunk driving to his or her bank credit records. And, any drivers' vehicle premium ratio would be raised the next year if they are involved into drunk driving or a major traffic accident caused by drunk driving and they would be put into bad individual bank records.

Undoubtedly, all these measures will produce positive effects in helping curb drinking and drunk driving. However, mainstream opinion on the Internet still casts doubt over these iron-handed measures, with some netizens saying that they are worried as these measures only serve as certain departments' transient show of resolve. Some netizens have even predicted that the so-called special campaign will not last long.

Despite having encountered heavy public suspicion, these measures, however, still indicate that relevant government departments have begun to take some concrete steps in the law enforcement and judicial fields toward curbing dangerous driving and drunk driving. For the country's traffic and road laws and regulations to be strictly enforced, efforts of the judicial organs and law enforcement department alone are not enough. Sustained monitoring by the media and the public is also desperately needed.

Public opinion has been a strong force pushing the authorities to take a substantive step toward drunk driving legislation. For example, the proposals submitted by some lawyers to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature, on the enactment of the legal clause on dangerous driving or drunk driving crimes, have won strong support from the public. However, no legislative organs at any level have so far come up with formal responses to such proposals, and no NPC deputies have said they would submit such opinions to the country's legislative body. Representing the people to participate in the annual NPC session, every deputy should have the obligation of collecting public opinion and presenting them to the top legislature.

Considering that there has been strong public opinion to include drunk driving among criminal offences, legislation in this regard appears inevitable. The next problem is that we should technically study, discuss and decide on what kind of a crime drunk driving should be classified as and what forms or procedures adopted to deal with it as a crime. More important, those who have long been intent on serving public welfare should learn and master some concrete tactics on how to lobby NPC deputies. On the one hand, NPC deputies should take the initiative in collecting public opinions and then express them in the top legislative body. On the other hand, the public should also exert pressure on NPC deputies and urge them to directly face their opinion and transmit them to the legislative body.

The role of these deputies representing the people to exercise their rights can be fully played if more and more people become less dissatisfied with their performance.

Let's learn how to lobby the legislative body. This is an important step towards public opinion influencing legislations. It would also be a peaceful and rational path for the public to participate in State affairs.

The author is an associate professor with Hainan University.

(China Daily August 18, 2009)