China's top procuratorate urges strict measures to deter crime and safeguard public safety after Zhuhai car ramming incident

China's Supreme People's Procuratorate on Thursday stressed that procuratorate organs must fulfill their duties, cooperate with relevant departments to clarify facts, punish offenders in accordance with laws, manage the aftermath and maintain stability, so as to ensure public safety and social order, after a car ramming incident in Zhuhai, South China's Guangdong Province, that killed 35 and injured 43 on Monday.

The car ramming incident occurred at the Sports Center in Zhuhai, resulting in significant casualties and severe consequences. Similar vicious criminal offenses should be rigorously reviewed for arrest and prosecution, with strict measures to deter crime, Ying Yong, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and the Prosecutor General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, made the remarks while he led an investigation team of the Supreme People's Procuratorate in Shanghai on Thursday.

"President Xi Jinping recently made an important instruction regarding the car ramming incident, which is striking and enlightening, serving as a wake-up call. It holds significant guiding importance for us in lawfully punishing and preventing extreme violent crimes, as well as fully ensuring the safety of people's lives and social stability," Ying said. 

Ying said the procuratorial organs must learn from the incident, thoroughly investigate risks and hidden dangers, and ensure fair and lawful handling of cases. They must promote the rule of law in petition work, and resolve conflicts involving prosecution cases to prevent the spread of risks, Ying said, noting that more efforts should be made to strengthen comprehensive governance of public security and to enhance risk prevention capabilities.

The procuratorial organs also need to intensify supervision, strictly investigate irregularities in judicial processes, prevent wrongful convictions, and combat judicial corruption to ensure justice, effectively fulfilling their duty, he said.

Ying also highlighted the importance of protecting the interests of key groups such as women, the elderly, the disabled, and children, while also addressing issues like wage claims by migrant workers and employment for college graduates.

He further called for clarifying doubts and resolving issues through public hearings, helping parties alleviate confrontational and dissatisfied emotions, smoothing the channels for the public to express their demands, improving the judicial relief protection system, and enhancing the mechanisms for safeguarding litigation rights in the prosecutorial phase, so as to ensure that the people feel fairness and justice in every judicial case and at every stage of the case.