355 arrested for abduction

    A national operation* has destroyed nine child abduction* gangs, arresting 355 suspects and rescuing 89 children.

    China’s Ministry of Public Security said that it conducted the nine-province operation in December after receiving reports of child abductions from southern China’s Fujian and Yunnan provinces.

    High-speed rail in service

    The 2,439-km high-speed rail linking Shenzhen and Beijing was officially put into operation on December 27. It has posed challenges to airlines between the two cities.

    Carrying 300 passengers, the train G72 left Shenzhen North Railway Station at 7:56 a.m. It was expected to arrive at Beijing West Railway Station at 6:21 p.m. the same day. The travel time between the two cities is 10 hours and 25 minutes. Each day, two trains commute between the two cities.

    Murderers’ appeals rejected

    A court rejected on December 26 appeals from six people convicted* of murdering 13 Chinese sailors on the Mekong River last year.

    The court upheld* death penalties* for the case’s prime convicts — the Myanmar drug dealer Naw Kham and three of his right-hand* men.

    The Yunnan Provincial Higher People’s Court also sustained sentences for the two other Myanmar convicts, known by their Chinese names Zha Bo and Zha Tuobo. They were handed a death sentence with two-year reprieve* and eight years in prison, respectively.

    Real name for Internet users

    China’s lawmakers have given the green light to rules requiring Internet users to register their real names.

    The rules also specify punishments for websites or service providers that leak* or sell personal information.

    The rules, adopted Friday at the closing session of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress in Beijing, are meant to “ensure Internet information security, safeguard the lawful rights and interests of citizens, legal entities* or other organizations and safeguard national security and social public interests.”

    (SD-Agencies)