u=2564605682,2511118199&fm=23&gp=0.jpg (Photo : www.china.org.cn)
China's Ministry of Public Safety on Monday issued directives for a stepped-up campaign against drunk driving in the wake of an alarming number of deadly road mishaps reported around the lunar new year.
The ministry said that from the period Jan. 30 to Feb. 2, there were more than 800 reported cases of driving under the influence of intoxicants, 90 of which were cases of drunk driving. On Monday, a car hit a van in south China's Hainan province, killing one of the van's passengers and seriously injuring three others in the van. Police investigations showed that the car's driver was drunk.
In east China's Shandong Province on Jan. 30, four people were killed and three others were injured in a mishap involving a car driven by a certain man surnamed Liu, who was likewise confirmed to have been drunk while driving.
The ministry has directed the police to be more vigilant in their drive against drunk driving, especially in rural roads and rural-urban border zones, as well as on countryside areas where family gatherings are being held. The police were also instructed to monitor drunk driving in urban centers.
The number of reported cases of drunk driving is at its highest during the annual Spring Festival or Lunar New Year.
In China's Criminal Law as amended in 2011, drunk driving constitutes a criminal offense even if there are no road accidents, injuries or loss of lives that result from it.
