In recent years, the Chinese government has launched a series of nationwide campaigns to arrest and prosecute traffickers, meting out heavy punishments. In April 1998 it was reported that 52 people were convicted of abducting and selling 112 women and children in what was believed to be the largest case of its kind. Seven were executed, two are serving life sentences and the remaining received prison terms that ranged from 18 months to 15 years. Areas in the borderlands and interior of China where trafficking is considered most entrenched are the focus of these campaigns. Ultimately, enforcement depends on the will of the local authorities.
Traffickers frequently rely on the collusion or active involvement of officials.
Such acts range from turning a blind eye to the practice and accepting bribes, to registering marriages between purchasers and trafficking victims and even to active involvement in the trade. Police mounting rescue operations to free trafficking victims usually come from the woman s home area, and often cannot depend on local police for assistance. Such an approach is very worrying, since it implies official endorsement of marriages created by trafficking. Furthermore, the government has failed to create avenues of redress for trafficking victims, or to enact concrete measures to give effect to their legal rights. Such measures are crucial in supporting the recovery of trafficked persons, and should be urgently studied and implemented.