NCJ Number
111597
Journal
Chinese Education Volume: 19 Issue: 2 Dated: (Summer 1986) Pages: 92-102
Date Published
1986
Length
11 pages
Annotation
Since the 1970s, the number of juvenile delinquent gangs has significantly increased in the People's Republic of China.
Abstract
Unlike their predecessors, such gangs today are better organized and better conceal their operations. Some gangs have fixed programs and goals, others have rules and disciplines, and others have intricate systems of individual contact. In addition, their crimes are getting more serious in nature and include more economic, sex, and violent crimes. In addition to large-scale theft and robbery, it is no longer rare for gangs to engage in murders, rapes, and dismemberment of victims. New types of gang crimes also have appeared including hijackings, bombings, and kidnappings. Where previously, juvenile gangs usually resorted to one type of crime, today's gangs often commit multiple forms of crime in succession. Gang members often are relatively educated today, and gangs are increasingly employing their knowledge and modern technology in the commission of crimes. The number of female gang members and members who are offspring of high officials also is increasing. The latter often have connections that significantly broaden the gang's scope for criminal activity. Finally, gangs are increasingly antisocial in character and are perpetrating more crimes of a counterrevolutionary nature.