Incomplete statistics show that currently there are more than 4000 corrupted and bribery suspects stay at large, carrying over 5 billion-yuan (US$604. 81 billion) state funds with them. Some have even fled overseas, causing much outflow of state property and plunging some state-owned companies and enterprises into difficulties.

Why they choose to escape?

Due to different legal systems in different countries, especially different legalization degrees, a suspected criminal in one country may not be so regarded in another country. Just like that there is capital punishment in some countries while there is none in some others.

This is the fundamental reason why criminals decide to escape. Under the same logic, the money he spirited away from his mother country may not be eyed as "black money" in another country, which may in a small way even help to boost local economy.

Is that to say that the criminals can remain forever at large with their money? No. Because despite differences in legal systems, there is common consensus among human societies that if one breaks social bounds in one society, he must be shunned out in another society if not be punished. Hence treaties among world countries on the extradition and repatriation of criminals.

But the question is, what is the legal base of criminal repatriation? For a criminal in one country may well be a law-abiding person in another, and the latter has no responsibility to catch and repatriate him. What's more, the capture and return certainly claim costs, hence the "compromise of benefits" among countries.

On the one hand we saw many corrupt officials flee with money, while on the other the number of repatriated criminals is in the few. One of the reasons, we must say, is that we don't have a complete law on anti-money laundering.

Block the escapement of corrupt officials

The essential way for preventing the escapement is to strengthen crackdown on corruption, leaving no time for corrupt officials to flee. In this regard we are apparently facing not so optimistic a situation. Judging from uncovered cases, many officials are only dug out after a dozen years of embezzlement, during which the black money has long been shifted out, revealing large loopholes in official management and administration.

Besides, there must be a monitoring mechanism for individual's property sources, especially for officials'. The current condition is we have neither legal guarantee for protection of individual's property, nor any monitoring for their incoming sources. Now many officials or SOE managers send their children to study abroad, many of them live a luxurious life there. But it seems no one cares about where these children's money is from so long as their supporters are not discovered.

For already escaped officials we can only turn to legal actions. But, as law experts said, we are still facing difficulties since only about a dozen countries have signed bilateral repatriation treaties with China, and other countries may well become "havens" for corrupt officials still beyond the arm of the law.

(People's Daily September 4, 2002)