Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China Central Committee Political Bureau, made this remark during a study tour in Henan Province, central China, May 17-20.

The current campaign to rectify and make more regular the market order is a major step for improving the socialist market economy as well as meeting the demands of social progress, the vice premier said. But the changes to make the market order regular is a task that will take a long time, he added.

Efforts should be focused on dealing with major cases that are directly linked to the interests of the people and those that have drawn great attention from the public. Also, attention must be focused on those cases that pose a severe threat to the society, Li noted.

Li pointed out that chief criminals and recidivists must be severely punished according to law, while those who have acted as a protective umbrella for the criminals must be dismantled.

He called for increasing the confidence of the public and making full use of the supervisory role of the mass media.

(People's Daily 05/21/2001)