According to a recent survey released by the Beijing Haidian District People's Procuratorate, 520 young women under the age of 35 were prosecuted for economic crimes between 2001 and 2005, accounting for 71.04 percent of the total number of women prosecuted.
 
These women were accused of crimes including infringing upon socialist market economy order, graft, bribery and trespass.  

"Living pressures, emotional factors and a lack of knowledge of the law are three major reasons why women commit crimes," a prosecutor involved in the survey said, adding: "After reviewing the crimes, we found that most of the crimes committed by women can be classified as misdemeanors; most women are forced to commit crimes. They tend to take a secondary role in crimes, aiding and abetting."

According to the survey, 47.3 percent of crimes committed by women over the last five years involved mainly selling fake invoices and counterfeit goods, and running illegal business. Prosecutors added that many of them confessed to resorting to criminal activities to make a living. In China, a large number of women are a family’s sole breadwinner or single mothers. Many of them also shoulder the responsibility of caring for aged parents.

Prosecutors pointed out: "Many women come to Beijing from the rural areas with dreams of becoming rich. However, they soon find that it is very difficult to find a decent job without an education or skills. This forces many into crime.”

The survey results also show that 71.17 percent of female white-collar crime suspects are from the outer provinces and regions, of whom 47.6 percent are from Anhui, Hebei, Henan, Jiangsu and Sichuan provinces. 

Prosecutors acknowledged that the current system of administrating, training and guiding migrant workers is flawed.

But they also pointed out that emotions are another major cause of increased crimes by women.

In one case, the ex-financial director of a magazine borrowed 2.4 million yuan for her lover from a bank using 3 million yuan in company funds as collateral. Unfortunately for her, he lover never paid her back for the collateral.

"Women care so much about love, marriage and family, sometimes they can risk anything," Wang Jingbo, a professor with China University of Political Science and Law, told China Youth Daily. She believes that women's feelings are fragile, so they tend to deal with problems by following their hearts not minds. Moreover, particularly in less developed regions in China, women are not as well educated as men. This puts them at a distinct disadvantage from the outset.

The survey shows that 72.5 percent of female suspects either never attended school, or if they did, only up to high school level. In fact, suspects accused of selling fake invoices or counterfeit goods claim that they never even realized that they were committing a crime.

The same survey also studied the measures and penalties that are typically applied to female criminals. Arrest and a jail term were common, while bail was less so. In terms of punishments, probation was not used often.

Over a period of five years, bail was allowed the most number of times in 2003, but even so, the proportion was only 49.75 percent. The least number of bail situations was in 2005; only 13 percent.

In terms of prison sentences, most of the crimes were classified as misdemeanors. Therefore, about 68.17 percent of female suspects were sentenced to jail terms of less than three years, or detention or a fine. Only three percent were sentenced to serve more than 10 years in prison.

Prosecutors acknowledge that factors such as heavy social burdens were taken into consideration when imposing these lighter sentences. "Therefore, considering the legal and social effects when dealing with cases, we think it is necessary to use the bail measure on female suspects more, and increase the use of probation.

"However, there are also other options that must be considered," Wang Jingbo said, adding: "For women with young children, house-arrest might be more effective and more beneficial for the children."

(China.org.cn by Zhang Rui, March 18, 2007)