Dongguan continues anti-vice enforcement with karaoke arrests

Eight months after a sweeping police crackdown on prostitution in Dongguan, Guangdong province, police raided two karaoke, or KTV, halls and made dozens of arrests.

The two halls were ordered closed for as long as six months, according to a police statement.

Police detained 36 suspects in a raid at the Junhao Hotel on Oct 16, and another 26 were taken away by police in a similar operation targeting the Shengshi Gechao Club on Oct 17, said a statement published on Dongguan city's public security bureau website on Thursday.

"The operators of the two KTV halls will also be punished as stipulated by the pertinent laws and regulations," said a local police officer who did not want to be named.

"Dongguan will never allow a resurgence in prostitution after the major crackdown on the illegal sex trade in the city in the early February," he said.

"Police across Dongguan have sustained their fight against prostitution and related crimes in the months after the crackdown, resulting in more than 800 arrests," he added.

The crackdown, which dealt a heavy blow to Dongguan's underground sex trade, was launched on Feb 9 after China Central Television exposed rampant prostitution in the prosperous Pearl River Delta city that is celebrated for its entertainment industry.

In addition to prostitutes and clients, many operators and organizers were detained.

Dozens of police officers were also removed from their posts and put under further investigation. They were alleged to have acted as "protective umbrellas" for prostitution and of secretly tipping off gangs.

Officials under investigation include Yan Xiaokang, the former deputy mayor of Dongguan who is also the director of the city's bureau of public security.

Zhang Yiri, an associate professor from Guangzhou City Polytechnic, said police should not relax their vigilance.

Fighting prostitution is a long-term task in Dongguan, he said.

"Continuous efforts in fighting illegal prostitution will help improve the city's reputation at home and abroad," he said.

zhengcaixiong@chinadaily.com.cn