Only police have authority to punish drivers who break rules

The Fourth Ring Road in Beijing in a morning rush hour. [Zhuo Ensen/For China Daily]

A driver in Dongguan, South China's Guangdong province, recently posted a video taken with his in-car camera which showed another car trying to illegally change into the lane where he was driving. He did not give way and hit the other car. Procuratorial Daily comments:

There are always bad drivers on the road, who change lanes without caring about the cars already in the lane they are moving into. The driver who hit the car that made the illegal lane change has been hailed as a hero by many because he punished a rash driver, while the police also confirmed he is not responsible for the collision.

Doubtlessly, the driver who changed lanes illegally should be responsible for his or her deeds. However, his or her illegal lane changing does not justify the other driver deliberately hitting the car, because the collision has potentially higher risks than switching of lanes.

Besides, drivers are not allowed to take the law into their hands. Law enforcement belongs exclusively to those whose duty it is. Many might argue that justice has been done in the case, but it's distorted justice because the driver who deliberately hit the other car with his own has done what the law does not allow him to do.

On the other hand, the fact that so many people have applauded the video shows law enforcers have to improve their performance. In many cases, the drivers that violate traffic rules simply go unpunished because their risky and challenging deeds have not caused any actual accidents. That's why people complain about the current situation and have praised the driver who uploaded the video. It is time for the law enforcers to better defend justice so that people do not need to defend it themselves.