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Hu Yajin, an officer with the Self-correction Department of the reformatory, said that nearly 70 percent of crimes committed by the reformatory's inmates were alcohol-related.
Yao Jianlong, a professor of juvenile crime studies at Shanghai-based East China University of Political Science and Law, said, "Many migrant children live below the poverty line and are forced to grow up sooner. They are more likely to be exposed to the dark side of society. It is not only a matter of crime prevention, but also a matter of population management."
According to a report released by a court in Fengtai District in Beijing, districts with large migrant populations, such as Fengtai, Chaoyang and Haidian, are seeing a sharp rise in juvenile delinquency among children of migrant workers.
Among all juvenile delinquency cases handled by the Fengtai court in 2010, more than 76 percent were committed by the children of migrants.
The percentage of juvenile delinquency cases committed by migrant children in Chaoyang and Haidian is between 60 and 80 percent, according to statistics available on Chinacourt.org.
Meanwhile, migrant workers who are not covered by urban social safety net are more vulnerable to financial stress. According to the Fengtai court's report, theft and robbery account for more than 55 percent of all criminal cases committed by migrant children.
Discrimination was another contributing factor, said Pi Yijun, a juvenile delinquency researcher at the China University of Political Science and Law.
"Their parents have lower social status as migrant workers doing manual labor," Pi said. "What these children are used to is negligence, discrimination and violated rights."
The Fengtai court report suggests the government provide more benefits for migrant children.
On March 14, the newly amended Criminal Procedure Law was adopted by the annual full session of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, formally including articles on "conditionally dropping charges against non-serious juvenile offenders" and "sealing juvenile records."
Actually, many cities have begun trialing more lenient approaches to handle young offenders before the amendment was enacted. For example, procuratorial authorities in Shanghai began sealing juvenile records as early as in 2004.
The People's Procuratorate in Heping District, Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, launched the "sealing juvenile records" initiative in May 2010.
"We aim to safeguard the seriousness of the law and provide humane treatment to minors," said Zhou Wei, chief procurator of the procuratorate.
According to Zhou, the aim of the policy is to facilitate the transition of juvenile offenders back to a normal life.
In May 2010, the procuratorate handled a case that involved a juvenile surnamed Wang. Police investigations showed Wang distributed lewd pictures and videos on his campus computers. Wang deeply regretted his wrongdoing.
Prosecutors considered it a non-serious offense and decided to drop charges against him and seal the records, which meant Wang's criminal record and the details of the case were made confidential.
"Our concern is to prevent them from being discriminated against just because of their offense records," Zhou said. "For offenses committed by juveniles, punishment is a lower priority, while preventing offenses from occurring is the real solution. The ultimate goal of the initiative is to allow juvenile delinquents to understand that the law is reasonable and encourage them to feel genuine remorse for their actions and work toward playing a responsible role in society."
Last June, Foshan in south China's Guangdong Province became the first city in the province to make records of juvenile delinquents and school students between 18 and 25 confidential.
The newly amended Criminal Procedure Law, which will take effect on January 1, 2013, means that the lenient practice in Shenyang, Foshan and some other regions will be adopted nationwide.
"For a juvenile who was given a punishment lighter than a five-year sentence for an offense committed under the age of 18, his or her records shall be sealed off," reads the amendment.
Under the amended law, the sealed records shall not be opened to any organization or individual, except when it is necessary for case investigation by judicial organs or upon inquiries raised in accordance with due regulations. The inquirers shall keep the information confidential.
The revised law also makes it easier for juvenile offenders, or "lost kids," to find their way home, according to Chen Weidong, a professor at the School of Law of the Beijing-based Renmin University of China.
Hou Xiaofeng, a research fellow with the Liaoning Provincial Academy of Social Sciences, sees the procedure as better protecting minors' legitimate rights.
"Many offenses involving minors are committed out of simple, fleeting motives instead of purely evil intention, and juveniles can be guided back to a normal track of life, if appropriate education and social mechanisms are in place," Hou said.
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