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Beijing has never considered scrapping the death penalty for corruption, a senior official said, even as the nation mulls reducing the number of capital crimes.
The mainland is criticized by rights groups for its high execution rate, secrecy about its use of the punishment, and range of crimes that carry the death penalty.

In a report issued in March, Amnesty International said the nation executed thousands of people last year, more than the rest of the world combined.

The authorities do not issue figures on how many people are put to death every year.

Last month the legislature began considering a proposal to cut the number of offenses that carry the death penalty, including non- violent crimes such as smuggling historic relics and some tax fraud.

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But Chen Sixi, vice chairman of the National People's Conference's judicial affairs committee, said it was never the intention to ditch executions for corruption, Xinhua News Agency reported.

"Corruption-related crimes have seriously impaired the interests of the country and the people," it quoted Chen as saying.

"Criminals convicted of corruption should be subject to harsh penalties, and the draft amendment to the criminal law was not intended to eliminate capital punishment for such crimes."

The Communist Party vows to stamp out official corruption - a key source of public discontent as the booming economy gives senior officials many opportunities to use their power for private gain.

But courts have been urged to be lenient and more cautious about imposing the death penalty after a series of scandals about miscarriages of justice, including supposedly murdered people turning up alive months or years later.

REUTERS