China's top procuratorate restructures

China's Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) has undergone a major restructuring to improve its work, especially to ensure professional criminal prosecution, top SPP officials said at a press conference Thursday.

Four departments were set up for criminal prosecution, with each focusing on regular crimes, serious crimes, duty crimes, and new-type crimes.

The criminal prosecution proceedings of arrest approval and indictment have also been streamlined, a move that is expected to improve both the quality and efficiency of criminal prosecution, said Zhang Jun, procurator-general of the SPP.

Six other departments were set up with responsibilities over civil, administrative, public interest and juvenile cases, complaints handling, and investigation into duty crimes committed by judicial personnel.

Tong Jianming, deputy procurator-general of the SPP, ordered procuratorates at all levels to adjust their work and office set-ups to be in accordance with the SPP structural changes.