Xi Jinping's War on 'Black and Evil'

THE CHINESE COMMUNIST Party’s Sweep Away Black and Eliminate Evil 扫黑除恶 campaign entered its second year in 2019. When it launched in 2018, the three-year campaign promised to take down criminal or ‘black society’ gangs 黑社会 involved in gambling, prostitution, and extortion, as well as other ‘black and evil forces’, such as the coercive monopolies of ‘sand tyrants’ 沙覇 who force construction companies to buy building materials through them at inflated prices, and ‘underground police’, 地下 执法队 who enforce informal rules in street markets. Loan sharks and usury 高利贷 are also high on the hit list. Loan sharks charge high interest for fast cash, and loan terms are typically short. Borrowers find themselves in serious trouble if they fail to repay the loans on time. A common loan shark tactic is the ‘nude loan’ 裸贷, which comes with the condition that borrowers (who are usually young and female) provide the loan shark with nude photos of themselves that will be posted on the Internet in case of default. Law enforcement in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) calls such offences ‘soft violence’ 软暴力. And it can get a lot worse for loan shark victims. According to a local policeman I interviewed in Yunnan province: