Explosion and gun violence cases in China dropped by 19.5 percent and 11.5 percent respectively in the first 11 months of 2006, compared with the same period of the previous year, according to the police.

"The nationwide campaign to curb illegal production, storage and possession of explosives and guns has produced noticeable results," said an official with the Ministry of Public Security on Tuesday.

According to statistics of the ministry, Chinese police closed 194 illegal gun factories in an intensive crackdown on illegal production, storage and possession of weapons and explosives from June to September last year.

The police also ordered the closure of 482 factories and shops that illegally produced or sold explosives.

They seized 3,900 tons of illegally-made explosives, 7.77 million detonators, 4.83 million meters of fuse, 178,000 guns, 638,000 replica firearms, 4.75 million bullets and 2.06 million illegal knives during the campaign.

The booty was gathered in 12,000 explosive and gun-related cases, involving a total of 66,000 people. The police put 6,564 people in custody, arrested 2,491 and turned over 1,244 to prosecutors to face criminal charges.

China has witnessed a continuous drop in the number of explosion and gun violence cases since 2001.

Source: Xinhua