China Executes Online Casino Patrons, Makes US Government Envious
China and the US have established themselves as among the nations most determined to prevent citizens from enjoying Internet gambling. Some have argued that the twisting of federal law and retroactive enforcements have put the US on a par with the Chinese government in denying residents liberties in this area. But China has vaulted ahead through recent actions, and the online casino industry can only hope the US doesn't follow suit.
Cases in the People's Republic involving embezzlement or theft have met with a wide range of varying punishments. Zhu Junyl, head of the Labor and Social Security Board in Shanghai, was found guilty of accepting bribes and misusing over $2 billion in public money. He received an eighteen-year jail sentence.
However, last year Liu Jianghua, a bank accountant, was found to have embezzled about $1 million from his employers, using the money to bet soccer matches at online gambling sites. He received the death penalty and was executed.
Just this past spring, two other bank employees were found guilty of stealing bank money to buy lottery tickets online. They were also executed for their crimes.
Apparently, criminal penalties in China are compounded if the perpetrator was involved in gambling. It's one thing to steal billions, but play at Internet casinos and you take your life in your hands.
The US has attempted, like China, to censor the Internet and block online casinos, preventing its residents from exercising their personal freedoms. The ban has been ineffective, and only two roads exist for the US: legalization with regulation, or tightening the screws as China is doing. A reasonable man can only hope that the US government sees reason as well... even if the history of that regarding online casinos is most poor.
