国内英语新闻:China's anti-graft chief urges fund supervision for quake relief

BEIJING, April 19 (Xinhua) -- He Guoqiang, a senior anti-corruption official of China, has called for strengthened supervision of relief fund and materials in northwest China's quake zone, vowing harsh punishments for dereliction of duty and embezzlement.

"We should learn from experiences after the Wenchuan earthquake (on May 12, 2008) and strengthen the supervision of quake relief work in Yushu," he said Monday at a meeting on supervising the relief fund and materials after a 7.1-magnitude quake hit Yushu in Qinghai Province on Wednesday.

He, head of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China, urged local Party and government organizations in the disaster-hit areas to fully supervise every aspect and stage of the relief work to uncover any behavior violating laws and disciplines.

He vowed harsh punishment for anyone caught committing offenses, especially dereliction of duty and embezzlement of public funds.

He also called for transparent and fair use of all funds and materials, and promised timely publication of the latest relief information.

The 7.1-magnitude quake has claimed 1,944 lives, injured 12,135 and left 216 people missing in Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.