China has seen an eight-year decline in drug cases and the number of defendants involved, a trend the top court on Tuesday attributed to the severe punishments against such crimes.

In 2023, courts across the country concluded 33,401 drug cases at the first instance, meting out punishments on 49,603 individuals, down 10.41 percent and 11.7 percent, respectively, compared to the previous year, according to the Supreme People's Court.

Nearly 11,000 of them were sentenced to five years or more in prison in 2023, registering a heavy sentence rate of 22.12 percent, said the court.

On the same day, the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) also reported a declining trend in the numbers of drug cases handled by procuratorates nationwide in recent years.

Chinese procuratorates approved the arrest of over 61,000 individuals involved in drug crimes between January 2023 and May 2024, down 14 percent year on year, and prosecuted another 65,000, down 33 percent.

The data was released by the authorities ahead of this year's International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, which falls on Wednesday.

The SPP noted that the combined use of the internet and express delivery services has become an important channel for drug crimes.

Working in collaboration with other authorities, including the State Post Bureau and the Ministry of Public Security, the SPP in May 2023 launched a special six-month operation targeting illegal delivery activities.

Data shows that procuratorates nationwide prosecuted more than 2,100 individuals suspected of drug trafficking through express delivery services last year.

The SPP said procuratorial organs will continue intensifying efforts to combat drug crimes. It highlighted the need to prevent the abuse of new types of drugs and addictive substances such as certain narcotic and psychotropic drugs among the country's youth.

Attaching great importance to punishing internet-related drug crimes, people's courts have teamed up with the police and procuratorates to standardize the collection, extraction, and examination of online evidence -- particularly electronic data -- for such crimes. Jurisdiction over these offenses has also been clarified, according to the top court.

In addition, work has been done to regulate the application of laws to internet-related drug crimes, providing clear guidelines for the adjudication of such cases.

The top court released 10 typical cases to send a strong warning to potential offenders and heighten public awareness against drug crimes.

In two of these cases, minors were coerced, deceived, or incited to smuggle or sell drugs, while in another two, drugs were sold to minors.

Cai Jinfang, a judge with the top court, said that the selection underscores the importance China attaches to the protection of minors and its determination to prevent them from engaging in drug-related activities.

The judge reiterated the court's relentlessness against offenses that involve using or inciting minors to smuggle, sell, transport or manufacture drugs, as well as selling drugs to minors.