Blog 8: China Acts to Give Defendants Greater Rights

This New York Times Article, written by Sharon LaFraniere, details a list of new protections afforded to criminal defendants inside China.  China has a long history of affording police wide latitude in criminal investigations.  Tactics such as prolonged interrogation and torture are not uncommon, and the justice system in China almost guarantees convictions.  The article details how police inside China today, could hold defendants in residential detention centers for up to six months without notifying family members.  Critics of the China's regime protest this practice, particularly when used against political dissidents.  The amendments to China's Criminal Procedure Law forces the police to notify relatives of a suspect within 24 hours of detention in residential facilities and limits detention of suspected criminals accused of national security crimes or terrorism to 37 days before family members must be notified.  The law also requires video- and audio-taping of interrogations in potentially capital cases.  It also extends wide accessibility to defense lawyers, and suspects will no longer have to obtain police permission.

However, the law failed to guarantee a suspect's right to remain silent and also allows defense attorney's to be prosecuted for bringing evidence the prosecutor determines to be "false."

China has a history of prohibiting free speech, particularly political free speech.  The wide latitude afforded to police gives the country's dominant party wide latitude in detaining political dissidents.  These new measures are a step toward curbing police abuse and allowing free speech, which is a human right that should be afforded to all.  Critics of the regime suspect that the amendments will be nothing more than paper emblems that will be disregarded by the justice system.

These measures, if enforced, will move China's justice system in the direction of protecting important human rights, the most fundamental of which is a fair trial.  These measures leave a lot to be desired in that regard, but limiting detention times is a positive step toward curbing police abuse.  Additionally, videotape and audiotape of interrogations will hopefully serve to deter police from engaging in torture to obtain confessions.  While it is certainly true that China has a long way to go in protecting human rights, at least the law is beginning to reflect the important human rights many democracies take for granted.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/09/world/asia/china-acts-to-give-defendants-greater-rights.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper