Full Text: Progress in China's Human Rights in 2013

Rights of the Person

The effectiveness of a country's protection of its citizens' rights of life and health, of personal liberty, of personal dignity and other rights of the person is one important gauge of examining that nation's human rights protection effort. In 2013 China abolished the reeducation through labor system, waged special campaigns against human trafficking, searched for and rescued abducted and trafficked women and children, punished serious violations of its citizens' rights of the person in accordance with the law, improved the mechanism for preventing and rectifying unjust, false and erroneous charges, took various measures in ensuring the rights of suspects, defendants and detainees, and strengthened law-enforcement in key areas such as workplace safety, and food and drug production, effectively safeguarding the Chinese citizens' rights of the person.

With over 50 years of operation in China, the system of reeducation through labor played a positive role in protecting public security, maintaining social order, ensuring social stability, and educating and rescuing lawbreakers in certain historical circumstances. But over time its functions were gradually replaced with the implementation of laws such as the Law on Penalties for Administration of Public Security and the Law on Narcotics Control, and also with the improvements in the Criminal Law. Also, as the relevant laws became increasingly applicable in cases of reeducation through labor, the correction system played a lesser role over the years. Since March 2013 the system has been basically suspended in China. On December 28, 2013 the Standing Committee of the NPC passed a decision on abolishing legal provisions pertaining to reeducation through labor, putting an end to the system. It was also decided that persons who were receiving reeducation through labor as prescribed by law should be released and exempted from their remaining terms.

The rights of the person of women and children have been effectively protected. The state has implemented China's Action Plan Against Human Trafficking (2013-2020). In 2013 China cracked 5,126 and 2,765 cases of abducted and trafficked women and children, respectively, and united 631 abducted children with their biological parents through the DNA database network of public security organs. The state has issued opinions on punishing crimes of sexually assaulting minors, in accordance with the law, and rigorously cracks down upon such crimes as sexually assaulting girls under the age of 14 and teachers sexually assaulting students. In 2013 criminal charges were pressed against 2,395 persons suspected of abducting and trafficking women and children.

Special emphasis has been given to the protection of the rights of the person of people with mental disorders. The Law on Mental Health came into effect May 1, 2013, and applies the principles of free will and restriction on involuntary hospitalization for patients with mental disorders. It is prohibited to use constraints and isolation and other protective measures as means for punishing mentally disturbed patients, and medical institutions are not allowed to force their patients with mental disorders to engage in production or other kinds of labor.

The state punishes crimes seriously undermining the people' s sense of security and infringing upon the citizens' rights of the person. In 2013 China's procuratorial organs at all levels issued arrest warrants for 500,055 persons suspected of severe violent crimes, gang crimes, repeated crimes against property, and drug dealing. A total of 580,485 persons were indicted for criminal acts. People's courts at all levels concluded 250,000 cases of homicide, robbery, kidnapping, explosion, rape, trafficking of children and women, and gang-related organized crime, convicting 325,000 persons.