Punishment 'should fit the criminal'

Punishment will be tempered with compassion as the nation reforms its judicial system and develops a relief system for victims of crime.

"We should imbue mercy into justice instead of being strict on all types of crimes," Jia Chunwang, procurator-general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, said yesterday while delivering a work report to the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature.

Suspects can avoid being arrested or prosecuted, depending on the circumstances: if they are less than 18 years old and their crimes are minor, or if it is proved that they had been forced to commit the crime, or if they confess, the top official said.

Xiao Yang, president of the Supreme People's Court, also made it clear yesterday in his report to the NPC that judges could hand down relatively shorter sentences to minors and first-time offenders within the scope of the law.

For instance, an offender can be jailed for five years if the law says the crime demands five to 10 years' sentence.

But suspects in serious criminal cases will continue to face the full force of the law. Such crimes include murder, rape, arson and some economic crimes like the infringement of intellectual property rights.

NPC deputies applauded the changes to strict penalties adopted in the 1980s to curb what was then considered rising crime.

"It's a step forward in our legal system, as it will better protect the rights of suspects, especially adolescents," said Xu Songnan, a deputy from Northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

He added that sometimes, mercy and education could be more effective than punishment in curbing crime.

In an attempt to protect victims' rights, Xiao said the country would further develop a relief system to offer victims of serious crimes like murder and rape more financial assistance.

He said a pilot program has been progressing smoothly in 10 provinces, and 378 victims and their relatives last year received 7.8 million yuan ($1 million) in relief from the State.

The Criminal Procedure Law stipulates that victims of crime have the right to seek compensation, but because the clause is too general and because many defendants cannot afford to pay damages, victims or their families often fail to recover their due.

The legislative agenda recently released by the NPC Standing Committee lists a draft law on State compensation for victims of crime in its long-term plan.

In addition, Xiao said courts would provide more judicial assistance to poor litigants this year to make lawsuits affordable to all.

He noted that 282,582 people were allowed to delay or reduce payment of court costs, or even totally exempted from costs last year, involving 1.2 billion yuan ($155 million).

The top court reported that it received 140,511 letters, visits and calls of complaints and petitions from the public last year, down by 4.71 percent from the previous year.