228 procurators re- elected in judicial reform

Prosecutor disqualified if family has migrated to another country

China’s top procuratorate reelected 228 procurators as part of the country’s judicial reform to promote professionalism in the judicial system.

The 228 prosecutors of the Supreme People’s Procuratorate ( SPP) took their oath of allegiance to the Constitution on Monday.

The re- election, which has been implemented at central and local procuratorates since 2012, aims to select qualified procurators in the prosecutorial system.

Procurators who fail to get re- elected will no longer handle cases independently and will become assistants for prosecutors or moved to administrative jobs, according to jcrb. com, a website under the SPP.

A prosecutor may not be reelected if his spouse or children have migrated to another country.

The ban is aimed at eliminating “naked officials,” or officials who have sent their families abroad to transfer their ill- gotten assets abroad, Zhuang Deshui, a deputy director of the Research Center for Government Integrity- Building at Peking University, told the Global Times.

“Having family members abroad make it easier for them [ naked officials] to transfer their money and flee abroad when their violations are exposed,” Zhuang said.

Meanwhile, government officials’ relatives living overseas pose as a risk to leaks of national secrets, Zhuang said.

In all, 277 people were eligible for re- election as SPP procurators, and 255 of them applied for and passed the qualification process.

The reform also optimizes the procurators, as those who have more practical experience and better academic background are included, Zhi Zhenfeng, a legal expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.

Previously, China’s judicial selection and management system adopted the public servant system, which did not suit the profession’s characteristics, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The 228 prosecutors have an average of 23 years’ experience in the legal profession. 135 of them hold postgraduate degrees, with 56 holding doctoral degrees, according to SPP.

A statement sent by the SPP to the Global Times on Monday said prosecutors do not enjoy a permanent tenure, and that those who fail the annual assessment and behave poorly could be dropped.

The chosen prosecutors should handle cases and be responsible for their cases for life, which Zhi hailed as a policy that safeguards justice and efficiency.

Procuratorates at all levels across China had selected more than 87,000 prosecutors during the pilot program since the 18th Communist Party of China National Congress, jcrb. com reported.

Meanwhile, the Supreme People’s Court also re- elected 367 judges earlier this month, Xinhua reported.