Lenient handling of juvenile rape case sparks controversy

A procuratorate in Central China’s Henan Province came under fire over the weekend after it posted online their handling of a juvenile case of a middle school student who allegedly forced a girl to have sex with him but was released on bail.

Chinese netizens on Monday criticized the Lushan procuratorate for failing to take the student into custody, with some urging the provincial-level procuratorate to review the case.

The criticism came after the Lushan People’s Procuratorate published an article on September 19 on its WeChat account saying that a 16-year-old junior high school student surnamed Zhao forced 17-year-old Xiaohua to have sex with him. The procuratorate approved the decision to arrest Zhao in July, but the case’s procurator wanted to “pay the greatest attention to the juvenile suspect’s growth.”

After receiving psychological counseling, Zhao wrote an apology letter and a statement of repentance. And the parents of Zhao and Xiaohua agreed to a settlement. Zhao was released on bail and returned to school, according to the article.

Calls to the Lushan government and procuratorate went unanswered Monday.

Zong Chunshan, director of the Beijing Youth Legal and Psychological Consultation Service Center, said that some netizens simply view the laws’ function as punishment, but ignore other important functions of education and precaution.

“For juveniles, China’s law stresses education. Prisons are not ideal education venues and sometimes serving sentences in prison may have a negative effect to their growth,” Zong said.

But Zong noted that it’s not that juveniles can walk away from legal punishment, and they may eventually be sent to jail if their cases lead to severe consequences. In practice, legal experts have called on to consider punishing the guardians of juveniles.