According to the law, elderly woman entitled to get medical parole

LI SHUXIAN, an 84-year-old woman in prison in Chengde city, North China’s Hebei province, has been applying for medical parole because she has suffered from repeated fracture of lumbar vertebra since last year, but all her attempts have been rejected. CCTV News comments:

Li was sentenced to two and a half years in prison in 2016 when she was 82 years old. She was found guilty of “seeking trouble” after she reported to local authorities someone had destroyed her contracted forests and then appealed to the higher authorities when she was not satisfied with the outcome.

Suffering from repeated lumbar vertebra fractures since last year, she has applied for medical parole many times, but each time her request has been rejected.

Some say that even her imprisonment is not correct, because the Criminal Law clearly states that those found guilty of light crimes and sentenced to prison terms of less than three years should be given a reprieve if they are aged 75 or older and do not pose any more risk to society. However, Li did not get a reprieve.

The Criminal Law also says that criminals with serious medical issues should be given medical parole. However, the prison authorities said her condition is not that serious, an assessment made by the hospital under their management. But according to the law, medical evaluations should be done in hospitals designated by the provincial-level governments by two senior doctors and signed by the head of the hospital.

Second, even the prison hospital admits that Li has suffered from lumbar fractures for a long time because of her age. She is so old and her crime so light that it is impossible for her to pose any risk to society.

From both the legal and the humanitarian points of view, the prison authorities should show Li more concern for social justice. The latest reports say that two lawyers have already met Li and given her a new application letter for medical parole to submit to the prison, and we hope the prison officials will reconsider their decision.

This is not only about Li’s age, but also about adhering to the law.