Court curbs torture tactics
Beijing rejects US criticism over its treatment of Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo
Beijing, June 27: Chinese police and prosecutors are banned from using torture to obtain evidence under rules released on Tuesday, in the latest attempt to curb forced confessions in the country’s criminal justice system.
Confessions obtained through torture, threats and illegal detention are inadmissable in court, the Supreme Court said on its website.
The aim is to “accurately punish the crime” and thereby protect human rights and avoid miscarriages of justice, it said, according to the transcript of a news conference also hosted by the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, ministry of public security, ministry of state security and ministry of justice.
Chinese courts have a near-perfect conviction rate of 99.92 per cent.
Human rights groups have long voiced concerns over wrongful verdicts owing to heavy reliance on forced confessions and a lack of effective defence in criminal trials.
While Chinese leaders have previously attempted to stamp out torture, rights groups say it remains a deep-rooted practice.
An example of a miscarriage of justice that came to light recently involved Nie Shubin, who was convicted of rape and murder in 1995 and executed by firing squad.
The Supreme People’s Court overturned the original sentence last year after finding “there are doubts over the truth and legality of his confession of guilt”.
China is often criticised for its harsh treatment of activists and dissidents. Since President Xi Jinping took power in 2012 the controls on civil society have tightened.
Campaigners say it is impossible to know the exact number of lawyers and activists in detention because many are held incommunicado with no access to legal advice or their families.
Meanwhile, China on Tuesday rejected criticism over its treatment of cancer-stricken Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo after the United States urged Beijing to give the paroled activist freedom to move and to choose his own doctors.
The US embassy in Beijing joined a growing chorus of Chinese and foreign human rights lawyers and activists demanding the unconditional release of the democracy campaigner amid dismay at his condition.
With three years left to serve in his 11-year sentence, the 61-year-old was granted medical parole days after being diagnosed with terminal liver cancer on May 23, his lawyer Mo Shaoping said.
He is in hospital in the northeastern city of Shenyang and being treated by top specialists, according to prison authorities.
The US embassy said it was “working to gather more information” about Mr Liu’s legal and medical status after authorities confirmed his transfer from prison to hospital.
“We call on the Chinese authorities to not only release Mr Liu but also to allow his wife Ms Liu Xia out of house arrest,” spokeswoman Mary Beth Polley said.
But China’s foreign ministry hit back, saying “no country has the right to interfere and make irresponsible remarks on Chinese internal affairs”.
His wife, a poet, has been under house arrest since 2010, when her husband was awarded the Nobel peace prize in absentia. She suffered a heart attack in 2014 when she was also diagnosed with depression. A video circulating among their supporters shows Liu Xia sobbing during a video call with a friend.