Victims of violent crimes such as murder and rape could receive
compensation from the Chinese government under a proposed system
aimed at better protecting victims' rights.?
The measures, considered a big step forward for the country's
legal system, is one of the items on the agenda of the Supreme
People's Court (SPC) this year, according to Xiao Yang, president of the SPC.
He said on Sunday at a conference in Jinan, capital of east
China's Shandong Province,?that it would be
difficult for some crime victims to receive fair compensation
without a system of strong safeguards in place.
"Without such a system the courtrooms will be nothing more than
an arena for legal professionals to exercise their litigation
skills," Xiao said.
Under the Criminal Procedure Law victims who suffer material
loss because of a crime have the right to seek compensation by
filing an incidental civil action alongside criminal
proceedings.
But as the wording is general and some defendants cannot afford
to pay damages, victims often fail to recover what should be paid
even after difficult litigation, according to Chen Guangzhong, a
professor of Criminal Procedure Law at the China University of
Political Science and Law.
"Even if the victims get some compensation it's often too little
for what they've suffered,"?Chen said.
The murder committed by Qiu Xinghua is a case in point. The
provincial higher court in northwest China's Shaanxi Province last month ordered the
execution of Qiu, a 47-year-old farmer, who killed 11 people and
seriously injured two others in July. However, the court didn't
accept compensation claims from the victims' families because Qui's
family is too poor to pay.
"I cannot imagine how life will go on," Yin Xingqiao, the wife
of a victim, told local media. Her husband, the family's sole
breadwinner, was murdered leaving her alone with three shabby rooms
and a 10-year-old son.
She said compensation was more important to her than the death
sentence because she would have to find a way to support her
family. Local media reported that Yin appealed to the local
government for help after the verdict was handed down but received
only 500 yuan ($64). This is far short of the amount necessary for
a decent funeral.
Professor Chen said that in some countries the government would
compensate the victims in such circumstances.
(China Daily January 9, 2007)