NCJ Number
210123
Date Published
2004
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This paper discusses China’s International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and its provisions relating to preventive detention in the criminal justice process, specifically Article 9 of the ICCPR.
Abstract
In October 1998, China signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The ICCPR is viewed as one of the core instruments of human rights; the Covenant safeguards have been accepted by the majority of countries around the world. Article 9 of the ICCPR provides the basic guarantee against deprivation of liberty. It is the minimum standard necessary to safeguard against illegal and arbitrary deprivations of personal liberty. However, in this paper, Article 9 is discussed as raising concerns and challenges in regards to the people’s ideology and the structure of authorities. In general, Chinese law guarantees that any deprivations of personal liberty that takes place will be accomplished under the principle of legality. The Constitution, the Criminal Procedure Law, and other laws provide the principles, rules, grounds, and procedures governing deprivations of personal liberty in the criminal justice process. The ratification of the ICCPR would be an additional step in the efforts of China in reforming its laws. However, implementation of ICCPR would present additional problems and difficulties, especially with how to guarantee that the laws adopted will be carried out in practice. In addition, with Article 9 being the minimum standard necessary to safeguard against illegal and arbitrary deprivations, many states have reservations concerning this standard.