Post-Conviction Mercy in Chinese Capital Cases: Inadequate Laws, Inactive Practice

• In Event: Public Opinion and Justice System's Views of Sentencing and Social Control Policies

Abstract

Prior to the 8th Special Amnesty in 2015, the People’s Republic of China’s first seven Special Amnesties were granted primarily to war criminals convicted of non-capital offences. Although it is widely accepted that mercy for death row prisoners has never been used in China, no PRC Constitution since 1949 has specifically prevented this practice via Special Amnesty. In this article the author deciphers the historical and political reasons for the absence of mercy in capital cases by way of Special Amnesty, together with the complete absence of executive clemency provisions in all four PRC Constitutions to date (1954, 1975, 1978 and 1982). The specter of wrongful executions has in recent decades prompted legal scholars and civil society organizations to call for an operative capital clemency provision, to supplement the existing Special Amnesty power. However, the obstacles to a brand new executive clemency law include strong public support for the death penalty, and the difficulty of legal concept.

Author

• Moulin Xiong, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics