China stresses authority of Constitution, pledges judicial reform(2)

JUDICIAL REFORM

Xi warned of serious problems in China's judicial system and pledged to end judicial injustice.

Declaring that the judicial system dogged by unfair trials and corrupt judges, he denounced judges and prosecutors who manipulate cases in exchange for money or favors. "Some even go two ways by draining both the defendant and the plaintiff," he said.

The reason for these problems is a judicial system that is neither effective nor complete, he said. The reform plan includes guarantees of independence for courts and prosecutors.

New rules will monitor intervention in court cases by senior Party and government officials, publish their records and hold them responsible. Officials will be banned from asking judical departments to breach their duty and judicial departments will be forbidden from following such orders.

Courts and procuratorates with jurisdictions spanning different administrative regions are under consideration to eliminate interference and improve the independence of courts and prosecutors, said Xi.

The number of cases involving different administrative regions and the amount of money involved has been increasing with the development of the socialist market economy, said the President. As a result, local officials have paid growing attention to such cases, with some using their posts to meddle in cases within their jurisdiction.

This is prejudicial to the rights of parties from other administrative regions and the independence of courts. It undermines the government's role in supervising and administering by law, and ensuring fair law enforcement, Xi said.

The Supreme People's Court (SPC) will set up circuit courts for major administrative, civil and commercial cases involving different administrative regions, making it easier for local communities to file suit and helping to solve conflicts at a local level, Xi said. It will also allow SPC headquarters to concentrate on judicial policy and try important cases that have profound, guiding significance in the application of law.