"Strictness comes first!" Two judicial documents have further enhanced the level of judicial protection for minors

The Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate jointly issued an interpretation on several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in Handling Criminal cases of rape and indecent assault against minors on the 25th. The Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Justice jointly issued an opinion on handling criminal cases of sexual assault against minors.

The two judicial documents adhere to a people-centered approach, strictly punish crimes of rape and indecent assault against minors in accordance with the law, strengthen special and priority protection for minors, and further enhance the level of judicial protection for minors.

The principle of "strictness first" highlights the judicial concept of strict punishment

Among all kinds of issues that infringe upon the rights and interests of minors, sexual assault crimes such as rape and indecent assault seriously damage the physical and mental health of minors, seriously trample on the legal red line and ethical bottom line, and are deeply detested by the people and strongly reflected by society.

In response to the new circumstances and changes that have emerged in such crimes in recent years, two judicial documents were formulated after extensive solicitation of opinions and repeated research and argumentation. They adhere to the principle of strictness and highlight the judicial concept of strict punishment. He Li, a member of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People's Court and the director of the First Criminal Division, introduced.

The judicial interpretation has further clarified the conditions for conviction of relevant crimes and the standards for determining circumstances that warrant aggravated or increased punishment. For instance, clearly list multiple circumstances where a more severe range of punishment is applicable to the rape of young girls and the rape of minors; Clearly define multiple circumstances for aggravated punishment such as "extremely serious circumstances" and "causing harm to the victim" for rape and indecent assault. It is clearly stipulated that the application of probation should be strictly controlled for such crimes, and prohibitive orders and professional bans should be lawfully applied.

Clarify the criminalization conditions for indecent acts committed through the Internet

In recent years, the victims of sexual assault crimes have been getting younger and younger, and new types of crimes such as remote indecent assault and online sexual inducement have emerged one after another. Na Yanfang, director of the Ninth Prosecution Department of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, introduced. As the criminal situation of sexual assault against minors is complex, the judicial interpretation, based on the summary of practical experience, has supplemented and detailed relevant issues.

In response to new situations and problems of infringing upon minors through the Internet and other means, judicial interpretations have clarified the conditions for conviction and the standards for determining circumstances that may lead to aggravated or aggravated punishment for related crimes. They have also specified the conditions for conviction for indecent acts committed through the Internet, stipulating that "coercing or luring minors to engage in online video chatting or send videos, photos, etc., Those who expose their private body parts or commit obscene acts and whose actions meet the provisions of Article 237 of the Criminal Law shall be convicted and punished for the crime of forced indecency or indecent assault on children.

Clarify the aggravating circumstances for the crime of sexual assault committed by personnel with care responsibilities

According to judicial interpretations, "persons with special duties" refer to those who are responsible for guardianship, adoption, care, education, medical treatment and other duties towards minors, including those who have a cohabitation relationship with minors and are actually responsible for care, protection and other duties.

Persons who have special duties towards minor females and take advantage of their dominant position or the victim's isolated and helpless situation to force the victim to have sexual relations with them shall be convicted and punished for the crime of rape with a heavier penalty, so as to punish the crime in accordance with the law, accurately and effectively. He Li introduced.

The judicial interpretation uses two articles to respectively stipulate the criteria for determining "particularly bad circumstances" in the crime of sexual assault by personnel with care duties and the conditions for special duty personnel to constitute the crime of rape, aiming to clarify how to determine against the will of the victim in special circumstances and more accurately distinguish between this crime and that crime.

The investigation and evidence collection must ensure that no case, no crime, and no person is overlooked.

Investigation and evidence collection work is an important link in the trial of criminal cases involving minors.

The Ministry of Public Security attaches great importance to the protection of minors' rights and interests and has always adhered to a "zero-tolerance" and "zero-slackness" attitude towards sexual assault crimes against minors. Chen Shiqu, deputy director and first-level inspector of the Criminal Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security, said.

In the stage of investigation and evidence collection, judicial opinions require a comprehensive investigation of the criminal facts and stipulate that when the case-handling authorities discover other criminal clues mentioned in the victim's statement or witness testimony, they should all investigate and verify them. For individuals with convenient conditions for close contact with minors who are suspected of sexual assault crimes, it is necessary to investigate other minors that the criminal suspect may have come into contact with. For sexual assault cases that occur in the vicinity of the suspect's residence or in the same or similar places and where the criminal methods are similar, they should be promptly consolidated for investigation.

Next, the Ministry of Public Security will organize public security organs across the country to take the implementation of the opinions as an opportunity, continue to crack down under high pressure, strengthen the synergy of crackings, and promote comprehensive governance. We will continue to carry out activities such as "Protecting Schools and Kindergartens" to reduce the occurrence of sexual abuse of minors from the source. Chen Shiqu said.

Strengthen legal aid to safeguard litigation rights

Sun Chunying, a first-level inspector of the Public Legal Services Administration of the Ministry of Justice, introduced that according to statistics, from 2020 to 2022, legal aid institutions across the country organized and handled 398,000 legal aid cases for minors, benefiting 425,000 people, and provided legal consultations for 382,000 minors.

Legal aid is an important measure to safeguard the litigation rights and interests of minors. Especially in handling cases of sexual assault against minors, legal aid lawyers play a significant role in maintaining their civil compensation rights and interests.

In this regard, the opinion strengthens the protection of litigation rights, stipulating that "The people's courts, people's procuratorates and public security organs shall determine specialized institutions or designate specialized personnel familiar with the physical and mental characteristics of minors to be responsible for handling criminal cases of rational infringement against minors." If the minor victim is female, female staff members should be involved.

At the same time, in accordance with the physical and mental characteristics of minors, the principle of special and priority protection should be implemented. The opinion points out that "legal aid institutions should assign lawyers who are familiar with the physical and mental characteristics of minors to provide legal aid to minors."

Promote the implementation and refinement of the mandatory reporting system

Women's federations at all levels should focus on preventive measures in advance and carry out publicity on preventing sexual assault. Keep the petition Windows open and the 12338 women's rights protection public welfare service hotline unobstructed. When visiting and discovering possible clues or potential risks of sexual assault, proactively report and reflect the clues to the public security organs and procuratorial organs. Li Yueyang, deputy director of the Rights and Interests Department of the All-China Women's Federation, introduced. Juvenile sexual assault crimes are covert, and it is even more necessary for all sectors of society to jointly build a "firewall" to protect minors.

In addition to identifying risks and taking preventive measures in advance, the mandatory reporting system for cases involving the infringement of minors established in 2020 has played a significant role in promptly detecting, stopping and preventing crimes. Sexual assault cases have always been the main type of compulsory reporting cases, but generally speaking, the implementation of the compulsory reporting system is still insufficient. Especially for cases that occurred in hotels and guesthouses, there are still a large number that should have been reported but have not. Na Yanfang said.

In this regard, the opinion puts forward requirements for relevant departments to proactively carry out crime prevention work. The implementation of the legal system for mandatory reporting and onboarding inquiries, as well as the construction of related working mechanisms, have been further clarified. Those who fail to fulfill their reporting obligations and cause serious consequences shall be held accountable in accordance with the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Minors and other relevant laws and regulations.