INFOCUS|INDIA-CHINA|LAW
Piyush Singh
I
Umbrella Protest and China’s Unending Quest for Rule of Law |46| India-China Chronicle January–February 2015
China’s notion of ‘Rule of Law’ is considered cosmetic. Is President Xi ready to dismantle this notion, in a bid to improve China’s image? The next few years will be interesting to watch out, to view how the legal and judicial reforms will develop in Communist China.
n September 2014, the massive mass protests in Hong Kong evoked memories of the Arab Spring movement. Thousands of prodemocracy protestors poured out on the streets to vent their grievance against the Communist Party of China. The protestors demanded that China must adhere to the Hong Kong Basic Law as was agreed in Sino-British Joint Declaration when British handed over the region to China in 1997. The root of the controversy is Article 45 which is being interpreted differently by Hong Kong and China. The swift crackdown of protests in Hong Kong by CCP who are rejecting the notion of “one country, two systems” brings forth the larger question of Rule of Law in China. President Xi Jinping, since his ascendance to power, has repeatedly stressed on following the Rule of Law. He has categorically emphasized on adhering to the constitution of China and implementing it in a just and fair manner. However, the reality is quite different from the rhetoric. Actually, the Rule of Law, is nothing but Party’s endorsement of its authoritative mandate.
Cosmetic Judicial Reforms The main purpose of the judicial and legal reforms is actually designed to lend legitimacy to the Party rule,as opposed to usher in real change. The Chinese judiciary is under pressure from several fronts ranging fromadhering to the Party line, to tackling corruption and dealing with mass resignations, to name a few. In the sector of legal reforms, conviction rate in China is still one of the highest in the world. People are becoming increasingly tired of corruption and expect judiciary for a fair verdict. The Fourth Plenum held in October, 2014 in Beijing focused primarily on Rule of Law and proposed many ideas for true legal reforms such as establishment of circuit courts under the direct supervision of the Supreme Court to stop local Party interference in judiciary, more professionalized and independent judiciary, selection of judges of higher courts from the legal fraternity as opposed to picking from the Party. These were some of the thoughts which were backed by the Party leadership. However, the political and law committees continue to remain powerful, mocking the Rule of Law. Xi’s focus on Rule of Law and constitutional supremacy is laced
January–February 2015 India-China Chronicle |47|