Stanley Lubman writes for The Wall Street Journal, China Realtime Report, April 12, 2012
The problems largely stem from Bo’s “smash the black” campaign, a furious effort to crackdown on corruption and organized crime carried about by former Chongqing police chief Wang Lijun that, by all accounts, involved misuse of both the courts and the police.
Stanley Lubman writes for The Wall Street Journal, March 26, 2012
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) continues to tighten its grasp on the legal profession with Ministry of Justice (MOJ) announcing that every new Chinese lawyer must now swear an oath of allegiance to the party. The oath is yet another ominous step in a continuing campaign in recent years to restrain lawyers from representing clients seen as challenging Party rule.
Stanley Lubman writes for The Wall Street Journal, March 21, 2012
One draft of the amendment to the Law had provided that the police could hold suspects incommunicado and in secret locations. The provision was later omitted after a considerable amount of public debate that was marked by strong criticism by human rights activists and legal experts.
Stanley Lubman writes for The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, March 6, 2012
Welcome revisions include the requirement of judicial supervision of compulsory psychiatric treatment for criminal suspects, the introduction of pretrial hearings and plea bargaining, and the exclusion of evidence obtained by illegal means. Controversial provisions include one that would permit the police to confine suspects under “residential surveillance” at places other than their residences for as long as six months in cases involving “state security” or “terrorism” without notice to their families.
Stanley Lubman writes for The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, March 1, 2012
The need to better understand China’s system goes beyond abstract arguments about the future of the global economy. The continuing expansion of the state sector of China’s economy limits the private sector and favors state-owned enterprises (SOEs) over foreign companies in some domestic markets. As SOEs extend their investments abroad, nations in which China seeks to invest need to become more aware of frequent links between state ownership and state control.
The Wall Street Journal, February 7, 2012 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/y2fQU0
How the new law operates will depend on the mindset of participants in the Chinese “political-legal system” who will be required to put the law into practice…. An illuminating new piece of research demonstrates that it will take more than revising laws on paper to raise the level of legality of China’s criminal justice given the value system that underpins it.
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, January 24, 2012 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/xRj6Xo
A new dispute over access to accounting information on U.S.-listed Chinese companies should give American investors pause…. Sovereignty should not be used as a cover for inadequate financial transparency.
The Wall Street Journal, December 23, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/12/23/chinas-wukan-protest-will-rights-awareness-spread/?KEYWORDS=Berkeley
The question now is whether the central government will address the root causes of the protests by implementing long-postponed legislation on rural land seizures and cracking down on corruption. For the Communist Party, the risks of inaction are clear. The protests signify an expression of rising rights consciousness among citizens that could grow in other towns.
The Wall Street Journal, December 9, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/s9P1au
Why do some accident victims in China demand damages from their rescuers? Would a law change this behavior? These are questions that confront some Chinese who have begun to debate whether the role of the Good Samaritan should be introduced into China’s changing society.
The Wall Street Journal, November 21, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/11/21/in-china-laws-on-paper-vs-law-in-practice/?KEYWORDS=Berkeley
A white paper issued by the State Council last month pays too much attention to laws on paper, while slighting meaningful discussion of how the legal system actually works—or doesn’t.
Wall Street Journal, October 25, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/10/25/a-glimpse-into-chinese-law-making/
Building a legal system is replete with deliberation over technicalities in any nation, but the enterprise is especially difficult in a huge country under authoritarian single-party rule, with traditions inconsistent with the rule of law, and which is undergoing dramatic social change.
The Wall Street Journal, China Realtime Report, September 26, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/mYkQxC
Even if debate persists about the role of the courts in referencing the Constitution, serious reforms are unlikely to appear soon. If courts are to be given a greater voice on rights-related matters, major changes in China’s governance would be required that don’t seem possible in the current political climate.
The Wall Street Journal, September 1, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/09/01/with-proposed-law-change-china-is-threatening-to-legalize-repression/
A draft of the revised law, posted (in Chinese) Tuesday on the website of the National People’s Congress, confirms what many rights advocates had previously feared: That China plans to legalize the secret and illegal detentions that have previously been carried out in violation of existing law.
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, August 31, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/08/31/dont-overlook-chinas-ordinary-laywers/
There is a relatively small number of activist Chinese lawyers (commonly referred to as “rights protectors”) who specialize in representing Chinese citizens whose rights are violated by government agencies…. Some of them have received much publicity because they are often known to suffer severely and brutally at the hands of police and government authorities. But what about the rest of the country’s 200,000 lawyers?
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, August 10, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/oCIS9e
China has expanded the coverage of its social insurance system to include foreigners working in the country in a move that could have significant consequences for Americans and American businesses operating in the country unless Washington steps in to negotiate on their behalf.
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, July 22, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/07/22/changes-to-chinas-indigenous-innovation-policy-dont-get-too-excited/
While government policy on procurement has receded from the original position and “indigenous innovation” has been “delinked” from government procurement requirements, implementation of this shift is problematic because acceptance and commitment by sub-central (provincial and municipal) governments are needed to make it meaningful.
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, July 5, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/nqlxGz
Although there is no sign of any national movement taking shape, the central government is haunted by the Mideast revolutions. Local governments have responded to the protests with repression, sometimes violent. If the growing social unrest provokes further repression, might that response then provoke further social unrest? Or can the central government initiate reforms that would quiet discontent? The rise of protests suggests that it may be necessary to choose soon.
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, June 21, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/06/21/chinas-critical-disconnect/
Underfunded local governments frequently dilute and undercut implementation of national laws and policies in their effort to sustain growth and increase local revenues…. There is a frequent disconnect between local governments and Beijing that is aggravated by the center’s underfunding of local governments.
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, May 31, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/kRr32G
China’s leadership has put a priority on quieting social tensions and reducing public protests. To help accomplish these goals they have reversed policies of court reform that have been promoted for over two decades. This setback threatens the future of the criminal process, manifested in recent prosecutions, detentions and house arrests of individuals asserting fundamental rights that have been well-publicized outside China.
The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, April 19, 2011 by Stanley Lubman
http://on.wsj.com/l5qk2m
A recent WTO decision is supposed to result in the removal of several barriers to the importation of American movies that have collectively been a sore point in Hollywood for years. It’s been exactly a month since a deadline imposed by the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body passed and China has yet to make any substantive move to comply with the trade body’s decision.