Juvenile Crime In China

Juvenile crime is not naturally born in the boy, but is largely due either to the spirit of adventure that is in him, to his own stupidity, or to his lack of discipline, according to the nature of the individual. -Robert Baden Powell

Combating crime is a major social issue confronting every country in the modern world. Reforming criminals into lawabiding citizens is important for the survival of a civilization and the advancement of a society.

China is the most populated country in the world with a population of 1.3 billion. However, its crime rate is much lower than world average rate. This is due to the measures adopted by the power of the people which helps in stimulating the growth of the economy and social stability. But still crimes

Persons of age 14 or older but under 16 must bear full penal liability for eight serious crimes intentionally committed i.e., murder, aggravated assault, robbery, rape, drug dealing, arson, causing explosions, and arson ; otherwise, they take only partial responsibility. There are two parts to the juvenile justice system in China: the juvenile court, specializing in juvenile criminal cases, and the mixed juvenile court, which handles both juvenile criminal and civil cases. The first-ever juvenile court was established in 1984 in Shanghai. By 2014, there were around 1,800 specialized juvenile courts and 419 mixed courts (trying both adult and juvenile criminals) with more than 7,000 juvenile judges (Supreme People’s Court 2013). Dispositions (sentences) for juveniles are the same as adult sentences (except for the death penalty). If juveniles are sentenced to imprisonment, they are held in one of 29 Juvenile Rehabilitation

In China, juvenile criminal justice has been developing incrementally in recent years, with different scholars as well as different regional/local government authorities providing their own interpretation of juvenile criminal justice principles. As stated previously, China now has separate juvenile criminal courts ; juvenile protection laws; specific provisions on juvenile criminal procedure within the criminal law; and separate juvenile pretrial detention centers, correction schools, and facilities.

The Law of the People's Republic of China on Protection of Minors (hereinafter referred to as "The Protection Law") includes the following clauses :

* The minimum age of the criminal responsibility for juveniles is stipulated.

* A person who has reached the age of fourteen, but not the age of eighteen, and who commits rape or some other severe crime, shall have a lighter punishment or a mitigated punishment imposed (Article 17, Paragraph 3 of the Criminal Law), which shows that Chinese law grants particular protection to juvenile offenders. Furthermore, juvenile offenders shall, while serving their sentences, be incarcerated in the correctional institution for juvenile offenders instead of the common prison. Juvenile offenders may get special treatment in the juvenile facility, including a normal secondary