Gao Guangshi, a judge at Shizhong district court, Zaozhuang city, Shandong province, shows primary school students how he uses his gavel. Students are regularly invited to visit the court to learn about proceedings and take part in mock trials. (Photo by JI ZHE/FOR CHINA DAILY)
Juvenile offenders should be given stricter rehabilitation or even punished instead of being exempted from criminal responsibility because they are under age 14, according to lawmakers.
They were commenting during a heated discussion on a draft revision to the Law on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency during the weekend. They found the draft made it difficult to clarify measures to help educate, correct or even punish offenders younger than 14.
The legislators decided to further amend the law in view of some cases that shocked the public.
In the most recent, police in Dalian, Liaoning province, said a 13-year-old boy, surnamed Cai, had confessed to killing a 10-year-old girl.
In December, police in Yuanjiang, Hunan province, detained a student in the sixth grade, identified only as Wu, 12, on suspicion of killing his 34-year-old mother with a knife.
However, neither boy has faced criminal charges, as they are younger than 14, meaning they are below the age of criminal responsibility.
The boy in Dalian has been sent to a rehabilitation center, while the student in Yuanjiang has been placed under the joint guardianship of his family, public security authorities and an educational institution.
Zhou Min, a member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the country's top legislature, said, "The revision to the law must urgently provide solutions to alleviate such violent cases.
"Although the age of criminal responsibility should be changed by amending the Criminal Law, instead of by revising it, as we're discussing, I think that lowering the age should be considered," Zhou said.
She has given considerable thought to this issue, as some children have stated publicly they would kill others, knowing that they would escape prison terms as they are younger than 14.
Fu Yuhang, a NPC deputy from Sichuan province, agreed. She said such threats of intended violence had made many people, including herself, panic. "So, I suggest the legislature lower the age of criminal responsibility to 12."
