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China COI Compilation-March 2014

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China COI Compilation-March 2014 China COI Compilation March 2014 ACCORD is co-funded by the European Refugee Fund, UNHCR and the Ministry of the Interior, Austria. Commissioned by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Division of International Protection. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author. ACCORD - Austrian Centre for Country of Origin & Asylum Research and Documentation China COI Compilation March 2014 This COI compilation does not cover the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, nor does it cover Taiwan. The decision to exclude Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan was made on the basis of practical considerations; no inferences should be drawn from this decision regarding the status of Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan. This report serves the specific purpose of collating legally relevant information on conditions in countries of origin pertinent to the assessment of claims for asylum. It is not intended to be a general report on human rights conditions. The report is prepared on the basis of publicly available information, studies and commentaries within a specified time frame. All sources are cited and fully referenced. This report is not, and does not purport to be, either exhaustive with regard to conditions in the country surveyed, or conclusive as to the merits of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Every effort has been made to compile information from reliable sources; users should refer to the full text of documents cited and assess the credibility, relevance and timeliness of source material with reference to the specific research concerns arising from individual applications. © Austrian Red Cross/ACCORD An electronic version of this report is available on www.ecoi.net. Austrian Red Cross/ACCORD Wiedner Hauptstraße 32 A- 1040 Vienna, Austria Phone: +43 1 58 900 – 582 E-Mail: [email protected] Web: http://www.redcross.at/accord ACCORD is co-funded by the European Refugee Fund, UNHCR and the Ministry of the Interior, Austria. Table of Contents List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................................................................................. 5 1 Background information .............................................................................................................................................. 6 1.1 Geographical information ...................................................................................................................................... 6 1.1.1 Map of China ....................................................................................................................................................... 6 1.1.2 Map of Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) ............................................................................................. 6 1.1.3 Map of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) ................................................................. 7 1.2 Brief overview of political institutions and structures ............................................................................. 7 1.2.1 Government structure ................................................................................................................................... 7 1.2.2 Communist Party of China (CPC) ............................................................................................................ 11 1.2.3 Other recognized political parties ......................................................................................................... 14 1.3 Brief overview of socio-economic situation ................................................................................................. 16 2 Main political developments .................................................................................................................................... 21 2.1 Electoral framework ................................................................................................................................................ 21 2.2 2011-12 Local People’s Congress elections ................................................................................................. 24 2.3 CPC party congress ................................................................................................................................................ 26 2.4 March 2013 presidential appointment by the NPC ............................................................................... 31 3 Rule of law and the administration of justice ............................................................................................... 33 3.1 Law enforcement, intelligence and armed forces .................................................................................. 33 3.1.1 Law enforcement ............................................................................................................................................ 34 3.1.2 Intelligence ......................................................................................................................................................... 38 3.1.3 Armed forces .................................................................................................................................................... 40 3.2 Overview of Chinese judicial system ............................................................................................................ 43 3.2.1 Courts and prosecution system ............................................................................................................. 43 3.2.2 Independence of judiciary ......................................................................................................................... 45 3.3 Criminal justice .......................................................................................................................................................... 48 3.4 Arbitrary arrest/detention and enforced disappearances ............................................................... 60 3.4.1 Enforced disappearances of political activists’ family members .......................................... 67 3.5 Unfair trial of political dissidents ..................................................................................................................... 69 3.6 Unlawful or disproportionate punishment for crimes ............................................................................71 3.7 Death penalty ............................................................................................................................................................. 75 3.8 Types of detention ................................................................................................................................................... 77 3.8.1 Criminal detention ......................................................................................................................................... 78 3.8.2 Administrative detention ........................................................................................................................... 78 3.8.3 Mental institutions ......................................................................................................................................... 87 3.8.4 House arrest (“soft detention”, ruanjin) ............................................................................................ 89 3.8.5 “Black jails” ......................................................................................................................................................... 91 3.8.6 Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) prisons .......................................................................................... 93 4 Freedom of expression, association and assembly ................................................................................... 97 4.1 Political opposition ................................................................................................................................................... 101 2 4.1.1 Banned political parties ............................................................................................................................ 102 4.1.2 Independent candidates ........................................................................................................................... 105 4.2 Anti-corruption activists ..................................................................................................................................... 108 4.3 Human rights defenders ....................................................................................................................................... 112 4.4 Lawyers.......................................................................................................................................................................... 116 4.5 Petitioners..................................................................................................................................................................... 119 5 Freedom of the media ............................................................................................................................................. 124 5.1 Control of the internet and the media; censorship ............................................................................. 128 5.2 Treatment of critical journalists, citizen journalists, bloggers, etc.............................................. 136
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