New guideline on death penalty

The Supreme People's Court (SPC) is working on a guideline to unify standards for the issuing of the death penalty for five categories of crimes in a bid to ensure consistency across the country, a senior judge said on Sunday.

The guideline will apply to the crimes of murder, robbery, abduction, drug trafficking and intentional injury, which account for almost all death penalties handed down, the anonymous official said.

"It will include the necessary conditions for handing down the death sentence to those found guilty of any of the five crimes," he said.