Revision of Criminal Procedure Law not small repair, but big step forward

THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS, the country's top legislature, approved an amendment to the Criminal Procedure Law on Friday recognizing the legitimacy of trial in absentia and a defendent's right to a lawyer. ThePaper.cn comments:

The amendment means the judicial authorities can initiate trials in the absence of runaway corrupt officials before they are extradited home from abroad, which can take years in some cases.

Previously, those suspected of crimes who had fled overseas could only be tried after they were returned to China. In the case of fugitive corrupt officials this made it difficult to recover the stolen assets. The long process of locating and extraditing these "foxes" also cost a lot of judicial and diplomatic resources. The amendment to the law means a trial can proceed without the suspect being present in court.