Rehabilitation of wrongful convictions
The rehabilitation of wrongful convictions (Chinese: 平反冤假错案; pinyin: Píngfǎn yuān jiǎ cuò'àn) refers to a series of actions to rehabilitate certain cases of wrongful convictions that began after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and during the Anti-Rightist Campaign. It was part of the Boluan Fanzheng led by Deng Xiaoping, Hu Yaobang and others after the end of the Cultural Revolution, and largely concluded in 1982. According to the People's Daily, more than three million wrongful convictions were evicted nationwide since 1978.
Background
A large number of wrongful convictions occurred during the Cultural Revolution. During this period, 17.5% of state cadres, and up to 75% of those holding positions of deputy ministers and above of national government, and deputy governors and above of provincinal governments were charged for offences, and nearly 100 million people were implicated.[1][2][3][4] From 10 November to 15 December 1978, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party held a working conference lasting 36 days, centering around addressing the aftermath of the Cultural Revolution and condemning the Two Whatevers political doctrine.[5] The 1976 Tiananmen incident became the first case in which those implicated were rehabilitated and cleared of all charges during the meeting. Later, at the suggestion of Deng Xiaoping, Hua Guofeng, Chairman of the CCP Central Committee, announced the rehabilitation of the "wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice" on behalf of the Politburo and transferred all cases to the Organization Department of the CCP for review.[2][6][7]
Result
In 1979, the Supreme People's Court issued a report entitled Request for Instructions on Several Issues Concerning the Successful Completion of the Review and Correction of Wrongful Convictions. The report stated that since the third plenary session of the 11th CCP Central Committee in 1978, more than 241,000 "counter-revolutionary cases" sentenced since the Cultural Revolution had been reviewed, and more than 130,000 cases had been corrected.[8] It added that more than 570,000 ordinary criminal cases were reviewed, and more than 350,000 wrongful convictions were corrected. Later, the CCP Central Committee continued to redress some major political cases, such as the case of the "61-person traitor group", the case of Liu Zhidan, and the redressing of CCP leaders persecuted during the Cultural Revolution, including former Chairman Liu Shaoqi who was persecuted to death. According to the People's Daily article Setting an Example and Establishing a Monument published on 1 June 1989, more than 3 million cases nationwide have been redressed since 1978.[2]
References
- ↑ Liu, Jintian (2015-01-05). "邓小平推动冤假错案的平反" [Deng Xiaoping promoted the redress of wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice.]. People's Daily (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2019-10-25. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 Wu, Linquan; Peng, Fei (1989-06-01). "撥亂反正立豐碑——胡耀邦同志領導平反「六十一人案」追記" [Setting a Monument to Correcting Misconduct: A Retrospective on Comrade Hu Yaobang's Leadership in Redressing the "Sixty-One Cases"]. Hu Yaobang Historical Materials Information Network (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2018-04-13. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- ↑ Jiang, Yongqing (2015-01-05). "邓小平亲自批示平反的冤假错案" [Deng Xiaoping personally approved the redress of wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice.]. People's Daily (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2015-03-30. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- ↑ Shen, Baoxiang (2017-10-24). "《亲历拨乱反正》：拨乱反正的日日夜夜" ["Experiencing the Correction of Chaos": The Days and Nights of Correcting Chaos]. Hu Yaobang Historical Materials Information Network (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2019-10-25. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- ↑ "平反冤假錯案工作" [Work to redress wrongful convictions]. Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2013-07-10. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
- ↑ Ye, Fanzi (2021-03-24). "十一届三中全会后的拨乱反正" [The rectification of errors after the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee]. China Youth Daily (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2024-04-07. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- ↑ "第八章 十一届三中全会开辟社会主义事业发展新时期" [Chapter 8 The Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee Ushers in a New Era for the Development of Socialism]. Gov.cn (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-12-03. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- ↑ "1979年12月31日 中共中央批轉《關於善始善終地完成複查糾正冤假錯案工作幾個問題的請示報告》" [On December 31, 1979, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party approved and forwarded the "Report Requesting Instructions on Several Issues Concerning the Successful Completion of the Review and Correction of Wrongful Convictions."]. Chinese Communist Party News Network (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2013-09-28. Retrieved 2013-09-23.