China: Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress regarding the Severe Punishment of Criminals who Abduct and Traffic in or Kidnap Women or Children

With a view to severely punishing criminals who abduct and traffic in or kidnap women or children so as to protect the personal safety of women and children and maintain the public security order, the relevant provisions of the Criminal Law are supplemented or amended as follows:

1.

Whoever abducts and traffics in a woman or a child shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years and not more than ten years, and shall concurrently be punished with a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan; if under any of the following circumstances, the offender shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than ten years or life imprisonment. with the concurrent punishment of a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan or confiscation of property; if the circumstances are especially serious, the offender shall be sentenced to death with the concurrent punishment of confiscation of property:

(1)  Being a ringleader of a gang engaged in the abduction of and trafficking in women or children;

(2)  Abducting and trafficking in three or more women and/or children;

(3)  Raping the woman who is abducted and trafficked in;

(4)  Enticing or forcing the woman who is abducted and trafficked in to engage in prostitution, or selling such woman to any other person or persons who will force the woman to engage in prostitution;

(5)  Causing serious bodily injury or death or other severe consequences of the woman or child who is abducted and trafficked in or of their relatives;

(6)  Selling a woman or a child out of the territory of China. Abducting and trafficking in a woman or a child mean any act of abducting, buying, trafficking in, fetching or sending, or transferring a woman or a child, for the purpose of selling the victim.

2.

Whoever kidnaps a woman or a child by means of violence, intimidation or anaesthesia for the put-pose of selling the victim shall be sentenced to fixed-term Imprisonment of not less than tell years or life imprisonment, and shall concurrently be sentenced to a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan or confiscation of property; and if the circumstances are especially serious, the offender shall be sentenced to death with the concurrent punishment of confiscation of property.

Whoever steals a baby or an infant for the purpose of selling the victim or extorting money or property shall be punished in accordance with the provisions in the first paragraph of this Article.

Whoever kidnaps any other person or persons for the purpose of extorting money or property shall be punished in accordance with tile provisions in the first paragraph of this Article.

3.

It shall be strictly prohibited for anyone to buy a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped. Whoever buys a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention or public surveillance.

Whoever buys a woman who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped and has sexual relations with her against her will shall be punished in accordance with the provisions on the crime of rape the Criminal Law.

Whoever buys a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped, and illegally deprives the victim of his or her personal freedom or restricts his or her personal freedom, or commits any criminal act such as hurting, insulting or maltreating file victim, shall be punished in accordance with the relevant provisions in the Criminal Law.

Whoever buys a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped, and commits any criminal act as specified in the second or third paragraph of this Article shall be punished in accordance with tile provisions on combined punishment for several crimes in the Criminal Law.

Whoever buys a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped and sells the victim afterwards shall be punished in accordance with the provisions in Article 1 of this decision

Whoever, having bought a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped, does not obstruct the woman from returning to her original place of residence according to her will, or does not maltreat the child nor obstruct his or her rescue, shall be exempted from being investigated for criminal responsibility.

4.

No individual or organization may obstruct the rescue of a woman or a child abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped, nor may any individual or organization extort the costs lie or she or it hits paid for buying such woman or child and the living expenses thereof from the woman or child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped, or his or her family members, or his or her rescuers. In case such costs and expenses have been extorted, they shall be recovered.

Whoever obstructs with violence or intimidation State functionaries from rescuing a woman or a child who has been bought shall be punished in accordance with the provisions in Article 157 of the Criminal Law; whoever obstructs, by providing assistance in transferring or hiding the victim or by other means, State functionaries from rescuing a woman or a child who has been bought, but without using violence or intimidation, shall be punished in accordance with the provisions in the Regulations oil Administrative Penalties for Public Security.

Major culprits who gather crowds to prevent State functionaries from rescuing a woman or a child who has been bought shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention; other participants in the offence shall be punished in accordance with the provisions in the second paragraph of this Article.

5.

The people's governments at various levels shall have the functions and responsibilities to rescue a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped. The rescue work shall be carried out by the public security organs in conjunction with the departments concerned. Any State functionary charged with functions and responsibilities to rescue who fails to make any rescue effort on receiving a request for rescue by a woman or a child who is abducted and trafficked in or kidnapped or by his or her family members or on receiving a report thereon made by any other person and therefore results in serious consequences, shall be punished in accordance with the provisions in Article 187 of the Criminal Law; if the circumstances are relatively minor, such State functionary shall be subjected to administrative sanctions.

Any State functionary charged with functions and responsibilities to rescue who, by taking advantage of his or her office, hinders the rescue shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than two year and not more than seven years; if the circumstances are relatively minor such State functionary shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years or criminal detention.

6.

The illegal incomes gained from abducting and trafficking in on kidnapping a woman or a child shall be confiscated.

All the incomes from fines and confiscations shall be turned over to the State Treasury.

7.

This Decision shall enter into force as of the date of promulgation.