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Domestic Legislation | War Crimes Trials | Resources and Links





Domestic legislation for serious crimes under international law

Crimes

Crime of Aggression

No specific provision.

Crimes Against Humanity

No specific provision.

Genocide

No specific provision.

War Crimes

The Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China (adopted at the Second Session of the Fifth National People's Congress on July 1, 1979 and revised at the Fifth Session of the Eighth National People's Congress on March 14, 1997), contains the following provisions pertaining to International Humanitarian Law:

    "Article 446 Any serviceman who, during wartime, cruelly injures innocent residents in an area of military operation or plunders their money or property shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years; if the circumstances are serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years but not more than 10 years; if the circumstances are especially serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than 10 years, life imprisonment or death."

    "Article 448 Whoever maltreats a prisoner of war, if the circumstances are flagrant, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years."

    "Article 451 The word "wartime" as used in this Law means the time when the State declares the state of war, the armed forces receive tasks of operations or when the enemy launches a surprise attack.
    The time when the armed forces execute martial-law tasks or cope with emergencies of violence shall be regarded as wartime."
Laws regarding weapons and arms control:

  • Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of Arms Export.
    Decree No. 366, State Council and Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China, 15 August 2002. [ENG]

  • Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Export Control of Dual-Use Biological Agents and Related Equipment and Technologies.
    Decree No. 365, State Council of the People's Republic of China, 14 October 2002. [ENG]

  • Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Export Control of Missiles and Missile-related Items and Technologies.
    Decree No. 361, State Council of the People's Republic of China, 22 August 2002. [ENG]

    * * *

    Article 9 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China of 1997 provides the domestic legislative basis for China to exercise the jurisdiction stipulated under the corresponding international treaties. China is a State party to the following relevant International Humanitarian Law treaties:
    • Geneva Conventions, 1949 (Ratification / Accession: 28 December 1956)
    • Additional Protocol (I) to the Geneva Conventions, 1977 (Ratification / Accession: 14 September 1983)
    • Additional Protocol (II) to the Geneva Conventions, 1977 (Ratification / Accession: 14 September 1983)
    • Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict, 2000 (Ratification / Accession: 20 February 2008)
    • Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property, 1954 (Ratification / Accession: 05 January 2000)
    And also to the following treaties pertaining to the methods and means of warfare:
    • Hague Convention (II) on the Laws and Customs of War on Land, 1899
    • Hague Declaration (IV,2) concerning Asphyxiating Gases, 1899
    • Hague Declaration (IV,3) concerning Expanding Bullets, 1899
    • Hague Convention (IV) on War on Land and its Annexed Regulations, 1907
    • Hague Declaration (XIV) on Explosives from Balloons, 1907
    • Geneva Protocol on Asphyxiating or Poisonous Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods, 1925
    • Convention on the Prohibition of Biological Weapons, 1972
    • Convention prohibiting Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW), 1980
    • CCW Protocol (I) on Non-Detectable Fragments, 1980
    • CCW Protocol (II) prohibiting Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices, 1980
    • CCW Protocol (III) prohibiting Incendiary Weapons, 1980
    • Convention prohibiting Chemical Weapons, 1993
    • CCW Protocol (IV) on Blinding Laser Weapons, 1995
    • CCW Protocol (II) prohibiting Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices, amended, 1996
    • Convention prohibiting Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW ), amended Article 1, 2001
    • CCW Protocol (V) on Explosive Remnants of War, 2003
    Related documents:

  • Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China
    Adopted at the Second Session of the Fifth National People's Congress on July 1, 1979; revised at the Fifth Session of the Eighth National People's Congress on March 14, 1997 and promulgated by Order No.83 of the President of the People’s Republic of China on March 14, 1997. [ENG]
    Compilation prepared by Equipo Nizkor. Includes amendments up to 2009 (Amendment VII to the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China, adopted at the 7th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eleventh National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on February 28, 2009).

  • Chinese Law Concerning the Trials of War Criminals.
    United Nations War Crimes Commission, Law Reports of Trials of War Criminals, Vol. XIV (1949)

  • Law of the People's Republic of China on the Red Cross Society.
    Adopted at the 4th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People' Congress and promulgated by Order No. 14 of the President of the People’s Republic of China on 31 October 1993. [ENG]

  • China's Endeavors for Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation.
    White Paper issued by the Information Office of China's State Council, 01 September 2005.

  • Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Exercising Criminal Jurisdiction over Crimes Prescribed in the International Treaties to Which the People's Republic of China Is a Party or Has Acceded
    21st Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress, 23 June 1987 [ENG]

  • Information provided by China on the scope of universal jurisdiction in accordance with General Assembly resolution 64/117.
    15 September 2010. Source: General Assembly of the United Nations, Sixth Committee (Legal), sixty-fifth session (4 October to 11 November 2010) [ENG]


    Jurisdiction

    Article 9 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China of 1997 provides that:

      "This Law shall be applicable to crimes which are stipulated in international treaties concluded or acceded to by the People's Republic of China and over which the People's Republic of China exercises criminal jurisdiction within the scope of obligations, prescribed in these treaties, it agrees to perform."

    According to the information submitted by China on the scope and application of the principle of universal jurisdiction pursuant to General Assembly resolution 64/117, "[T]his article provides the domestic legislative basis for China to exercise the jurisdiction stipulated under the corresponding international treaties... China has... ratified or acceded to a series of international treaties containing 'aut dedere aut judicare' provisions and corresponding articles supplementing jurisdiction."

    The list of relevant international treaties ratified or acceded to by China is provided as an Annex to the information submitted by China and it includes, inter alia:
    • 1949 Geneva Conventions (Ratification / Accession: 28 December 1956)
    • 1997 Additional Protocol (I) to the Geneva Conventions (Ratification / Accession: 14 September 1983)
    • 1977 Additional Protocol (II) to the Geneva Conventions (Ratification / Accession: 14 September 1983)
    • 2000 Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict (Ratification / Accession: 20 February 2008)
    • 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property (Ratification / Accession: 05 January 2000)
    • 1973 International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid
    • 1973 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons, including Diplomatic Agents
    • 1979 International Convention against the Taking of Hostages
    • 1980 Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material
    • 1984 Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
    • 1994 Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel
    • 2005 International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism
    For more detailed information see the following documents:

  • Information provided by China on the scope of universal jurisdiction in accordance with General Assembly resolution 64/117.
    15 September 2010. Source: General Assembly of the United Nations, Sixth Committee (Legal), sixty-fifth session (4 October to 11 November 2010) [ENG]

  • Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Exercising Criminal Jurisdiction over Crimes Prescribed in the International Treaties to Which the People's Republic of China Is a Party or Has Acceded
    21st Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress, 23 June 1987 [ENG]

  • Extradition Law of the People's Republic of China .
    Adopted at the 19th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on December 28, 2000 and promulgated by Order No. 42 of the President of the People's Republic of China on December 28, 2000. [ENG]

    International Criminal Court

    Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: The People's Republic of China is not a state party to the Rome Statute.

  • War Crimes Trials

  • Summary: Trial of Takashi Sakai before the Chinese War Crimes Military Tribunal of the Ministry of National Defence at Nanking.
    United Nations War Crimes Commission, Law Reports of Trials of War Criminals, Vol. XIV, Case No. 83, Chinese War Crimes Military Tribunal of the Ministry of National Defense, Nanking, 29th August, 1946 (1949)

  • Chinese Law Concerning the Trials of War Criminals.
    United Nations War Crimes Commission, Law Reports of Trials of War Criminals, Vol. XIV (1949)

  • Resources and Links

  • Constitution and the Related Laws
    National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China. [ENG]. [Last accessed 17Nov17]. [External Link]

  • Criminal Law
    National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China. [ENG]. [Last accessed 17Nov17]. [External Link]

  • Data Base of Laws and Regulations.
    National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China. [ENG]. [Last accessed 17Nov17]. [External Link]

  • International Humanitarian Law treaties to which China is a State Party.
    International Committee of the Red Cross. [ENG]. [Last accessed 17Nov17]. [External Link]

  • East China Sea Conflict.
    Online ongoing analysis by Derechos Human Rights and Equipo Nizkor about the current conflict in the East China Sea.

  • China's National Defense in 2006.
    White Paper: Information Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, Beijing, December 2006. [ENG]. [Last accessed 17Nov17]. [External Link]