We’ve noticed a few general updates in terms of legislation and the courts in China this week .. if you’d like a quick squizz here they are with links
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China’s legislature adopts car tax law to promote energy conservation
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-02/25/c_13750584.htm
BEIJING, Feb. 25 (Xinhua) — China’s top legislature voted on Friday to adopt a law for vehicle and vessel taxation, which aims to encourage the use of smaller engines in vehicles and vessels to reduce pollution and oil dependence. The law will go into effect on January 1, 2012.
China is currently the world’s largest auto manufacturer as well as the largest auto market. Recent statistics show that China has 199 million motor vehicles on the road.
The law intends to tax cars according to engine size. Under the old regulations, the same levy was charged for all motor vehicles, regardless of engine capacities.
The annual taxes on vehicles and vessels range from 60 yuan to 5400 yuan, according to engine size as stipulated by the new law. Under the old regulations, the tax ranged from 360 yuan to 660 yuan.
13 crimes removed from China’s death penalty list
http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20110226-265431.html
BEIJING – China’s newly revised Criminal Law eliminated the death penalty for 13 economy-related crimes, as the country moved to restructure its penalty system and better protect human rights.
Fifty-five crimes are now punishable by death, according to the eighth Amendment to the Criminal Law, which was discussed and passed by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) at a bimonthly session that closed on Friday.
The amendment marks the first time since the Criminal Law took effect in 1979 that the country has reduced the number of crimes subject to the death penalty.
“The 13 crimes that have been exempted from the death penalty are mainly economic and non-violent crimes,” Lang Sheng, vice-chairman of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee, said at a press conference following the three-day session.
Crimes that are exempt from capital punishment include tax fraud and “fraudulent activities involving financial bills”. Also wiped from the list are offences involving the smuggling of cultural relics or of precious and rare animals.
Lang said the amendment aims to “temper justice with mercy”.
China’s justice system reports over 10 percent drop in duty crimes
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-02/26/c_13750603.htm
BEIJING, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) — China’s Ministry of Justice on Friday announced that justice departments across the country recorded a 10.9 percent drop in the number of crimes of abusing official posts between 2008 and 2010 compared to figures from 2005 to 2007.
In the same period, the numbers of petitions reporting justice officials’ violation of the law, officially investigated cases, and punished officials decreased 7.5 percent, 23.8 percent, and 24.6 percent respectively, the ministry said.
Last year, 696 justice officials received disciplinary punishment from the Party or the government, with 61 officials indicted for criminal offenses.
The ministry said that China’s justice system stepped up its anti-corruption efforts last year. As a result, about 93 group visits for justice officials using public funds were canceled or cut down, thereby saving 131 million yuan ( 19.8 million U.S. dollars).
Justice Minister Wu Aiying, has called for greater efforts to crack down on corruption in 2011.