Chinese Law Prof Blog

Chinese law schools: a ranking (sort of)

I just came across a ranking of Chinese law schools, posted on the web in April 2012. The source is a book entitled "Picking a University and Selecting a Major: A Guide to Applying to the 2012 College Entrance Examination" (挑大学 选专业－2012高考志愿填报指南). I'm reprinting the list below, translated by Google Translate with a few modifications by me.

A few caveats and observations:

1. These rankings appear to have been compiled as an individual effort of the author of the book. I have no idea what methodology he used.
2. This doesn't exactly rank "law schools." What it ranks is "the study of law." And the study of law here is defined to include law (narrowly defined), Marxist-Leninist theory, sociology, political science, and police studies. Thus, even if you think that Peking University ought to outrank Renmin University as a law school, maybe Renmin University really does outrank Peking University in Marxist-Leninist theory by more than enough to make up the difference.
3. Law studies at the Institute for International Relations, well known as China's spy school, don't do very well at 95th. Maybe they're putting their resources into computer science these days.
4. In another table on the same web page you can see what people are studying these days. Not surprisingly, engineering is pretty popular (801379 graduating undergrads in 2011). What did surprise me was the comparable figures for some of the other majors: apparently the romantic types who take literature (288014) and arts (181158) still outnumber (separately; you don't even need to add them together) those who take all of the courses subsumed under "law" combined (113342).

Ranking	Grade	School Name
1	A + +	Renmin University of China
2	A + +	Beijing University
3	A + +	Wuhan University
4	A + +	Tsinghua University
5	A + +	China University of Political Science and Law
6	A + +	Jilin University
7	A + +	Fudan University
8	A + +	Southwest University of Political Science and Law
9	A + +	Nanjing University
10	A + +	Sun Yat-sen University
11	A + +	East China University of Political Science and Law
12	A +	Central China Normal University
13	A +	Beijing Normal University
14	A +	Xiamen University
15	A +	Zhongnan University
16	A +	Shandong University
17	A +	Zhejiang University
18	A +	Nankai University
19	A +	Nanjing Normal University
20	A +	Northeast Normal University
21	A +	Huazhong University of Science and Technology
22	A +	Chongqing University
23	A +	Shanghai Jiaotong University
24	A +	Suzhou University
25	A +	Sichuan University
26	A +	Northwest University of Political Science and Law
27	A	East China Normal University
28	A	Xiangtan University
29	A	Zhengzhou University
30	A	Shanghai University
31	A	Heilongjiang University
32	A	Yunnan University
33	A	Hunan University
34	A	Shanxi University
35	A	Hunan Normal University
36	A	Hebei University
37	A	South China Normal University
38	A	Foreign Affairs College
39	A	Central South University
40	A	Shenzhen University
41	A	Southwestern University of Finance and Economics
42	A	Tianjin Normal
43	A	Jinan University
44	A	Xi'an Jiaotong University
45	A	Yantai University
46	A	Shanghai University of Finance and Economics
47	A	University of International Business and Economics
48	A	Nanchang University
49	A	Liaoning University
50	A	South China University of Technology
51	A	Southwestern University
52	A	Shanghai Normal University
53	B +	Tongji University
54	B +	Capital Normal University
55	B +	Shanghai Institute of Politics
56	B +	Central University for Nationalities
57	B +	Southeast University
58	B +	Anhui Normal
59	B +	Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics
60	B +	Yangzhou University
61	B +	Central University of Finance and Economics
62	B +	Anhui University
63	B +	Central University for Nationalities
64	B +	Ningbo University
65	B +	Guangdong College of Commerce
66	B +	Lanzhou University
67	B +	China Youth Political College
68	B +	Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics
69	B +	Shenyang Normal
70	B +	Hehai University
71	B +	Shanghai International Studies University
72	B +	Hubei University
73	B +	China Agricultural University
74	B +	Zhejiang Gongshang University
75	B +	Henan University of Economics and Law
76	B +	East China University of Science and Technology
77	B +	Beijing Institute of Technology
78	B +	Henan Normal University
79	B +	Guangxi Normal
80	B +	Henan University
81	B +	Huazhong Agricultural University
82	B +	Zhejiang Normal
83	B +	Fujian Normal University
84	B +	Ocean University of China
85	B +	Changchun University of Science and Technology
86	B +	Jiangxi Normal
87	B +	Guangzhou University
88	B +	Guangdong University of Foreign Studies
89	B +	Dalian Maritime University
90	B +	Guangxi University for Nationalities
91	B +	Hebei Normal
92	B +	Hainan University
93	B +	Sichuan Normal
94	B +	Hainan Normal
95	B +	Institute of International Relations
96	B +	Northwestern University
97	B +	Jiangsu University
98	B +	Northwestern Polytechnical University
99	B +	Gansu Institute of Politics and Law
100	B +	Hunan University of Science and Technology
101	B +	Wenzhou University
102	B +	Nanjing University of Finance and Economics
103	B +	Zhejiang University of Technology

 

Teng Biao's defense in the second trial of the Xia Junfeng case - English translation

Seeing Red in China has published a good translation of human rights lawyer Teng Biao's 2010 defense statement on behalf of Xia Junfeng, a street vendor charged with murder after a deadly fight with chengguan (urban administration) officials. I'm reproducing their introduction to the case below; for the introduction and links to the full statement in English and Chinese, click here.

Pu Zhiqiang barred from all mainland micro-blogging sites

Here's the story from the South China Morning Post.

So much for Xi Jinping's call for the Party to tolerate "sharp criticism".

More on the timing of the Bo Xilai trial

Now we're being told (Global Times story here) that it will be after the March meetings of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. According to the report, unnamed insiders say that the case is complicated and that the trial might last ten days.

Ten days would be extraordinarily atypical in a criminal trial. A recent study of a large sample (non-random, but those are the limitations of research in China) of criminal cases found that two thirds of Basic Leval court cases and one third of Intermediate Level court cases were completed within one hour, including adjournments. Of course, that's hardly surprising - in the vast majority of cases, the defendants admit most or all of the prosecution's case, so these trials are functionally similar to a US court's processing of a plea- bargained deal. (This is by no means to claim they are identical or problematic in the same way.) What empirical research shows, however, is what anecdotal evidence has long suggested: that matters of importance are almost never decided at the trial stage, and that the mere fact that the case has gotten that far is evidence that a guilty verdict will be forthcoming. (The acquittal rate is below 1%.)

But the Bo case is of course an atypical case. Still, if he’s not contesting the charges (Chinese criminal procedure doesn’t have a formal guilty/not guilty plea), one wonders what can be so complicated about it. If he is contesting the charges, then going forward with the trial really is atypical. Possibly he is being allowed to contest some minor aspects of the charges – for example, did he take $10 million in bribes or was it only $9 million – and the court will reject a few elements of the prosecution’s case in an attempt to show that it wasn’t all pre-ordained from the start.

Stuart Schram, 1924-2012

Last July, Stuart Schram, a giant in the field of modern China studies, passed away. He was my professor when I did an M.Sc. degree at SOAS, and he left an indelible impression - truly a brilliant man. The Dec. 2012 issue of the China Quarterly carries a terrific obituary by Roderick MacFarquhar that is not a simple hagiography but captures him in all his complexity. I'm very lucky to have known him.

New dean for Peking U's School of Transnational Law in Shenzhen

It's Philip J. McConnaughay, who will step down as dean of Pennsylvania State University's Dickinson School of Law on July 31st of this year and take up his new duties the following day. Here's the news report.

Sentencing philosophy in Chinese criminal law: Zhang Xiaojun versus Liu Xiaobo

According to the official Xinhua report, Zhang Xiaojun was Gu Kailai’s accomplice in a premeditated murder. He was convicted of intentional homicide. His sentence was nine years.

According to the official indictment, Liu Xiaobo committed the following acts:

• He published a number of “inciting articles” containing “rumors and slanders” (no slanders against any persons living or dead are mentioned in the indictment).
• Together with others, he "drafted and concocted" Charter 08.
• He distributed Charter 08 via e-mail to overseas websites and posted it on overseas websites.

That’s it. Really. See for yourself. He was sentenced to eleven years.

Just sayin’.

 

Where Gu Kailai will likely spend her time: China's Club Fed

Here's a profile of Qincheng (秦城) Prison, where high-ranking prisoners stay and where the cognoscenti figure Gu Kailai will go (assuming she's not spirited off to a nice tropical island somewhere).

Ni Yulan's defense statement

Here's the defense statement from Ni Yulan's second-instance trial, the verdict of which was announced on July 27th.

Profile of Pu Zhiqiang in Slate

Here's a nice profile of attorney Pu Zhiqiang in Slate.

Chen Guangcheng at the Council on Foreign Relations

Here's a link to the video (one hour) and the transcript. It's a little bit unfortunate that we can't hear or read the original Chinese version of what Chen said, but I have seen (or more accurately, heard) the interpreter, June Mei, at work on many occasions and she's the best, so it's very unlikely that she missed anything.

How Chen Guangcheng escaped (follow-up)

I posted a few days ago about this, linking to a Chinese account and apologizing for not having the time to supply a translation. Two commenters kindly noted the existence of partial translations, but I don't want to keep this information buried in the comments. Here are the two partial translations:

• http://humanrightsinchina.wordpress.com/2012/05/17/who-saved-chen-guangcheng/
• http://tealeafnation.com/2012/05/translation-chen-guangchengs-brother-says-he-villagers-first-thought-chen-was-dead/

 

How Chen Guangcheng escaped

Here's an account (in Chinese - sorry, no time to translate) from iSun Affairs magazine (a web-based journal) of how Chen Guangcheng escaped from Dongshigu Village. As we might have guessed, he had help from various people but also had to rely on himself quite a bit. The account is quite detailed and names names. Apparently the editors decided to include these details because the authorities had already figured out the people involved.

Here's a video interview with Chen's brother, Chen Guangfu, about what happened to him afterwards.

Gao Zhisheng reported alive

It is a sign of the absurd and cruel vendetta that the Chinese government has carried out against Gao Zhisheng (高智晟) that his being seen alive should be headline news. After all, he has been in the custody, acknowledged or not, of that same government more or less constantly since February 2009. He was last seen alive by family members in April 2010.

His wife now reports that his father father-in-law and brother were able to visit him in prison on March 24. His brother has confirmed the meeting. Here's the Radio Free Asia report.

[March 30 correction indicated above.]

Simon Leys (Pierre Ryckmans) on Liu Xiaobo

Here's Leys's review of a newly-published collection of Liu Xiaobo's writings in English translation in the New York Review of Books.

Wheelchair-bound threat to the people's democratic dictatorship

Fresh from its triumph over the dark forces of Hollywood in their attempt to topple the state by shaking the hand of a blind man, the people's democratic dictatorship has now set its sights, once again, on Ni Yulan, already crippled by earlier police beatings. Apparently she and her husband have been "picking quarrels" and "disturbing public order", both criminal offenses. The New York Times story is here. Apparently the leaders have not been reading books about how China is destined to take over the world. They seem extraordinarily unconfident and fearful.

Gao Zhisheng (apparently) found

Chinese prison authorities have apparently notified Gao Zhisheng's brother that he is being held in a prison in Xinjiang. Here's the report from China Aid Association (I added the link about the alleged probation violation):

China Aid Association

(Washington, D.C. – Jan. 1, 2012) For the first time since his most recent forced disappearance 20 months ago, the whereabouts of human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng were confirmed on Sunday.

ChinaAid learned that Gao Zhisheng’s older brother, Gao Zhiyi, received written notification on Sunday of Gao’s incarceration in Shaya Prison in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in far western China.  The notification was signed and dated on Dec. 19 by the prison.

Gao disappeared into police custody in April 2010, the most recent in a series of forced disappearances since his 2006 conviction on a subversion charge.  On Dec. 16, just days before his five-year probation period was to have ended, the Chinese government announced that it was sending him to prison for three years for violating his probation.  It was the first word that he was still alive, but no information of his whereabouts or condition was released.

Shaya (Xayar) Prison is located in Aksu Prefecture, about 1,130 kilometers (700 miles) southwest of the Xinjiang capital of Urumqi.

"Gao's internal exile reminds the world of how former Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov was cruelly treated in Siberia in the 1980s," said ChinaAid founder and president Bob Fu, a friend of Gao. “The Chinese government can use this remote jail to prevent concerned people from visiting Attorney Gao, but just like Sakharov, Gao's courageous voice can never be silenced by the four walls of his prison cell."

Gao Zhiyi is planning to visit Gao Zhisheng as soon as he gets a physical address of the prison.

The prison’s mailing address is : Shaya Prison, Shaya county, Aksu  Prefecture, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Postal code: 842208
Prison phone number: +86-997-8402100.

Gao Zhiyi’s phone number: +86-151-9198-5726

Larry Ribstein, RIP

I was shocked and very saddened to hear of Prof. Larry Ribstein's sudden death (apparently from a stroke) on Dec. 24th. In addition to teaching Chinese law, I also teach business associations, and so was familiar with Larry's name and fame before actually meeting him when we were both visiting professors at NYU Law School in 2007-08. You can get a sense of Larry's personality by reading his voluminous writings and blog posts - his style is crystal clear and highly readable, his ideas original and important. But I needed to meet him in person to get a full sense of the man and to realize what a cool guy he was.

As I read others' remembrances, one term keeps cropping up that is one of the first things I noticed, too: intellectually honest. Larry was not afraid to follow his ideas where they led him, but never mischaracterized opposing ideas in order to refute them more easily. He had very strong ideas (in addition to deep learning) on many subjects, but I can think of few people with whom it was more fun to discuss things.

Larry's scholarly productivity is the stuff of legend - lots of it, on a wide range of topics, and all of it top-notch. I once asked him how he managed to do it. His answer: "I don't need a lot of sleep."

So broad is Larry's impact that it even reaches the field of Chinese law. He had been to China and was consulted on the drafting of (what else?) China's Partnership Law.

It is truly sad that such a terrific scholar and colleague has been lost to us.

Here's the announcement from the University of Illinois, and here's a remembrance from Geoffrey Manne (collecting other remembrances as well).

An independent candidate's story

Qiao Mu (乔木), an associate professor at Beijing Foreign Studies University and the director of its Center for International Communications Studies, recently ran (maybe "attempted to run" would be more accurate) as an independent candidate for the Haidian district people's congress. This is the only level of people's congress where candidates are directly elected; delegates to higher-level congresses are selected by lower-level congresses. And this is of course all done under the guidance of the Party. The election was on Nov. 8th. Here's his account:

As an independent candidate, I did not win the election, but got the second largest votes (1300 ballots) after one month campaign with my voluntary supporters, which shaped democracy in my university-community and brought many positive changes in the campus management and people’s mind.

I had NO intention to challenge the ruling party and the political system in the grassroots election. What I cared was the voter’s (faculty and students) opinion, livelihood and rights. However, I encountered increasingly enormous pressure and oppression from the very beginning. My voluntary students were forced to quit the campaign. Many organized spreading rumors and political lies in SMS to defame my personality, motives and actions (mostly on social media), i.e., my campaign was a conspiracy and sponsored by the west media, and I was manipulated by the US embassy, and I will leave the university it is useless to vote for me.

I was shocked to find, in the last week before the vote day, all my social media ( weibo/micro-blog on sina.com, blog, renren and my election video on tudou/56 were closed.) I tried to register new one many times on sina.com and renren.com, but all were closed for a short while. Things went beyond my imagination. All my mobiles and phones were monitored. I was followed by two securities in the campus and two secret agents outside. Many students and faculty members involved were forced verbally to quit me. Some students were required to identify my supporter on CCTV, some parents were asked to come to Beijing to persuade the students to stop.

The Big Brother was watching us.

We did nothing wrong. All we did was in the track of China’s constitution and election law. But I was told there were policy and regulation, which were more important and measurable.

On the vote day of Nov 8, there were numerous banners and flags in the campus, which said to carry on socialist democracy and enhance the rule of law, and to vote gloriously. Many securities and secret agents walked around. People outside of the campus were not allowed to entered for three days.

I was not among the two officially nominated candidates. My name was not in the ballot. However, the voter could write down my name if they voted for me. I got 1296 votes among 8035 turn-outs, the second largest winner, much more than an official candidate. The No.1, a vice presidents of my university, passed the half line only with 117 more votes. If no those 117 votes, the election would be a runoff. He and I, the first two, will be voted another day. In that case, my name will be written on the ballot. Who knows the result?

Farewell to my 10 weibo (Microblogs on sina.com), 4 blogs with 100 articles,  and 1 paid Renren ID with twenty thousand followers, most of them were my university (vote zone) contacts.

My social media can be closed, but I will neve close my  mouth and my writing will never stop.

Qiao Mu (Michael)

The most dangerous man in China...

... is apparently blind activist and barefoot lawyer Chen Guangcheng, judging from the extraordinary level of security thrown up around his home to prevent him from having any communications with the outside world. None of this has any known legal justification, by the way. Here's a report from China Human Rights Defenders (Chinese here). Think of how much all this must cost!

Attempts to visit the lawyer and activist Chen Guangcheng (陈光诚) in Shandong Province have often been thwarted by the constant, stifling presence of guards blockading Dongshigu Village, where Chen lives under illegal house arrest (see reports below). The intensive operation is fortified by surveillance cameras and monitoring points set up at four village entrances and around Chen’s home. As groups of Chinese activists continue their “Operation Free Chen Guangcheng” by making repeated visits to Dongshigu Village, CHRD has released an aerial photo that charts the locations of village entrances and monitoring posts while describing these in detail.

The village’s widest concrete road—at three meters across—runs along its eastern edge and intersects China National Highway 205, which connects the provinces of Hebei and Guangdong. A small bridge lies in the middle of this road, and after crossing the bridge and turning right, Chen’s home is the first one on the north side, and is surrounded at all times by seven or eight guards.

The highway entrance near Chen’s home is guarded by 20 individuals who work in two shifts, scrutinizing each vehicle and person entering the village. At another location are two small structures that function as the guards’ work stations, with a pair of vehicles parked nearby. Thugs use one of them in case they need to chase after visitors, and the other is stationed next to a small bridge. Seven to eight individuals, also working in two shifts, man these vehicles.

Another concrete road entrance faces a neighboring village, Yazi Village, to the southeast of Dongshigu, and is located about 600 meters down the highway. A monitoring point in this area is set up about 100 meters after crossing a bridge, and guards—close to 20 people divided into two groups—reportedly stay hidden behind a pile of firewood and are able to see anyone crossing over the bridge, which leads to a trail into Dongshigu. On one side of the trail is a row of bungalows where tobacco is grown, and guards keep three vicious dogs on the other side.

A third entrance—a drainage area beneath a highway—lies along the village’s southwest edge, and is a path so narrow and rugged that it can only be undertaken on foot. There are six or seven guards stationed at this entrance, which is also equipped with a monitoring camera. Northwest of the village, there is a fourth passage off a small bridge to neighboring Xishigu Village. There are two monitoring points, one at the entrance of Xishigu Village and another after crossing a bridge and turning to the left, with close 20 guards.

In sum, there are two surveillance points in front and behind Chen’s home, and six other points set up at various locations on the four narrow roads that enter Dongshigu Village. There are a total of six surveillance cameras in the village. Two mobile phone jammers are set up at the homes of Chen’s neighbors to the west and east.

Reportedly, almost 100 hired thugs keep Chen under surveillance, and all are recruited from outside the village. They are divided into two large squads and 12 smaller groups, and maintain radio communication with each other while working around the clock. And like many extensive operations, monitoring Chen and the entire village is also wealth-generating. Given two daily meals, each person pockets 100 RMB a day—far more lucrative pay than the average villager (even the village party secretary earns just 3,000 RMB in salary per year). The guards are led by Gao Xingjian (高兴见), who comes from a nearby village. Gao was appointed as head of the guards after fighting off past visitors on many occasions, and has supposedly amassed a good deal of wealth from filling that role.