These highlights are worth paying attention to, and the revised draft of the Public Security Administration Punishment Law has been submitted for review for the first time

The revised draft of the Law on Public Security Administration Punishments has recently been submitted for initial review at the 5th meeting of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress. As a law that maintains social order, ensures the personal and property safety of citizens, and promotes social harmony and stability, the Public Security Administration Punishment Law is closely related to the social life of citizens.

What are the highlights of the revised draft of the Public Security Administration Punishment Law, including adding several types of behaviors that should be punished, strengthening the protection of minors, optimizing and improving punishment procedures? Xinhua Viewpoint reporters conducted a review.

Highlight 1: Add several behaviors that should be punished

The current Public Security Administration Punishment Law came into effect on March 1, 2006, and was amended in 2012. In the past 17 years, China's economic and social development has undergone significant changes, and the Public Security Administration Punishment Law has been revised and improved to better adapt to the needs of the new era and new situation.

The revised draft includes several behaviors that should be punished, including cheating in exams, organizing pyramid schemes, obstructing the driving of public transportation vehicles by grabbing the steering wheel, lifting and releasing Kongming lights carrying open flames, throwing objects from high altitude, drones flying in black, and illegal use of eavesdropping and photo stealing equipment.

Professor Zhan Zhongle from the Law School of Peking University stated that with the continuous development and evolution of the economy, society, and technology, social security issues are also showing a trend of diversification and complexity, and there is an urgent need for legal response.

For example, in recent years, drones have been widely used in monitoring, agriculture, rescue and other fields. At the same time, there are also safety hazards associated with drone "black flying". "The draft regulates phenomena such as drone 'black flying', which is expected to fill similar gaps in public security management," said Zhan Zhongle.

The draft will classify the illegal sale or provision of personal information of citizens as an infringement of personal and property rights and impose penalties, and classify the illegal use of eavesdropping and photo stealing equipment as an obstacle to social management and impose penalties.

"Illegal theft of privacy has become the main way of violating personal privacy, illegally obtaining personal information, and other illegal criminal activities. It is also one of the sources of criminal chains such as telecommunications network fraud and extortion." Professor Wang Xizi from the Law School of Peking University said that the Criminal Law and Civil Code have established legal responsibilities for acts that infringe on personal privacy. The establishment of administrative legal responsibilities this time will help to achieve comprehensive crackdown and full process regulation of such illegal activities.

"Although the Criminal Law has made clear provisions on the crime of illegal use of specialized equipment for eavesdropping and stealing photos, sometimes it does not cause serious consequences and does not constitute a crime. This time, the illegal use, provision of specialized equipment for eavesdropping and stealing photos are added as acts that hinder social management, which can better achieve the connection between execution." Professor Wang Jingbo from Heilongjiang University believes.

The relevant person in charge of the Legal Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security stated that the draft adapts to the development needs of the public security situation, is problem oriented, incorporates new behaviors that affect social security into the management scope, weaves a dense legal network, and further optimizes and improves the procedural provisions for handling public security cases. It provides a more complete legal guarantee for public security organs to maintain social security order in accordance with the law, ensure public safety, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of citizens, legal persons, and other organizations.

Highlight 2: Strengthening the Protection of Minors

Strengthening the protection of minors is an important aspect of the revised draft submitted for review. This includes clearly stipulating heavier penalties for acts that involve harming the rights and interests of minors; Increase regulations on the sealing system for juvenile violations of public security management records.

——Acts that harm the rights and interests of minors shall be punished severely.

The draft proposes that those who lure, shelter, or introduce minors to engage in prostitution, those who use obscene materials or information involving minors, those who organize minors to play obscene audio and video, and those who lure, instigate, deceive, or force minors to use or inject drugs will be punished severely.

——Sealing of records of minors violating public security management.

The draft stipulates that for individuals under the age of 18 who violate public security management, records of such violations shall be sealed and shall not be provided to any unit or individual, except for those that supervisory and judicial organs need to handle cases or relevant units conduct inquiries in accordance with national regulations. Units that conduct inquiries in accordance with the law shall keep confidential the illegal records that have been sealed.

Associate Professor Guan Yanjie of the People's Public Security University of China believes that the draft should add human rights protection measures such as sealing records of minors violating public security management, to prevent information leakage caused by improper management of juvenile criminal records and related records in practice, and to minimize the impact of these minors on future exams, education, employment, life, and other aspects.

——Minors who have reached the age of fourteen but are under sixteen may be subject to administrative detention if they violate the law twice or more within one year.

In response to the reality that individuals who have violated public security management multiple times and have reached the age of fourteen but not sixteen have violated the law, and it is difficult to effectively punish and save them, the draft clearly stipulates that minors who have reached the age of fourteen but not sixteen and have violated public security management twice or more within one year can be subject to administrative detention punishment.

"Punishment is not only punishment, but also education." Professor Wang Jing from the Political and Legal Department of the Central Party School believes that the necessary punishment for their illegal behavior is an important institutional arrangement to make them aware and correct their mistakes through punishment, and to prevent them from slipping into the abyss of crime.

In addition, the draft also stipulates that if parents or other guardians of individuals under the age of sixteen who violate public security management are unable to be present, other suitable adults can be notified to be present. "The draft is guided by practical issues and aims to solve the problem of questioning individuals under the age of sixteen who violate public security management without a guardian present. It aims to protect the legitimate rights and interests of minors and ensure timely investigation of related cases, enhancing the practicality and operability of the law." Wang Jing said.

Highlight three: Reasonably setting punishment measures and magnitude

The relevant person in charge of the Legal Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security introduced that the revised draft adheres to the principle of combining education and punishment, focuses on playing the positive role of reconciliation and mediation, clarifies that parties who meet the legal conditions for minor violations who reach reconciliation and mediation agreements and fulfill them will not be punished, establishes a lenient system for recognizing mistakes and punishments, and a fast handling system, clarifies the requirements for interpreting the law in handling public security cases, and plays an important normative role in timely resolving conflicts and promoting social harmony for public security organs.

——Propose to stipulate lenient punishment for admitting mistakes.

The draft adds provisions for lenient punishment and establishes a lenient punishment system for admitting mistakes. Chen Tianhao, Deputy Director of the Government Legal Research Center at the School of Public Administration, Tsinghua University, believes that the new regulations added to the draft provide incentives for violators to take proactive measures to resolve conflicts and correct illegal behavior, which is conducive to activating the intrinsic driving force for violators to consciously abide by the law and reducing the cost of public security law enforcement.

——Play a positive role in reconciliation and mediation.

The draft also stipulates for the first time that for minor violations of public security management such as fighting or damaging others' property caused by civil disputes, if the parties themselves reconcile or reach an agreement through mediation by a people's mediation committee and fulfill it, and if a written application is approved by the public security organs, no punishment shall be imposed.

"This regulation not only maintains the seriousness of 'illegal acts should be punished by law', but also guarantees the parties' autonomous punishment of their own rights in lighter cases of public security management penalties, ensuring that public security law enforcement has warmth and further promoting social harmony.".

——Increase the situation where administrative detention can be temporarily suspended.

The draft stipulates that if the punished person disagrees with the administrative detention penalty decision, applies for administrative reconsideration, files an administrative lawsuit, or encounters situations such as participating in the entrance examination, having a child born or a close relative critically ill or dead, they may apply for a temporary suspension of administrative detention. If the legal conditions are met, the public security organs may suspend the execution of the administrative detention penalty decision.

Chen Tianhao stated that the draft demonstrates the warmth of the rule of law with empathy, showcasing the care of the social community for every citizen, which is conducive to activating the endogenous normative order of society, avoiding social misconduct, promoting social harmony, and thus enhancing the effectiveness of comprehensive social governance.