Juvenile Protection and Delinquency Prevention Policies in China

Abstract

Republic of China his paper describes the laws designed especially for the purposes of T protecting juveniles and preventing delinquency in China.The Juvenile Protection Law I99 I and Preventing Juvenile Delinquency Law I999 have defined the duties, responsibilities and authorities which by law parents or guardians of a juvenile have in relation to the welfare, right of education and juvenile justice. This paper discusses the changes o f juvenile justice in relation to the enactment o f the new laws. In particular, the author relates the new prevention law to the existing Chinese model of delinquency control and how the new law affects this model. It is found that with the promulgation of new prevention law, there is a shift from an informal to a more formal direction of delinquency control where there may be an increase of custodial outcomes for juvenile delinquents. There has been little international literature on China's juvenile justice and delinquency law reform. Hindered by the nation's tight control of information-sharing, China's scholars and government officials seldom join in or present papers at criminological conferences. Although there has been some updated literature which discusses juvenile justice and its new development in China at national or regional symposiums over the past 20 years, most of it is in Chinese and aims to describe or praise the laws rather than reviewing them objectively (Chang, 1992; Chen, 1989

Juvenile delinquency and justice in contemporary China: a critical review of the literature over 15 years

“…Zhao [34] and Wong [24] also reviewed and discussed the law and had similar findings although their studies concentrated on descriptions and introduction of the law. They believed that adoption of the law was a significant legal step in response to the surging juvenile offenses and provided more clear legal definitions and stipulations of the roles that justice agencies such as police shall play in controlling juvenile offenses.…”

The same the whole world over? A review essay on youth offending from the 1980s and youth justice in contemporary China

“…On one side, China's criminal 20 justice policy is deeply rooted in Confucian philosophy (Wong, 2004), which emphasises secular government and human agency guided by moral rules (li), and li should be brought about by education (Dikotter, 2002). In Confucianism's li, humanitarianism is recognised as an important element (Bodde, 1973).…”

“…The idea here, common across the world, is to deter future criminality and 'nip crime in the bud'. Formal systems are also important in China's overall youth justice framework (Wong, 2004).…”

“…Drawing from the culturalist and pluralist theoretical frameworks that have been influential in Western social science (see Hall, 2012), Chinese youth crime and justice tend to be seen as distinct from Western models (Wong, 2001;2004).…”

The Effect of a Cognitive Behavioral Treatment Program for Male Young Delinquents in Guangzhou: A Pilot Study

“…Currently, structural rehabilitation programs for young delinquents are scare in China (Wong, 2004). Meanwhile, no published report has been found regarding the implementation and evaluation of CBT program for treating adult offenders or young delinquents in Chinese correctional field.…”