Authorities put focus on power of weapon and owner's intentionsA move to clarify penalties for people caught with illegal firearms is not only stopping minor offenders from receiving overly harsh sentences but also preventing unnecessary prosecutions, legal experts say.China introduced a guideline for judicial authorities on handling cases involving air guns on March 30, putting the focus on the weapon's power and the danger it poses rather than the number of firearms in a defendant's possession.According to the guidelines, a weapon that can launch a shell with energy of 0.16 joules per square centimeter should be regarded as an "imitation firearm", while anything above 1.8 joules per sq cm - which experts say is powerful enough to bruise a person's skin - should be classified as a gun.Those convicted of owning imitation firearms can avoid prison or a heavy fine, depending on whether or not they intended to cause harm, according to the document jointly released by the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate.Fourteen court verdicts have referred to the guideline since it took effect, with defendents in four cases spared criminal punishment and another two seeing earlier sentences overturned on appeal.In one case, Jiao Shiyong from Biyang county, Henan province, was convicted on April 27 for illegally purchasing guns. The court's verdict, released through the SPC's online platform, said he had assembled two air guns after buying accessories online, "but we decided not to punish him because he did it for fun and didn't harm others"."Jiao pleaded guilty and didn't benefit from the guns, so considering his purpose and the actual damage, we made the ruling," the court said.Ruan Chuansheng, a professor of criminal law at the Shanghai Administration Institute, said the guideline provides prosecutors and judges with a clear line on which gun holders should be prosecuted and how to punish them.Holding and purchasing guns is illegal in China, "but not all gun holders need to face criminal punishment", he said. "The punishment should depend on why people possess the guns or what they use the guns for."The guideline has also prevented several cases from going to court, saving time and resources.Prosecutors in Foshan, Guangdong province, for example, said they chose not to proceed with a case against a man surnamed Zhou who was accused of illegal gun possession on April 13 because he had used the firearms only to shoot birds and rats, which didn't harm society.The move was based on the guideline, which stipulates that people who possess or buy guns for collection or for fun should receive lenient punishments, the authorities said.In April, prosecutors in Tianjin and Zhejiang province also decided not to accuse two men of illegal purchase or possession of guns, because they pleaded guilty to the crimes and their offenses did not bring actual damage to the society."Some legal specialists have called for legislators to change the definition of guns in the law, but the most effective way to prevent unnecessary accusations, I think, is the guideline, which can help judicial organs accurately distinguish gun carriers who are not attempting to harm others from the real offenders," Ruan said.The move to clarify punishments came after Zhao Chunhua, an owner of a carnival balloon-shooting gallery in Tianjin, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for illegally possessing guns in 2016.She was freed in January last year as the appeals court said it found she had no intent to harm society.More than 80,000 people nationwide were prosecuted in more than 9,000 cases involving toy guns for children from 2011 to 2015, according to the Ministry of Public Security. silicone lymphedema bracelet
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Commanders hail Xi's role in guiding development of up-to-date, ready force PLA Navy ships conduct supply operations at an unspecified location in February. [Photo/Xinhua] The People's Liberation Army Navy has made tremendous strides over the past few years in transforming itself into a world-class force under guidance and instructions from President Xi Jinping, according to top Navy commanders. Long-range operations and live-fire exercises have become regular parts of the Navy's training, which is focused on combat readiness and capability, Vice-Admiral Shen Jinlong, the Navy's commander in chief, and Vice-Admiral Qin Shengxiang, Navy political commissar, said in a joint article published in the latest Qiushi Journal, a flagship magazine of the Communist Party of China Central Committee. The commanders said combat exercises and joint operation drills have been given top priority on the Navy's agenda. The Navy's carrier battle group has gained initial fighting capability, and the transformation of the naval aviation force has been proceeding well, they said. The amphibious strike units have been substantially strengthened, and the overseas base is gradually establishing logistic support capacity. The changes that the Navy has made and its accomplishments over the past few years are historic and remarkable, and the Navy has become stronger than ever, they said. Behind these achievements have been guidance and instructions from Xi, who is also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission. Xi has pointed out that a strong nation must be one that cares about oceans, and that a modern, powerful navy is an important symbol of a top-tier military, the article said. Xi's focus on the Navy can be traced to his first days as the Party's top leader in late 2012. On Dec 8, 2012, less than a month after being elected top leader of the Party and the military, Xi boarded a destroyer that took him to the South China Sea. It was his first inspection of a PLA unit as chairman of the Central Military Commission. In the next nine months, Xi made at least two visits to Navy units, boarding new naval vessels such as a new-generation nuclear submarine and the aircraft carrier CNS Liaoning. On May 24, 2017, Xi visited Navy headquarters in Beijing. He said the Navy should continue to speed up its transformation into a world-class force, ordering all Navy commanders to honor their mission of building a strong, modern navy. The president said the Navy's development is strategically important and crucial to national interests and security. He instructed the Navy to focus on strengthening its combat capability and carrying out joint operations exercises in line with modern naval warfare. He also insisted that the Navy use systematic thinking in making development plans. Innovation in science and technology must be used to inject momentum into the Navy's sustainable growth, he said during the inspection. In the most recent naval parade in April 2018, Xi, while addressing over 10,000 Navy personnel from a combat ship in the parade, asked members of the service to uphold the Party's leadership, deepen military reform, enhance innovation in science and technology, develop new types of fighting forces, build modern naval warfare systems and improve the capability to undertake diversified military operations. Two months later, during an inspection tour of the naval headquarters under the PLA Northern Theater Command in Qingdao, Shandong province, the president ordered the Navy to make full use of every minute to improve its combat readiness and focus on operational planning, training, hardware development and optimization of the chain of command. He said it must strictly follow the requirements of the PLA's new-generation training guidelines, tighten the intensity of training, innovate training methods and conduct stringent inspections of training. Navy units should carry out more large-scale tests of combat capability and enhance targeted and realistic training, he said. Xi stressed that the Navy should take advantage of ongoing military reform to implement its transformation and beef up the construction of elite combat units. He asked the Navy to pay attention to building naval aviation forces. The Navy said on Sunday that it will continue to adhere to the guidance and instructions from Xi. It pledged to accelerate its strategic transformation and maintain high standards of discipline among its members.
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