Chinese waitress walks free after killing official
AFP - Wednesday, June 17
BEIJING (AFP) - - A Chinese waitress convicted of killing an official who demanded sex walked free from court Tuesday, after a nationwide Internet campaign hailed her as a heroine for standing up to government sleaze.
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In a case that sparked widespread outrage, Deng Yujiao, 21, was put on trial for stabbing to death a local official in central China in May, in what she said was self-defence after he tried to force himself on her sexually.
Deng, a waitress at a hotel in the city of Badong, was initially detained on suspicion of murder after the incident, in which she said the man hit her repeatedly after she refused his advances.
Deng was eventually charged with the lesser offence of intentional assault -- still punishable by death, according to the China Daily -- as officials caved in to the massive public pressure generated on the Internet.
Internet users fed up with government corruption, abuse of power and official impunity quickly rallied to Deng's cause, and her case became a symbol of injustice in a society tightly controlled by the ruling Communist Party.
On Tuesday, after a brief trial in Badong in Hubei province, Deng walked free despite being found guilty as charged, on the grounds of diminished responsibility, a judge at the court who asked not to be named told AFP.
The judge said the court had decided not to punish her as she had used excessive force in an act of self-defence, she had surrendered to the police, and the officials involved in the incident had made a "major mistake."
The case highlights the growing might of the Internet in China, a nation where traditional media is tightly controlled and the legal system has little or no independence from the government.
China has the world's largest online population at nearly 300 million web users.
"This is a victory for the people, a victory for justice," said one post on popular web portal sina.com.
Another, written by someone in northern China, said: "What was the evidence of guilt? She is not guilty, what she did was 100 percent self-defence."
Zhang Tianyong, a Beijing-based human rights lawyer, said the court would not have freed Deng had the case not attracted so much attention and generated so much pressure.
"The impact of the strong online public opinion on this case is obvious and easy to see," Zhang told AFP.
"If she had not had the attention of public opinion, Deng Yujiao would most probably have been given a heavy penalty."
The China Daily, in a report published Tuesday before the trial began, had speculated that Deng could get a suspended sentence of less than 10 years.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20090616/tap-china-crime-police-politics-8d4ea94.html
AFP - Wednesday, June 17
BEIJING (AFP) - - A Chinese waitress convicted of killing an official who demanded sex walked free from court Tuesday, after a nationwide Internet campaign hailed her as a heroine for standing up to government sleaze.
ADVERTISEMENT
In a case that sparked widespread outrage, Deng Yujiao, 21, was put on trial for stabbing to death a local official in central China in May, in what she said was self-defence after he tried to force himself on her sexually.
Deng, a waitress at a hotel in the city of Badong, was initially detained on suspicion of murder after the incident, in which she said the man hit her repeatedly after she refused his advances.
Deng was eventually charged with the lesser offence of intentional assault -- still punishable by death, according to the China Daily -- as officials caved in to the massive public pressure generated on the Internet.
Internet users fed up with government corruption, abuse of power and official impunity quickly rallied to Deng's cause, and her case became a symbol of injustice in a society tightly controlled by the ruling Communist Party.
On Tuesday, after a brief trial in Badong in Hubei province, Deng walked free despite being found guilty as charged, on the grounds of diminished responsibility, a judge at the court who asked not to be named told AFP.
The judge said the court had decided not to punish her as she had used excessive force in an act of self-defence, she had surrendered to the police, and the officials involved in the incident had made a "major mistake."
The case highlights the growing might of the Internet in China, a nation where traditional media is tightly controlled and the legal system has little or no independence from the government.
China has the world's largest online population at nearly 300 million web users.
"This is a victory for the people, a victory for justice," said one post on popular web portal sina.com.
Another, written by someone in northern China, said: "What was the evidence of guilt? She is not guilty, what she did was 100 percent self-defence."
Zhang Tianyong, a Beijing-based human rights lawyer, said the court would not have freed Deng had the case not attracted so much attention and generated so much pressure.
"The impact of the strong online public opinion on this case is obvious and easy to see," Zhang told AFP.
"If she had not had the attention of public opinion, Deng Yujiao would most probably have been given a heavy penalty."
The China Daily, in a report published Tuesday before the trial began, had speculated that Deng could get a suspended sentence of less than 10 years.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20090616/tap-china-crime-police-politics-8d4ea94.html
