Conviction rates count more in Chinese justice than innocence

[webfact]

Conviction Rates Count More in Chinese Justice Than Innocence
By ANDREW JACOBS

WUTIAN, China — It did not matter to the police that the man they seized in August 2013 was nearly 20 years older than the one wanted on fraud charges. Nor were the officers bothered by the fact that his cellphone number and a character in his name differed from those of the suspect, or by his repeated professions of innocence.

A week later, after interrogations that involved hanging him by his wrists and beating him into unconsciousness, they got what they wanted from the man, Chen Jianzhong, an illiterate wholesale vegetable dealer from a neighboring province: his fingerprint on a multipage confession they had written for him.

“I was so delirious I barely remember anything,” said Mr. Chen, 51, who spent more than 17 months in jail before he was exonerated and walked out a free man.

Full story: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/13/world/asia/conviction-rates-count-more-in-chinese-justice-than-innocence.html

-- The New York Times 2015-05-13

[ABCer]

Surprise, surprise!

How come he walked out?

The well known maxims from the old era of KGB, GPU, MGB, GUVD and whatever the Soviet State Security Organs used to call themselves:

* 'Organs' do not make mistakes.

* As long as there is a person a personal file can be created.

* Nobody is innocent.

* ???... be my guest...

BTW, the era may be old, but who said it is gone?

[rethaier]

Could just as well be Thailand eh.

[Expat1]

Before one goes off on what western media claims are "regimes" that are the States that act this way in such matters one might look at the Asian cultural imperatives as the actual reasons for this situation rather than political ideology or other, a prime example is Japan. Japan's Police have an average between 93% and 99% (NYT) conviction rate (depending on source) even though in many cases the accused is known not to have been guilty to the prosecutors but they prosecute and win anyway. It is a cultural imperative, as stated, because if the police arrest then the court must convict as otherwise there are serious face implications and societal repercussions. This goes for Korea and some other countries in the region as well. Very Asian.