Xinhua News, 2009-05-05
In order to “further judicial open democracy and achieve judicial fairness by closely relying on the supervision and support of the masses,” the Shanxi Province High Court is asking “citizen representatives”—who were recruited to observe public appeal hearings—to offer orally their opinions on the case before them to justices after the “debate” part of the hearing and before the defendant's final statement. Reactions to the inclusion of the opinions are mixed. The president of the province's high court believes it “undoubtedly conforms with criminal justice policy and the spirit of the law,” while a county school teacher who served as a citizen representative gained legal knowledge from the experience and feels such participation can make trials more open and fair. A Xian (Shanxi Province) lawyer worried, however, that the new procedure will influence the seriousness and professionalism of the justice system.
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