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Changing criminals through methods of persuasion is an integral
part of China's efforts to reform criminals, for which Chinese reform-through-labour
institutions have generally adopted the following measures.
--- Healthy cultural, recreational and sports activities are offered
in China's prisons and reform-through-labour institutions to create
a positive atmosphere for bringing about change in the prisoners.
All prisons and reform-through-labour institutions have libraries
and reading rooms for prisoners with books concerning politics,
culture, literature, and science and technology as well as a variety
of newspapers and magazines which may also be ordered by a prisoner
at his or her own expense. Prisons and reform-through-labour institutions
often offer eligible prisoners the opportunity to engage in activities
such as artistic creation, news writing, reading, lecturing and
essay writing competitions.
Many prisons and reform-through-labour institutions provide the
prisoners with special teachers, painting rooms, and painting tools
and materials and offer calligraphy, painting and other art classes.
Some also invite teachers from society at large to give lectures
at the prison. Shanghai Municipal Prison has held an exhibition
every year since 1983, featuring 200-300 pieces of art created by
prisoners. In autumn 1990, a museum in Beijing held an arts and
crafts exhibition where over 700 pieces done by prisoners in calligraphy,
seal cutting, sketching, oil painting, traditional Chinese painting,
gouache, clay sculpture, stone carving, jade carving, wood carving,
root carving, batik, embroidery, weaving, and paper cutting were
displayed, which was well-received by the public.
Many prisons and reform-through-labour institutions have organized
performing troupes made up of prisoners, who give performances produced
by the criminals themselves. In some institutions sports activities
such as basketball, table-tennis, and tug-of-war, in addition to
various board games are often organized for the prisoners.
As part of the effort to educate and reform criminals as well as
to enliven their daily lives, China's prisons and reform-through-labour
institutions publish three newspapers, the Reform-through-labour
News, the Blackboard News and the Wall News. Though prison staff
are responsible for these newspapers, prisoners do the writing,
editing, copying and blockprinting. At present, the Reform-through-Labour
Newspaper has a circulation of 224,000 within the prisons. These
prison newspapers, which are interesting and full of information,
are praised by the prisoners as "good teachers and helpful friends
on the road to reform".
--- China sets great store by the beneficial effects which the
personal examples and words of the prison staff have on the prisoners
in their care.
The state requires all prison staff to be ideologically morally
sound in order to guide and inspire the prisoners with their civilized
speech and behaviour in their daily work. The prison staff need
to work especially hard on the education, conversion and redemption
of juvenile deliquents, working in a sincere, patient and painstaking
manner like parents with children, doctors with patients and teachers
with students. Sometimes, the prison staff have to talk to a prisoner
ten, twenty or even a hundred times before their concern can move
the prisoner. When prisoners have special family or marital problems,
organs of the reform-through-labour institution do their best to
help, working with relevant social organizations.
--- Organizations in society actively participate and help in reforming
criminals through education and persuasion.
This is one of the major characteristics of China's efforts to
reform criminals and it has proven to be very successful in practice.
Talks are given to criminals in prisons and reform- through-labour
institutions by leaders of party committees and government departments;
deputies of people's congresses; members of political consultative
conference committees; responsible persons from the trade unions,
the youth league, the women's league and judicial organs at all
levels, and famous personalities, heroes, model workers, veteran
cadres, senior teachers, workers and artists in society. They lecture
on current affairs and ideals, raise the hopes of the criminals,
make them feel as though people care about them and help them see
that they have a bright future. Crime victims are also invited to
come to prisons and reform-through-labour institutions to condemn
the harm caused by crime to help enhance the criminals' sense of
guilt and make them feel more responsible and repentant for their
crimes.
Reform-through-labour institutions often invite model reformed
prisoners who have turned their life around through reform to talk
about their own experience. This plays a very positive role in building
up the prisoners' confidence in reform.
When possible, reform-through-labour institutions arrange for prisoners
who have shown good behaviour to go on a study tour of places of
interest in society, or to have leaves during holidays for family
reunions. This allows them to see how society is progressing and
to feel that they are still members of society who should return
as soon as possible to participate in the modernization drive of
the country.
--- Reform-through-labour institutions actively encourage family
members of prisoners to take part in the persuasion process.
In addition to regular visits covered by the rules, prisons and
reform-through-labour institutions sometimes set up special visits
for family members of criminals who are not progressing steadily
toward reform so that they can advise the troubled criminal. The
prison staff informs the visiting relatives of the recent thinking
and behaviour of the prisoner, occasionally showing them around
the cells and work places and inviting them to help in the ideological
remoulding of the criminals.
The reform of criminals through persuasion by reform- through-labour
institutions has received a sincere response from most prisoners.
On April 26, 1990, at 18:00 hours a severe earthquake of magnitude
6.9 quickly devastated most of the offices and dormitory buildings
of the No.13 Reform-through-Labour Detachment in Qinhai. The buildings
housing the prisoners were solidly built, so no prisoners were killed
or seriously injured. In spite of the aftershocks and the fact that
all the lights were out, not a single prisoner tried to escape.
Instead, they began carrying out frantic relief work, rescuing 118
prison staff and family members. Afterwards, 115 prisoners had their
sentences reduced or were released on parole, receiving favourable
treatment in accordance with the law. Another 169 prisoners were
cited or commended for meritorious service.
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