Sichuan Province leads China in piloting a system in which procurators will act as legal representatives for public interests in civil lawsuits.

It will define the responsibilities of procuratorial bodies as being to protect state and collective interests as well as those of disadvantaged groups.

From 2003 to the first half of 2004, procuratorial bodies in Sichuan supported 32 prosecutions involving 6.563 million yuan (about US$790,723), most of which involved state or collective interests.

In towns and villages there are many disadvantaged groups who don't have the awareness or confidence to initiate lawsuits to defend their civil rights from more powerful interests. Enabling procuratorial bodies to legally represent them will help to maintain social fairness and justice, said one procurator.

The prosecutions they are to support must meet three criteria: first, that the rights of the state, collectives or citizens are infringed; second, that the party they are to represent is innocent; third, that they have not already started a lawsuit in a people's court.

Some people contend that procuratorial bodies, as public prosecutors and legal supervisors, should not represent any party in civil lawsuits.

But defenders of the system say it is a legitimate practice, since in Article 15 of the Civil Procedure Law it says that all state bodies, except trial organs, can support any party whose civil rights are infringed to start a lawsuit in a people's court.

(China.org.cn by Yuan Fang, December 17, 2004)