The 2009 Xishui sex trial () is a court case in Xishui County,

Guizhou Guizhou (; Postal romanization, formerly Kweichow) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in the Southwest China, southwest region of the China, People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the pr ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

involving the

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...

of under-aged girls by 7 people, 4 of which are government officials from the

Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Ci ...

.Shanghai daily.
Shanghai daily
" ''7 stand trial on child rape charges.'' Retrieved on 2009-04-13. The officials were sentenced in a County court and aroused anger on the Chinese blogosphere and drew popular protests.

Event

Between October 2007 to July 2008 a number of underaged teenage girls were raped in Xishui,

. An unemployed 37-year-old women named Yuan Li offered her own apartment as a hospitality venue for about 100 yuan or 30% of the income.Chinadaily.
stand trial on child rape charges Chinadaily.com
" ''Officials stand trial on child rape charges.'' Retrieved on 2009-04-13. The remaining profit went to a 14-year-old and 15-year-old who helped abduct schoolgirls from one primary school and three junior high schools. Comments from internet chat rooms said underaged girls were forced to have sex with government officials. The mother of an abused girl eventually reported the case to local police bureau on August 15, 2008.South China Morning Post.
SCMP
" ''Under-age sex trial is a test for a shaky system.'' Retrieved on 2009-04-13.Sina.com.

" ''Trial on seven people charged with child rape ends, verdict yet to come.'' Retrieved on 2009-04-13. Police subsequently began investigating the case. An 8-member team went undercover in the county for 10 days. By the end of October, 7 people were arrested on charges of organizing and forcing 11 girls into prostitution. Three of the girls were under the age of 14.

Trial

The close-door trial started at the People's Court of Xishui County on April 8, 2009. The following people were identified "customers" of the prostitution ring. The 16-hour trial ended without a verdict. There are two interpretations of the law. According to clause 236, having sex with a girl under the age of 14 should be treated as a rape and punished severely. According to clause 360, visiting a prostitute who is under the age of 14 should carry a jail sentence of five years or more. The rape offence can result in a death penalty while the second offence carries a maximum sentence of 15 years. The government officials received the lesser offense. More than 1,000 people gathered outside the court and showed anger. The case has provoked nationwide anger at the shame of the officials and the way the trial was handled.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2009 Xishui Sex Trial Xishui Sex Trial, 2009 History of Zunyi

Event

Trial

See also

References