China has called on Western countries to put aside their fears that its justice system is unfair and sign extradition treaties, state media reported Monday, as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) seeks the return of suspected corrupt officials and criminals who have fled overseas.
In March, France became the third developed nation after Spain and Portugal to sign an extradition treaty with China. Some other Western governments have been reluctant to take this step because of concerns about China's widespread use of the death penalty and doubts about the fairness and independence of its courts, according to Chinese officials and foreign diplomats.
In its agreements with these three countries, Beijing has guaranteed that suspects returned to China for trial will not face the death penalty.
The official Xinhua press agency reported this month that Tokyo was ready to negotiate an extradition treaty, but there has been no confirmation of this by the Japanese government.
The state-controlled English-language China Daily reported on Monday that 29 countries had now signed extradition treaties with China, nearly all of them developing nations.
"We are trying hard to negotiate with developed countries to conclude bilateral extradition treaties," the paper quoted Duan Jielong (
Senior Chinese officials routinely warn that rampant official corruption is one of the biggest threats to the CCP's rule.
But many suspects, including government officials and managers of state-owned businesses, have fled to nations that do not have extradition treaties with China, including the US, Canada and Australia.
The China Daily reported that about 800 suspects wanted for economic crimes were at large overseas, according to officials from the Public Security Bureau.
In earlier reports, state media said that up to 4,000 officials have pocketed a total of US$50 billion and escaped overseas in recent years.
The most celebrated Chinese fugitive is suspected smuggling boss Lai Changxing (賴肇星), who has been living under a form of house arrest in Canada for seven years while he fights to avoid being returned to China. The Canadian government has agreed that Lai should be repatriated, but his case has been tied up in a series of challenges and appeals.
Last month, a Canadian Federal Court judge ordered a judicial review of an earlier ruling which concluded that Lai and his wife would not be executed if they were returned to China. But the court-ordered review effectively delayed any decision to deport the pair.
An extradition treaty would streamline the process by which suspects are returned to China, but the absence of one does not automatically prevent the return of suspected or convicted criminals. This month, Japan, which lacks such a treaty with China, for the first time repatriated a Chinese official accused of corruption, according to a Xinhua report on May 12.
Yuan Tongshun (
The US also cooperated with China to return Yu Zhendong (
In April 2004, Yu pleaded guilty in Las Vegas, Nevada, to racketeering charges arising from the embezzlement and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. But, as part of a plea bargain, he agreed to return to face charges in China providing he was not jailed for a longer term, tortured or executed.
However, the barriers to bringing fugitives to justice in the absence of extradition treaties frustrate Chinese authorities.
"What is evident is the fact that the suspects who have fled the country have benefited from the stumbling blocks that prevent China from bringing them to justice," the China Daily said in an editorial on Monday.
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