China Says Almost All Wrongful Convictions Result From Police Torture
China's Deputy Chief Prosecutor, Wang Zhenchuan, has acknowledged that almost every defendant wrongfully convicted of a crime in recent years was tortured to extract a confession. China's official Xinhua news agency quotes Wang Zhenchuan as saying that at least 30 people every year are wrongfully convicted because of torture, and the actual number could be higher.
China's top prosecutors have been leading a campaign to crack down on police who use illegal interrogation methods to get confessions of guilt from suspected criminals. In March, Beijing introduced new guidelines that require police to make audio and video recordings of all interrogations involving major cases, such as murder and gang violence.
A special U.N. investigator has said torture is on the decline in China, but remains widespread.
中国副检察长王振川承认，最近几年出现的刑事错案中，几乎每一个被误判的刑事被告都遭受过刑讯逼供。中国官方新华社援引王振川的话说，每年至少有30个人因刑讯逼供而被误判，而实际数字可能更大。
中国高级检察官员一直在发起一项活动，制止警察使用非法审讯方式，迫使刑事犯罪嫌疑人认罪的做法。今年3月，北京制定了新的指导原则，要求警察在涉及谋杀和团伙暴力等重大案件中对所有的审讯进行录音和录像。
联合国一名特别调查员说，刑讯逼供的现象在中国有所下降，但是依然很普遍。
