cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/40877350
Liuzhi - retention in custody is part of an internal CCP [Chinese Communist Party] system for detention and investigation and is not part of the State’s criminal justice system. While in Liuzhi, which is decided upon by the CCDI [The Chinese Communist Party Central Commission for Discipline Committee] itself, without any external body to supervise or approve, the person must, by regulation, be kept in solitary confinement, have no access to legal counsel (as this is by definition not a legal process) and may be kept from any form of communication. The target is, by design, held incommunicado. The locations used vary, from custom-built facilities to Party-run hotels, guesthouses, offices etc. The location shall not be shared, meaning the person is, by any definition, disappeared. This period of detention can last six months. There is no external appeal mechanism.
Data from the Chinese Communist Party’s internal discipline watchdog (CCDI) from 2025 shows a record 46% increase in the use of the feared Liuzhi system between 2023 and 2024, to new record high levels.
However, data from both 2024 (for 2023) and 2025 (for 2024), the first time the body has ever released (claimed) nationwide use of the Liuzhi system, also has much more to offer.
While occasional data has in the past been released on the use of Liuzhi, since the system came into effect March 2018, it has been limited either to its use in a few select provinces, for limited time-periods, or for specific campaigns, never in its full use.
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Progress in Reverse: reforms worsen abuses
By far the most damaging revision that went into effect this summer (June 1) was two new additions which allow the CCDI (since 2018 also referred to as the NCS, or National Supervision Commission) to hold those placed into Liuzhi longer, and weaken the prior 6-month limit. Now, with one new clause, Liuzhi can be extended by two more months, for a total of eight months, if the possible crime they are being investigated for could carry a prison sentence of 10 years or more.
However, compounding this is the fact that a case run by the central CCDI/NCS, or provincial level CCDI/NCS, may “reset” the time spent in Liuzhi if the investigators identify a new serious (claimed) offense during the investigation, which would mean that a person can be kept - continuously - for 16 months.
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