China Justice Observer

中司观察

EnglishArabicChinese (Simplified)DutchFrenchGermanHindiItalianJapaneseKoreanPortugueseRussianSpanishSwedishHebrewIndonesianVietnameseThaiTurkishMalay

China’s Hangzhou Reveals Subway Sex Offenders’ Names

Fri, 07 Jul 2023
Categories: China Legal Trends

avatar

 

The Hangzhou government posted on its website the administrate penalty documents for indecent acts on the metro, along with the names of sex offenders.

According to the documents, between March and May 2023, the metro police have dealt with nearly ten cases of indecent acts and invasion of privacy on the metro, involving acts of molestation and taking upskirt photos of female passengers with cell phones.

For instance, one of the documents shows that Chen molested Li by touching her with his hands and rubbing her buttocks with his genitals on Hangzhou Metro Line Two train at around 18:30 on 1 Mar. 2023. The public security organ decided to give Chen administrative detention of 12 days of administrative penalty.

Since then, a questionnaire on “Do you think it is appropriate for the Hangzhou government to publish the full names of sex offenders” has received over 560,000 votes. 97% of the voters chose “it is appropriate because it can serve as a deterrent,” while 3% chose “it is not appropriate because the legitimate rights and interests of the person being punished should also be protected.”

There is also a view that it is legal to publish the names and behaviors of sex offenders. According to the “Regulations on Law Enforcement Disclosure by Public Security Organs” (公安机关执法公开规定) issued by China’s Ministry of Public Security, the public security organs shall take the initiative to disclose information on law enforcement that involves public interest and general public concern and needs to be known by the public.

 

Photo by Alexander Schimmeck on Unsplash

Contributors: CJO Staff Contributors Team

Save as PDF

You might also like

SPC Issues Prepaid Consumption Rules & Typical Cases

In March 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) issued a judicial interpretation and six guiding cases to tackle prepaid consumption disputes, invalidating unfair terms, protecting consumer refunds, and penalizing merchants who abscond with prepayments.

SPP Releases Guiding Cases on Civil Adjudication Supervision

In March 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) released new guiding cases to strengthen supervision over civil judgments, ensuring fairness and correcting errors in court rulings, covering disputes like private loans and traffic accidents.

First Tort Suit Under China’s Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law

In March 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) reported the first-ever tort suit under the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, enabling a Chinese firm to recover over CNY 84 million after a European partner withheld payment invoking a third country’s sanctions.

ABLI-HCCH webinar: Cross-Border Commercial Dispute Resolution – Electronic Service of Documents and Remote Taking of Evidence (July 10, 2025)

The Asian Business Law Institute (ABLI) and the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) will host their fourth joint webinar on July 10, 2024 (5:00–6:10 PM SGT), focusing on electronic service of documents and remote taking of evidence under the Service and Evidence Conventions, featuring expert speakers, with an early bird discount available until June 10.

China Tightens Corporate Personal Data Audit Rules

In February 2025, China's Cyberspace Administration issued the "Measures for the Administration of Personal Information Protection Compliance Audits", effective May 1, 2025, mandating regular audits for companies, especially those processing data of over 10 million individuals, to ensure transparency and legality in personal data handling.

SPC Releases Typical Cases on Telecom Fraud Crimes

In February 2025, China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) released eight typical telecom fraud cases, exposing new criminal methods and highlighting intensified judicial efforts after handling 31,000 such cases in 2023.

SPC Targets Cyber Extortion with Typical Cases

In February 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) released six typical cases showcasing its crackdown on emerging cyber extortion crimes, including spreading rumors and sextortion, to encourage victims to seek legal protection.

China Issues New Rules on Foreign-Related IP Disputes

In March 2025, China issued regulations effective May 1, 2025, to enhance dispute resolution, evidence collection, and countermeasures for foreign-related intellectual property disputes, strengthening services and enterprise capabilities.

SPC Issues China’s First Anti-Anti-Suit Injunction (AASI) in IP Case

In December 2024, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) issued its first anti-anti-suit injunction in a patent dispute, Huawei v. Netgear, prohibiting Netgear from obstructing Huawei’s Chinese litigation, marking a significant step in global standard-essential patent governance.