The Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) has recently issued a guideline on strengthening foreign-related prosecution work, based on broad research and investigation and extensive consultations, to effectively enhance the quality and efficiency of related work.
The guideline comprehensively summarizes foreign-related prosecution work in recent years and identifies weak links in this regard. It adheres to the role of the SPP as the nation's legal supervisory body, closely aligns with the practice of prosecution work, and provides top-level design and overall plans for future foreign-related prosecution work.
The guideline points out that foreign-related prosecution, involving both foreign affairs work of procuratorates and foreign-related prosecution activities, is an important responsibility of procuratorial organs, a crucial aspect of modernization of prosecution work, and an essential component of the country's foreign-related rule of law.
The document emphasizes the need to integrate foreign-related prosecution work into the overall development of the Communist Party of China and the country, and to enhance the capabilities and levels of foreign-related prosecution work in accordance with the requirements of the work mechanism of promoting legislation, law enforcement, administration of justice, compliance with the law as well as legal services and the cultivation of legal talents. This is to effectively shoulder greater responsibilities in serving the major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics, high-level security, high-quality development, and high-standard opening-up.
The guideline consists of 22 articles in six sections, covering the overall requirements of foreign-related prosecution work and specific contents of various tasks. It calls for procuratorial organs at all levels nationwide to fully implement the holistic approach to national security and firmly safeguard national security.
It stresses the need for the procuratorial organs to actively participate in fostering a world-class, market-oriented business environment governed by a sound legal framework, protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens, enterprises and other entities overseas in accordance with the law, and contribute to the high-quality development of Belt and Road cooperation.
The guideline emphasizes the need for procuratorial organs to fulfill duties for legal supervision in foreign-related affairs, handle each foreign-related prosecution case with high quality and efficiency, strengthen foreign-related criminal prosecution, conduct foreign-related prosecution in other fields in an orderly manner, and standardize the handling of criminal judicial assistance cases in an efficient way.
It is important to deepen international exchanges and cooperation, actively participate in the formulation and application of international rules, strengthen bilateral and multilateral international cooperation in the prosecution field, enhance foreign-related prosecution training and exchanges, and build a more effective international communication system for prosecution, according to the guideline.
The guideline further underscores the importance of consolidating the foundation of foreign-related prosecution work, promoting the improvement of institutional norms, strengthening organization and leadership, enhancing theoretical research, boosting the support for related work, and cultivating a high-quality team of foreign-related prosecution talents.
