CHINA. JURIES GIVEN BIGGER SAY IN REACHING VERDICTS

juries will help reach verdicts in criminal and civil court cases in China, the China Daily reported, as the country sought to strengthen its arbitrary legal system.
About 27,000 jurors were to begin work the following week, but rather than being selected for each trial, they had been appointed for five-year terms after being recommended by local work units.
"This is an important move to upgrade and strengthen the system of people's jurors," the newspaper quoted Xiao Long of the Beijing No 1 Intermediate People's Court as saying.
"... (It) will add more transparency and justness to the country's judicial system."
"China included people's jurors into the constitution as early as 1954, but before this new law there were no rules to stipulate the details of the jury system," the daily said.
Those accused of crimes would now have the right to request jurors be involved in deciding verdicts on cases with "considerable social repercussions", the newspaper said without elaborating.
On cases where they could sit, jurors would take one or two places on a three-member bench. Appeals were still be heard solely by judges.