December 10-16
China
The Supreme People’s Court (SPC) has instructed lower courts to upload judgments from January 1, 2021 onward into an internal database, raising concerns that even fewer judgments will be posted to the publicly accessible platform China Judgments Online (裁判文书网, or CJO). The instruction came in an SPC document that was leaked and circulated on social media. The CJO, launched in 2014, never included 100% of court judgments, but lawyers, litigants, and scholars frequently use it. Millions of judgments have been removed from the platform in the past few years and the number of new additions has declined in a retreat from transparency.
The Chongqing First Intermediate People's Court capped the patent licensing fee for essential 5G patents in China at between 4.341 percent and 5.273 percent. The ruling came in a lawsuit brought by Chinese cellphone maker Oppo Mobile Telecommunications against Finnish telecoms giant Nokia, which Oppo accused of demanding excessive royalties. It follows years of litigation between Nokia and Oppo in multiple countries, with Nokia winning in some courts and Oppo in others.
The Supreme People’s Court (SPC) published draft regulations on handling disputes over “bride prices” (彩礼) paid by grooms’ families upon betrothal. Public comments may be submitted until December 26, 2023. The regulations instruct courts to consider the length of time the couple lived together, the amount paid and how it was used, whether there are children, local customs, and other factors when deciding if some or all of the bride price should be returned upon divorce or separation. The SPC also released four typical cases of bride price disputes.
The SPC and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) jointly released eight typical cases of public interest administrative lawsuits to guide courts and procuratorates. The SPP reported that over the past six years, procuratorial organs have filed more than 780,000 public interest lawsuits against administrative departments that abused their power or failed to perform their duties.
Hong Kong
The government has amended the implementation rules for the National Security Law to lift a two-year cap on freezing the assets of persons accused under the law. Authorities now have the power to freeze a suspect’s offense-related property until legal proceedings against the suspect are concluded. Previously, asset freezes could only be extended through a court order. A government statement called the change “technical in nature” and narrow in scope.
The Civil Service Bureau released draft revisions to the 2009 Civil Service Code that prohibit civil servants from criticizing government policies in their official capacity. The revised code also says that upholding national security will become a “core value” of the civil service. Public comments may be submitted through January 19, 2024.
Police arrested at least six people during Hong Kong’s district councils election, including three members of the League of Social Democrats who had planned to protest what they described as a “birdcage election.” Police said the three were suspected of attempting to incite others to disrupt the poll. Police arrested Koo Sze-yiu, 77, a longtime activist nicknamed “Long Beard,” two days before the election because he planned to protest; he was accused of preparing to do an act with seditious intent and denied bail. Election turnout hit a record low of 27.5% as pro-democracy candidates were kept off the ballot.
Police added five overseas-based activists to a list of persons wanted for alleged national security offenses, and offered rewards of HK$1 million ($128,000) for information leading to their arrest. Among the five was a US citizen, Joey Sui. The five are based in the US, UK, and Australia. Police also said they had arrested four persons suspected of providing financial assistance to Nathan Law and Ted Hui, who were on an initial wanted list of eight overseas-based activists that was issued in July.
Japan
A court convicted three former soldiers of sexually assaulting a female colleague and sentenced each to a suspended sentence of two years in prison in a case that attracted international attention. The victim, Rona Gonoi, said the three pinned her down at a party at an army training facility in August 2021 and simulated a sex act. She left the military in 2022 after it failed to take any action, and made her accusations public, triggering an official apology and investigation.
The legislature approved a law to more closely monitor the assets of religious corporations that may be subject to legal claims. A religious group whose status is under review must give authorities at least one month’s notice of any plan to dispose of its assets, and must disclose its portfolio breakdown every three months instead of annually as in the past. The law was triggered by concerns that the Unification Church may seek to transfer its assets overseas as its donation solicitations practices are investigated.
Koreas
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Japan did not appeal a court ruling in a comfort women case within the two-week deadline, causing the ruling to be deemed confirmed. In late November, the Seoul High Court ordered Japan to compensate 16 women who were forced to work in Japanese wartime brothels. At the time, Japan’s foreign minister called the decision regrettable, unacceptable, and a breach of international law. The South Korean Foreign Ministry said it would continue efforts to recover the honor and dignity of the women while seeking cooperation with Japan.
South Korea's Supreme Court ruled that intentionally and repeatedly making noise in order to harass one’s neighbors is punishable under the anti-stalking law. It upheld an eight-month prison sentence for a defendant convicted of violating the anti-stalking law for banging the walls all night and turning up the stereo volume in a multi-unit villa.
The regional council of South Chungcheong Province repealed a controversial student rights ordinance that protected students’ freedom of expression, their right not to suffer discrimination, and other rights. Seven cities or provinces have enacted similar ordinances, which are credited with helping to eradicate corporal punishment in schools. Opponents say the ordinances could hinder discipline and be used to unjustly accuse teachers of mistreatment.
Taiwan
The Legislative Yuan approved a minimum wage law that will adjust minimum wages in line with the consumer price index and prohibits negotiating wages below the minimum wage. Companies that violate the law may be fined up to NT$1.5 million (US$47,600).
The Ministry of Justice said authorities have detained 40 persons on charges of interfering with voting rights, including nine suspected of helping a foreign power to meddle in next month’s presidential and legislative elections. As of December 12, prosecutors had issued 15 indictments for alleged election interference and 17 for alleged contravention of the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法), which forbids conducting electoral activities on behalf of a hostile foreign power.