Silence in court!

• Source: Global Times
• [08:29 March 18 2011]
• Comments

Wei County Communist Party Secretary Qi Jinghai honors Li Qingai as one of the "top 10 filial persons," according to the plaque. Photo:  Wei County Propaganda Office

By Wang Fanfan

It had everything a modern court needs: a judge, four jurors, a prosecutor, a defendant and an audience of more than 200.

The filial piety hearing in the village of Dongdaigu, Wei county, Hebei Province, was ready to handle "immoral" domestic disputes under the guidance of top local Communist Party officials.

The hearing was an innovation by Zhao Guopu, village's people's congress chairman. Village Communist Party Secretary Liu Zhongliang was judge.

The first session of the hearing was held under the statue of Chairman Mao in the village office's yard on May 9, 2010, Zhao recalled.

Two brothers who disagreed on their respective land allocations were squabbling over who should provide for their parents. The elder brother brought the case against his younger brother to the government and the hearing was intended to resolve the dispute.

Instead of asking both sides to swear "nothing but the truth," the judge warned them against perjury.

"If either of you fail to tell the truth, Chairman Mao will slap you to death," he said.

Before the prosecutor or the defendant presented their cases, the judge recited a schmaltzy letter from "a mother" entitled "Son, thank you for loving me so much," setting the tone for morning's highfalutin proceedings.

Audience members and village cadres played the roles of counsels, questioning the brothers like a daytime TV chat show.

A drummer would make a loud burst to restore order whenever the disputes got out of hand.

"It's proven very effective," Zhao says. "Now a lot of people would rather just take the hit than go to a public hearing."

Located on the southeastern border of Hebei Province under the administration of the prefectural-level city of Handan, Dongdaigu's moot court is now the model for neighboring villages to follow. Dongdaigu is not the sole pioneer.