In Depth: Punishing People for Their Relatives’ Crimes Comes Under Scrutiny in China

Legal experts are pushing to reform the practice of collective punishment, which can cause law-abiding citizens to lose their shot at joining the civil service or getting into the military

Collective punishment can cost law-abiding citizens their shot at entering the civil service, certain university programs, or the military if they happen to be related to a convicted criminal.

Legal experts in China are pushing to reform a longstanding practice that can cause law-abiding citizens to lose their shot at joining the civil service, getting into certain university programs or the military if they happen to be related to a convicted criminal.

The reform push has the potential to curtail the practice — known as collective punishment — that has been criticized for violating basic legal norms and putting a vast share of China’s population at risk of being punished for the actions of another.