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W. ALLYN RICKETT
6) The Rightists maintain that the Constitution provides for judicial independence.
Answer: This simply means that their work is not to be subjected to illegal interference on the part of other government organizations, people's bodies, or individuals. However, the courts are created by the country's organ of state power and ought to be responsible to it. Since the Party is the heart of the leadership of the state and the people's courts are only one of its organizations, naturally the courts cannot be independent of the Party.
7) The Rightists say the courts are to administer law, not policy,
Answer: This is wrong because political policy is the soul of law, and law is but the formulation of policy into articles. The two are inseparable. Thus in some cases, in order to seek a correct judgment which fits the needs of the struggle of the moment, the courts should consult the Party committees because they have a better grasp of the political situation and current policy.
I have gone to some length in citing Wu Defeng because his arguments present the position of China's ideological leadership throughout most of the history of the People's Republic, and, in spite of the changes that have taken place since the fall of the Gang of Four in late 1976, such arguments are by no means dead. Should China be faced with a real crisis or the present leadership be seriously threatened, these arguments could well be heard again.
The Anti-Rightist Movement proved to be a disaster for China's budding judicial profession and its concern for civil rights. Legal publications dried up, and although Zhengfa yanjiu continued to be published for a while longer, its contents were limited to articles of a general propaganda nature. Judicial personnel who had been going abroad in great numbers were required to stay home, and less and less was heard of people's lawyers. The blow dealt to Chinese intellectuals and professionalism in general was of course not limited to the legal profession. Throughout the entire society there was a general