Cannot Commit Original Sin

Author: Chen Jialin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features: On August 12, 2005, it was the 80th birthday of Professor Ma Kechang, a renowned Chinese legal scholar and the first Dean of the Law School at Wuhan University. That year also marked the 56th anniversary of Professor Ma Kechang's career in legal education and research. This series of books was specially compiled to celebrate Professor Ma Kechang's 80th birthday and the 56th anniversary of his dedication to legal education and research. Over the 56 years of his legal education and research career, Professor Ma Kechang witnessed and personally experienced the ups and downs of China's 55-year journey in building the rule of law. In 1946, he was admitted to the prestigious National Wuhan University Law School from Xihua County, Henan Province, to study law and engage in revolutionary activities. In 1950, due to his outstanding academic performance and character, he graduated and was retained by the university to teach. Soon after, he was recommended to the graduate program at Renmin University of China for further studies, where he specialized in criminal law under the guidance of Professor Bestrova, a Soviet criminal law scholar. In 1952, he completed his graduate studies and returned to Wuhan to teach criminal law. However, due to well-known reasons, when China's democratic and legal development suffered severe setbacks, Professor Ma Kechang was also unable to escape the consequences. In 1958, Professor Ma Kechang received unfair treatment and was sent to rural labor. In the second half of 1959, although he was officially "stripped of the label" and allowed to return to Wuhan University, the Law Department had already been disbanded, and he was forced to take on jobs such as cashier in the canteen and librarian. After the Cultural Revolution began, he was subjected to further unfair treatment and was sent to the countryside to follow the "May Seventh Road," undergoing what was termed "labor reform," until 1972 when he returned to the Wuhan University Library, where he worked until 1979. During these more than 20 years of difficult times, his youthful prime and golden years of scientific research quietly slipped away. Yet, in the face of all the spiritual and physical hardships, he always maintained an optimistic attitude toward life, achieving remarkable accomplishments even while working in the countryside and the library. In 1979, at the age of 53, Professor Ma Kechang finallya major turning point in his era and life. He was appointed as the Deputy Director of the Law Department by the then President of Wuhan University, Professor Liu Daoyu, to assist Professor Han Depai, the Director of the Law Department, in restoring and developing the department, welcoming the spring of China's rule of law construction and legal education. After accepting the appointment, Professor Ma Kechang, driven by his passion for the legal profession and his profound academic foundation, revitalized his career, fully demonstrating the charm and charisma of a legal activist, educator, and criminal law expert. As a legal social activist, in 1980, Professor Ma Kechang was commissioned by the Ministry of Justice of the People's Republic of China to serve as the defense attorney for Wu Faqian in the sensational "Lin Biao and Jiang Qing Counter-Revolutionary Group Case," working in accordance with the law and earning great praise. He also served concurrently as the Honorary President of the Chinese Criminal Law Society, a Special Consultant to the Supreme People's Court, and held numerous other social positions, making outstanding contributions to the country's legislative and judicial reforms. As a legal educator, starting in 1983, Professor Ma Kechang served as the Director of the Law Department at Wuhan University. After the establishment of the Law School at Wuhan University in 1986, he was appointed as its Dean. With great passion and energy, he devoted himself to the development of the Law School, leading the faculty and staff in unity and progress, achieving remarkable results in teaching, research, talent cultivation, and international exchanges, making the Wuhan University Law School the "ace force on Mount Luojia" and a renowned law school in China, maintaining a leading position among domestic peers and gaining increasing international acclaim. As a scholar, Professor Ma Kechang has remained active in the field of criminal law theory research, writing tirelessly. The numerous criminal law textbooks he co-edited are hailed as authoritative textbooks in China. His works, such as "General Theory of Crime," "General Theory of Punishment," "Chinese Criminal Policy," and "An Outline of the History of Modern Western Criminal Law," have received high praise from the academic community and have become classic texts in the study of criminal law in China, serving as prescribed materials for graduate students in criminal law at many universities. In 2002, his monograph "Principles of Comparative Criminal Law—General Theory of Foreign Criminal Law" was published, causing a sensation in academia with its rich content, thorough documentation, rigorous structure, and profound insights. It also became the only law-related work to win the National Book Award in 2003. As a teacher, Professor Ma Kechang has always been dedicated to teaching and nurturing students, lecturing to undergraduates, master's students, and doctoral students. He taught with meticulous care, effortlessly navigating complex theories and real-world cases, explaining them in an accessible manner, earning the admiration and affection of his students. He not only guided students in mastering professional knowledge but also inspired them to become individuals with ideals, aspirations, a sense of responsibility, and noble character. He has cultivated many outstanding talents for China's rule of law construction and legal education, some of whom now hold key positions in the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, and various judicial and administrative departments, while others have become professors, doctoral supervisors, and academic leaders, actively contributing to legal education and research in various fields. Professor Ma Kechang is a scholar with strategic vision. With an open perspective and an international mindset, he has emphasized exchanges with the outside world, proactively aligning discipline development with international standards and fostering its growth within the global academic environment. He has been invited to visit and lecture in the United States, Canada, Japan, Germany, Brazil, and other countries, as well as in Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, participating in international academic conferences. He has also warmly invited numerous renowned international scholars to visit China for lectures and conferences. Through exchanges with top universities, disciplines, and scholars, he has continuously introduced new academic information, theories, and trends, actively organizing international academic exchanges and cooperation, injecting vitality into discipline development, enhancing the discipline's reputation both domestically and internationally, strengthening its competitiveness among peer disciplines, and laying a solid foundation for its healthy development. With his profound knowledge, outstanding theoretical achievements, and noble character, Professor Ma Kechang has earned the respect and admiration of the Chinese judiciary, the criminal law community, and the entire legal field, as well as the esteem and admiration of his international peers, and the love of his students. As his 80th birthday approaches, his students haveorganized to plan this celebratory series of books as a token of their gratitude and congratulations. The works in this series are either solo efforts or collaborations, representing the latest research achievements of Professor Ma Kechang's disciples in the fields of criminal law and criminology. The significance of this birthday gift is profound—it serves as both a report from disciples to their master and an opportunity to deepen the theoretical research of criminal law, which aligns perfectly with the expectations Professor Ma Kechang had for his students. When planning this series, it received strong support and high attention from the China University of Political Science and Law Press, which organized a dedicated editorial team to oversee the editing and publication of the series.