Torture Deterrence Theory

Author: Zhao Bingzhi / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-07-01
Features: Excerpt 3. Labor Punishment and Physical Punishment During the Qin Dynasty, there were many forms of labor punishment, such as Chengdan Chong, Gui xin, Bai can, Siku, Fazu, Fuzuo, etc. The Records of the Grand Historian. Biographies of Qin Shi Huang states: "Chancellor Li Si said, 'I request that all historical records not from Qin be burned. If the order is not followed within thirty days, the offender will be branded as Chengdan.' Chengdan was a four-year punishment." Wei Hong's Han Old Regulations records: "According to Qin law, all convicts, male or female, would be shaved bald and branded as Chengdan. Chengdan referred to working on city walls. Females were branded as Chong, meaning they would grind rice. Both would serve five years, completing four years." Chengdan later evolved into a form of penal servitude. Wei Hong's Han Old Regulations also records: "According to Qin law, Gui xin was a three-year punishment. Gui xin referred to male convicts who would cut wood for sacrificial rituals. According to Qin law, Gui xin for females was a three-year punishment, involving selecting rice for sacrificial rituals. Both would serve three years. According to Qin law, Siku involved male convicts guarding, while females would perform tasks like Siku, serving two years. Male convicts for Fazu and female convicts for Fuzuo would serve one to three months." During the Qin Dynasty, birching had already emerged as a form of physical punishment. The earliest documented era can be traced back to the Qin Dynasty. In 1975, bamboo slips from the Qin tomb at Shuihuudi in Yunmeng County, Hubei Province, contained records of birching: "For those who farmed with oxen, if the oxen reduced the yield, the person in charge would be birched ten times. If the yield was low, the person would be rewarded with land and a ten-day tenure; if it was poor, they would be birched thirty times." ② It is clear that by the Qin Dynasty, birching had already existed as a form of punishment. However, it is undeniable that the mainstream penal system during the Qin Dynasty still relied heavily on corporal punishments.
4. Humiliation Punishments As humiliation punishments, the Qin Dynasty had practices like castration and shaving the head. These were forms of punishment that involved partially removing a convict's hair to inflict shame. Castration involved shaving a convict's hair, as recorded in Taipingyulu. Volume 649. Customary Records: "Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered Meng Tian to build the Great Wall. Convicts who were exiled to Xianbei Mountain were branded with shaved heads and red robes, a clear example of exile." Shaving the beard and sideburns was referred to as nai, as recorded in Shuowen Jiezi: "Nai referred to punishments that did not involve castration."
5. Exile Exile was a punishment that involved relocating convicts to remote areas. The Records of the Grand Historian. Biographies of Qin Shi Huang records three examples of exile: In the eighth year, Prince Chang'an's general Cheng Jiao rebelled and died in, and all military officials were executed, while the people were exiled to Linmao. In the ninth year, Changxin Marquis Changxin Du rebelled, was executed publicly by being torn apart with chariots, and his entire clan was destroyed. His attendants were lightly punished with Gui xin. Four thousand households were stripped of their titles and exiled to Shu, with their homes in Fangling. In the twelfth year, Wenxin Marquis Bu Wei died, and those above 600 stones were stripped of their titles and exiled, while those below 500 stones were not personally executed but exiled without losing their titles." Exile later evolved into the later "banishment."
6. Confiscation of Family Lineage Confiscation of family lineage meant that the descendants of convicts were barred from holding official positions. The Records of the Grand Historian. Biographies of Qin Shi Huang records: "From now on, those who manage state affairs improperly, like Miao Du and Bu Wei, shall have their family line confiscated, just like this." Zuoyi explains: "It means that the entire family is made into slaves." Zhengyi states: "Their descendants are recorded, and they are forbidden from holding official positions."
IV. Development and Evolution of the Penal System During the Han, Wei-Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties
The second emperor of Qin perished, replaced by the Western Han Dynasty. From this point on, after the long period of the Eastern Han, the Three Kingdoms, the Western and Eastern Jin, and the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the five-penalty system in the Chinese legal system gradually transitioned from slavery to feudalism. This period was also the second major period of upheaval and transformation in Chinese history after the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. Driven by the wheel of human civilization, China had entered the feudal society at this time. However, as the legal system, which served as the ideological framework, did not change its nature abruptly in response to the development of productive forces, it slowly evolved along its unique trajectory. During this period, due to frequent regime changes and constant warfare, cultural progress exhibited a diverse and complex character. As a powerful tool for governing the state, the penal system also varied in different dynasties. Below, we will examine the development and evolution of ancient Chinese penal systems in two historical stages: the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms, the Western and Eastern Jin, and the Southern and Northern Dynasties.
(a) The Han Dynasty Period
1. Penal Ideology in the Han Dynasty The legal thought of the Han Dynasty can be divided into two stages. In the early Han period, the guiding ideology was Huang-Lao philosophy