Legal Consideration Compulsory Administrative Measures Restricting Personal Freedom

Personal freedom is the fundamental right of citizens in our country. Article37inthe Constitution of the People’s Republic of China determines like the following," The freedom of citizens of the People s Republic of China is inviolable. No citizenmay be arrested except with the approval or by decision of a people’s procuratorate orby decision of a people’s court, and arrests must be made by a public security organ.Unlawful deprivation or restriction of citizens’ freedom by detention or other means isprohibited; and unlawful search of citizens is prohibited." Restrictions on personalfreedom can only be achieved by the Constitution or laws enacted by the legislature.Compulsory measures to limit personal freedom by administrative government shouldbe in accordance with the Constitution or specific provisions in laws.There are manytypes of administrative legal sanctions to restrict personal freedom.Reeducationthrough labor, compulsory detoxification, detaining education are typical ones, ofwhich the system of reeducation through labor can restrict and detain citizens for upto1to3years without judicial procedures. It can last for one more year if necessary,the intensity of which can equal criminal penalty. The system of reeducation throughlabor, a socialist law system with Chinese characteristics, began in1950’s. The newpeople regime then was busy to root out the remnants of the evil forces and to rectifythe social order. China’s "administrative enforcement" Since its implementation in2012, has been a year, and its effectiveness is very significant."AdministrativeEnforcement Law" the implementation of the compulsory administrative measures toestablish uniform principles and rules.In that special historical period, the system of reeducation through labor played agreat role in safeguarding state sovereignty, maintaining social stability, educating andsaving criminal youth, guaranteeing the socialist modernization drive. With thedevelopment of socialist democracy and legal system and the rise of people’s right awareness, people from all walks of life show their disagreements to the system ofreeducation through labor and some even call to demolish and reform the law.Personally speaking, there are profound historical foundations and solid socialpractice foundations for the system of reeducation through labor, which shows thenecessity and rationality for the existence of the law. although it shows its weaknesseswhich violate the concept of democracy and legal system, it is still an important lineof defense for crime prevention system and unreplaceable in the prevention andcontrol of social crime. The reasonable reform of the system of reeducation throughlabor is needed to cater to the new age. Only by doing this can it still be effective inthe prevention and control of social crime.