Domestic Violence Survivors Make Heavy Use of Xinfang (“Letters and Visits”) System

This blog has focused on China’s legal response to domestic violence. The law, however, is only one means of redress in China – and not necessarily the most effective. Instead of relying on the courts, many aggrieved individuals choose to petition other state agencies for help. This practice is referred to as the xinfang (信访) system – literally, “letters and visits.” English-language literature on the xinfang system has tended to focus on petitions regarding land disputes and local political corruption. (See, e.g., Carl Minzner, Xinfang: An Alternative to Formal Chinese Legal Institutions, 42 STAN. J. INT'L L. 103 (2006).) However, as Chinese media has recently reported, complaints related to domestic violence comprise a significant portion of petitions. Below is a list of articles and relevant statistics:

· Zhejiang to Legislate and Promote Domestic Violence “Personal Protection Order” (浙江拟立法推行家庭暴力“人身保护令”): According to statistics compiled by the Zhejiang Provincial Women’s Federation, petitions related to domestic violence account for 14.5% of all petitions in the province over the last three years.

· Petitions to Women’s Federation of Xining City are Down, but the Proportion of Domestic Violence Remains High (西宁市妇联信访案件下降家庭暴力比例仍居高): Out of 223 petitions to the Women’s Federation of Xining City in 2008, 84 petitions were related domestic violence (approximately 37% of all petitions).

· Divorce, Domestic Violence and Infidelity are the Most Prominent among Petitions to the Women’s Federation (离婚、家庭暴力、外遇在妇联信访案件中最突出): In 2009, the Women’s Federation at the provincial, county and municipal levels received 380,000 petitions, including 210,000 complaints related to marriage and family rights/interests (权益). 48,000 complaints were related to domestic violence, comprising 22.69% of marriage- and family-related petitions.

· Nanjing Women’s Federation Releases New Statistics: Domestic Violence Disputes Remain on Top (南昌妇联发布信访最新数据 家庭暴力纠纷仍排在首位): Out of 324 cases last year (2008), 90 cases were related to domestic violence, representing 27.8% of all petitions.

These articles show that domestic violence survivors will sometimes choose to petition state agencies – in particular, the Women’s Federation – as a means of addressing violence at home. Unfortunately, the articles raise more questions than they answer. For example:

• How do survivors petition the Women’s Federation: in-person visits or letters? Does the method of petitioning affect the likelihood of receiving assistance?
• Do survivors rely on petitioning as their sole means of redress or do they combine other strategies, such as litigation and/or reporting to local law enforcement? Is petitioning their first recourse or a means of last resort?
• What, if any, relief is the Women’s Federation able to provide survivor-petitioners?

I will continue to look for other articles that will hopefully shed light on these questions.