Legal regulation of anti-terrorist security: the experience of modern China.

Galitskaya Natal'ya Vladimirovna ORCID: 0000-0002-8394-0908 PhD in Law Senior Researcher at the Scientific Center for Legal Information under the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation 125438, Russia, Moskva oblast', g. Moscow, ul. Mikhailovskaya, 65 naykla@mail.ru

The main terrorist threat facing China comes from separatist groups belonging to the Muslim Uighur minority, most of whom live in the western Chinese province of Xinjiang. The Uighurs, numbering eleven million people, are ethnically, culturally and historically different from the Chinese people. The Uighurs are descended from the Turkic peoples, their language is closely related to the Turkic languages, the religion is Islam, and they adhere to Muslim customs.

    The Uighur terror comes from claims to a separate state (which they call East Turkestan) or to a vast autonomous power with decentralized self-government. Xinjiang Province is officially considered an autonomous region in which Uighurs can lead a life in accordance with their customs, learn their language in schools, practice their religion, and so on. According to the Chinese authorities, Xinjiang has been an integral part of China for two thousand years and will remain so in the future. According to historical data that differ from the information of the Chinese authorities, the territory of Xinjiang became part of China only in the second half of the 18th century. Xinjiang is the most important region for trade, transport, economic and cultural ties between East and West, it is here that the famous "Silk Road" connects China with Central Asia, Europe and gives access to India and Pakistan. Xinjiang is the main link in China's state economic program "One Belt and One Road", which includes the creation of an extensive network of railways, energy pipelines, highways both to the west - through Xinjiang, the former Soviet republics, and to the south, to Pakistan, India and the rest of Southeast Asia. Xinjiang has a high concentration of natural resources (mainly oil and gas), and strategic military facilities are located there. According to the American global database on terrorism, 60% of countries located along the "one belt, one road" are characterized by stability and security, 25% of countries are at risk and may be exposed to terrorist threats, 15% of countries are in a high-risk zone, primarily Iraq, Pakistanan, Afghanistan, Syria, these are the countries in which terrorist activity poses a direct threat to the lives of the population inside and outside the country. ^[9.141-142]   

In addition, the Chinese government fears that more radical Uighur separatism may encourage separatist elements in Tibet and Taiwan. As a result, the PRC strongly opposed any attempts to weaken its influence in the region, identifying four Uighur organizations as terrorist organizations. Of these organizations, the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which the U.S. government has also designated as a terrorist organization, attracts the most public attention.

   Terrorist acts attributed to the Uighurs began in the 1990s, when the collapse of the Soviet Union was followed by the creation of several new states in the vicinity of Xinjiang, which had ethnic and religious characteristics similar to the Uighur population. This change, as well as a certain expectation on the part of the Uighurs that the collapse of the Soviet Union would weaken communist rule in China, caused an outbreak of Uighur nationalism. The manifestation of separatism that occurred shortly after the Tiananmen Square riots in 1989 caused fear in the Chinese regime, which has always considered the political and social stability of China one of its main concerns.

   Eventually, a series of terrorist attacks followed, mainly in Xinjiang, as well as in other Chinese cities, including Beijing.  In the period from 1990 to 2016, the majority of terrorist attacks occurred. The crimes included planting bombs, killing government officials, poisoning, arson and sabotage of government buildings.     

Without downplaying the problem, we note that, firstly, the scale of terror in China is relatively small. As a result of terrorist acts, on average, less than twenty people die annually, while in the current decade, 2,500 to 3,200 people have died annually as a result of natural disasters. Secondly, terror by Muslims in China was eliminated at the end of 2016 thanks to targeted measures by Beijing. On the one hand, the leadership of the People's Republic of China used the policy of a "strong hand", carrying out arrests and even executions of persons accused of involvement in terrorism. On the other hand, infrastructure was actively built in the Xinjiang region (and in western China as a whole), new employment and education opportunities were created for residents, along with periodic easing of restrictions on local cultural and religious life.

    Terror was completely defeated in 2016, because it was then that China began to increase its operational readiness and develop new strategies to ensure anti-terrorist security. Significant budgetary funds are allocated to special units of the armed Forces and the Ministry of Public Security, security forces undergo extensive and complex anti-terrorist training; the Chinese defense industry is developing advanced anti-terrorist equipment; China has begun operational cooperation with foreign countries, within which the Chinese armed forces get acquainted with modern methods of warfare and undergo in-depth training; efforts are being made to improve electronic warfare. intelligence; and provides more reliable protection of objects and places that may become potential targets of terrorist attacks. [10.P.2-3].     

The root cause of the terrorist attacks is seen not only in the religiosity of the Uighur part of the population, cultural differences, but also in the uneven economic development of the region, in which Uighurs were discriminated against. They had a low social status and held lower-paid positions.[4.C.107-108] Despite the existing difficulties, the Chinese leadership has successfully coped with the task of overcoming separatism. In the fight against the spread of the ideology of terrorism, the People's Republic of China has achieved considerable success, as a result of the competent policy of the Chinese leadership.

    In the Chinese anti-terrorist discourse, the most important goal of China's counter-terrorism strategy is national unity, State sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Communist Party of China (CPC) believes that there is a group of “international hostile forces” that have colluded with the internal “three forces” to commit terrorist acts in order to deter China. In response, China must mobilize its citizens to wage a “people's war on terror.” The doctrinal document of the Shanghai Convention on Combating Terrorism, Separatism and Extremism popularized the phrase “three forces” — terrorism, separatism and extremism. Although this document makes a distinction between these three forces, the use of the “three forces” has infiltrated television. State media often attribute terrorist acts in China to “three forces” abroad — a group of “evil forces” with the aim of “creating unrest" in Xinjiang and splitting China.

     According to scientists, separatism, as a political trend, is based on the falsely interpreted principle of self-determination: "each ethnic community should have its own state-issued territory." The "premise" of this ideology is the factor of residence of a certain ethnic group on the territory of another, as a rule, the "titular" one. [2. C.93-94] Such a position of the separatists ignores the fact that most countries, including the PRC, recognize the inviolability of the borders established after World War II, and the situation with the division of Yugoslavia, the collapse of the USSR, the withdrawal of Crimea from Ukraine contribute to the hopes of the separatists to obtain their own statehood upon secession from China. The religious extremism of the Uighurs is based primarily on the differences in faith and mentality of the Islamic population from the rest of communist China. Uighurs are more focused on the countries of Central Asia than on the socialist  China.        

All anti-terrorist regulations of China can be conditionally divided into 3 levels. The first level is the international legal acts ratified by China (the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, the International Convention for the Suppression of Hostage—Taking, the Shanghai Convention on Combating Terrorism and others). The second level is Chinese laws (the Constitution of China, the Law "On National Security", the Criminal Code of China, the "Law on Combating Terrorism", the White Paper of China on Combating Terrorism).  And the third level is regional legislation — (Measures of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region "On the implementation of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Combating Terrorism"; the Provision of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region "On deradicalization"; the Provision "On combating extremism in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region".      

Currently, China has acceded to all existing international conventions on combating terrorism, participated in the process of drafting the International Convention "On Combating Terrorist Explosions", the International Convention "On Combating Acts of Nuclear Terrorism" and the International Convention "On Combating the Financing of Terrorism". The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress has formulated in the form of a separate resolution special provisions on certain crimes of a terrorist nature that provide a strong legal basis and guarantee the prevention, suppression and suppression of international terrorist acts.  The Chinese Government, through Interpol, also carries out extensive and effective cooperation with law enforcement agencies of other States in combating terrorist acts and investigating crimes, searching for wanted persons and arresting international terrorists.

   China has also strengthened the momentum of the fight against terrorism through domestic legislation. Until 1997, there was no legally defined concept of terrorism in China. The authorities called all terrorist acts "public unrest", "counterrevolutionary rebellion", encroaching on state security, "manifestations of violence motivated by religious fanaticism and separatism."

    Since 1997, the Chinese leadership has been introducing the concept of terrorism into criminal legislation and fixing the elements of crimes related to terrorism. The punishment provided for 3 to 10 years of imprisonment. In 2001, amendments were made to the Criminal Code of China, new crimes of a terrorist nature were added, the penalties for which increased up to life imprisonment and the death penalty. However, there was still no definition of terrorism in China's criminal law. The terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001 influenced China's policy, legislation and scientific approach to terrorism. According to Chinese scientists, terrorism is a disease that should be treated by eliminating the causes, not the symptoms. Scholar Yin Gang sees economic injustice as the source of terrorism, believing that "poverty and injustice are a hotbed of terrorism." [3. C.161-162].    

Amendments were also made to the law "On Civil Aviation", now it contains clear provisions on combating terrorist acts, including hijacking aircraft.     

There were no special anti-terrorist bodies in the People's Republic of China until 2001. Therefore, the Chinese leadership is creating a State Coordination Group on countering terrorism, in its which included the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Finance, state security, as well as a representative of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army of China. The group was headed by the Vice Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China. Provincial Governments have also established interagency coordination groups to counter terrorism on the ground. The Department for Combating Terrorism was established in the structure of the Ministry of Public Security, on the basis of which the daily work of the State Coordination Group was carried out. The list of functions of the Department included the collection and analysis of information on counter-terrorism issues, as well as coordination of activities on the ground and between provincial public security departments China.      In 2014, the National Governing Body for Combating Terrorism gathered a group of experts to develop a draft law "On combating terrorism".

The bill defined terrorism as follows: "Any thoughts, statements or actions that, through violence, sabotage or threats, are aimed at creating social panic, influencing the formation of national policy, inciting ethnic hatred." This definition raises several questions regarding the fight against terrorism. Firstly, it criminalizes thoughts and statements, which contradicts article 35 of the Chinese Constitution concerning freedom of speech. Those who express sympathy for “terrorism” can potentially be classified as terrorists. Secondly, the violation of constitutional rights testifies to the infringement of civil liberties, and emphasizes the priority of state security. The line between “inciting ethnic hatred" and promoting separatist aspirations is very thin. So in 2015, Uighur was convicted of “incitement to separatism” and sentenced to three years in prison and deprived of political rights for two years. He admitted that he uploaded a map of China, which does not include Xinjiang, Tibet, Inner Mongolia and Taiwan, to his Q-zone (social networking website), which implies that Xinjiang is an independent country.

      In 2015, the definition of terrorism was submitted for State interdepartmental discussion and revised as follows: "Any propaganda or activity that, through violence, sabotage or threats, is aimed at creating social panic, undermining public security, violating personal and property rights or forcing a state body or an international organization to achieve political, ideological or other goals". In the revised definition, “thoughts” were removed, which indicates the degree of awareness of the potential danger of criminalizing “thoughts”. The new definition of terrorism is still quite vague. The authorities can refer to “propaganda” to punish “thoughts” and “speech". Based on the definition of terrorism in the law, it can be concluded that any act of violence can be defined as terrorism.

    In China, in 2019, the government developed and published a White Paper entitled "Combating Terrorism", which contains the party's course on ensuring anti-terrorist security. Preference is given to preventive measures to combat terrorism. The book is declarative in nature. It is aimed at improving the standard of living, education, medicine, and employment opportunities of the population.

   In the same year , the government China has published another White Paper. This time we are talking about countering extremism in Xinjiang. The task of the officials was to raise the cultural level of the Uighurs, professional training of the region's residents, religious education in the political mainstream of socialism, learning the language and history of China.

    The practice of countering terrorism in China deserves special attention. The most important measure of influence aimed at preventing and suppressing terrorism was the control over the media. State media and government websites have virtually monopolized control over how incidents should be reported. One of the "iron rules" of the Chinese media is that when covering issues related to important topics, one should refer to the Xinhua news agency in order to provide "a single propaganda formulation." News agencies should follow the orders of the local authorities, supporting the unified position of the state. This means that the commercial media must unite with the main State media in covering terrorist incidents. In China, the fight against terrorism is closely linked to the interests of the state and the party and is unlikely to meet opposition from the public.      

As counter-terrorism measures in China, there are also lists with banned terrorist organizations and terrorists. The first list, published by the Ministry of Public Security on December 15, 2003, contained four organizations and eleven individuals. They are grouped under the general term “terrorist organizations of East Turkestan". The list is compiled in accordance with the Criminal Code of the People's Republic of China, the National Security Law, the Rules of its Application, as well as international conventions on combating terrorism ratified by China. The list is published in the State media and contains detailed information about the prohibition of listed terrorist organizations.

     In addition to the lists of banned organizations, a list of persons who are banned from entering the PRC has been developed. According to the Ministry of Public Security, the ban on the entry of individuals must simultaneously meet the following two criteria:

1. Association with terrorist groups and participation in activities that threaten national security, life and property of individuals.
2. Participation in any of the following activities: a) leadership, organization or participation in a prohibited terrorist group; b) organization, planning, incitement, propaganda or incitement to terrorist activities;c) financing or support of prohibited terrorist organizations and individuals;d) obtaining financing or training, or participation in the activities of prohibited terrorist organizations organizations or other international organizations.

   The institutional restructuring that has taken place in China over the past decade marks the development of a mechanism for countering terrorism from the one-time compilation of lists of terrorists, terrorist organizations, persons whose entry is prohibited, to a comprehensive state system involving all institutions of Chinese society.      

According to Sizov G.A., one of the most important principles of the fight against terrorism within the framework of Article 5 of the Law "On Countering Terrorism" is the practice of conducting a "people's war", since this strategy implies the broad participation of the civilian population in anti-terrorist activities by involving grassroots public organizations and private companies (Article 8), the creation of groups ofor volunteer detachments in communities (Article 74), as well as the use of informants from among local residents (Article 44). [8.P.134-135] Article 9 of the Law prescribes that all civil society should also actively fight terrorism, help the authorities in ensuring anti-terrorist security.

   The next practice of ensuring counteraction to one of the types of terrorism – radical Islam, was the corresponding actions of the leadership of Xinjiang. Thus, the authorities of the autonomous region identified 70 types of religious extremism, equating "covered" Uighur women with propagators of religious extremism. The state has stepped up restrictions on any religious clothing in Xinjiang. It is forbidden to wear a burqa, niqabs or hijabs, Islamic symbols such as a crescent moon and a star, long beards. It is forbidden to give religious names to children. The names Islam, the Koran, cannot be registered, and their bearers cannot receive a birth certificate. All grocery stores must sell cigarettes and alcohol, and civil servants and students are prohibited from fasting during Ramadan. It is prohibited to damage a passport, refuse to watch state television, counteract China's demographic policy, perform marriage religious rites, prevent children from attending secondary schools. The systematization of state regulation and control over religious practice in the region was designed to ensure that Islam did not occupy a social field outside the circle of mosques and houses.     The fight against terrorism has affected all religious aspects of Xinjiang's life. Imams, in order to be eligible to serve in mosques, must graduate from an Islamic academy in China. Educational programs for the academy are developed in The Committee on Religious Affairs under the Government of the XUAR.    

We should also note the youth campaign "Project Beauty" (launched back in 2011 – ed.), which was aimed at combating the closure of women's faces, and promoting the "modern lifestyle" of Uighur women.  

   An effective state program "Education through Labor" played a huge, one might say decisive role in the victory over terrorism in Xinjiang. Since 2015, the Government of the People's Republic of China has established vocational training and advanced training centers in Xinjiang. The goal of the program, which is called "Mastering three - getting rid of one", is to master the state language of China, laws, professional skills and getting rid of radicalism and extremist ideas. [1.C.120-121]. In the White Paper on Countering Extremism in the XUAR, three categories of Chinese citizens are required to stay in educational camps. Category 1 is persons who have been influenced by extremist and terrorist ideology, but have not committed crimes on this basis. Category 2 - persons who participated in extremist organizations, but their activities did not cause damage to Chinese society. Such citizens must either repent and enroll in an educational camp, or face criminal responsibility for participating in extremist and separatist organizations. Category 3 is people who have already been convicted of terrorism, who still pose a public danger and are sent to educational camps by a court decision. The training program lasts 8-12 months. At the discretion of teachers, if the pupil has not got rid of radicalism, classes can be extended for the same amount. In our opinion, the Chinese authorities not only punish terrorists and extremists, but also give them a chance. Vocational training takes place in educational camps, people master not only knowledge of the history, politics, laws of China, but also receive a sought-after profession, which gives them the opportunity to integrate into Chinese society.    

The sovereign Internet has also become a preventive measure against terrorism in China. The "Golden Shield" or "Great Chinese Firewall" appeared back in 2003. In 2017 The National Congress of People's Representatives in China, in order to combat terrorism and ensure national security, adopted the law "On Cybersecurity", which enshrines the strengthening of state control. The Internet is completely controlled by the Chinese government, censorship is observed in it, foreign websites and social networks are blocked, search queries are controlled. In search engines, the words "Tiananmen", "Dalai Lama", "violations of the rights of Uighurs" are blocked. The Chinese can use exclusively their Chinese social networks (Taobao, AliPay, Weibo, We chat, etc.), analogues of foreign ones, but unlike the latter completely controlled by special services. Access to the Internet since 2003 has been only by identification number, and since 2020 by face verification (face id). Only verified users can play computer games, minors are allowed to play no more than 1.5 hours on weekdays and 3 hours on weekends. The creation and distribution of VPN programs that allow you to bypass the blocking is prosecuted by the Criminal Code of China. The punishment is provided for up to 5 years in prison. In China, there is an "Internet police" that closely monitors the distributed content, as well as shaping public opinion in the direction necessary for the Communist Party of China. [7.P.59-60]The new law of 2021 

"On Data Security of the People's Republic of China" assigns to the National Department of Cybersecurity and Informatization the right to monitor and ensure comprehensive security of network data. It is also forbidden in China to criticize the state and to speak negatively about the policies of the Communist Party of China on the Internet is prohibited. Only educational and positive (from the point of view of the party) content is posted.

  In order to consolidate society's intransigence against terrorism and support China's policy, the government has created a social rating of the Chinese. So the Chinese either earn balls by their actions, or lose them. Persons with a low social rating cannot use public transport, buy plane tickets, serve in the army, communication with them lowers the social rating of other citizens and leads to ostracism. The social rating is influenced by timely payment of taxes, law-abiding, polite behavior in public places, in social networks, concern for the environment, a healthy lifestyle. Citizens with a high social rating can receive interest-free loans, are easily hired, and can rent bicycles for free. Thus, the PRC encourages law-abiding behavior of citizens, and punishes antisocial behavior, making it unpopular and unprofitable.

   Artificial intelligence is also being used to combat terrorism, which allows recognizing people's emotions and identifying citizens when passing the border with China at customs, as well as on the streets of Xinjiang. Artificial intelligence finds content in Internet texts containing extremist, separatist appeals, information about the manufacture of weapons, radical Islam and blocks them by sending them to the General Directorate for Cyberspace Control China has information about violators.

     In our opinion, China's experience can be very useful for combating terrorism, since the authorities have managed to form a rejection of illegal activities in society, eradicate legal nihilism, and educate the spirit of patriotism among the population.       

The possibility of obtaining social benefits from socially useful behavior both in cyberspace and in real life is also important. Russian-Chinese bilateral cooperation in the fight against terrorism is of an applied systemic nature and has been fine-tuned in the areas of holding consultative meetings, countering the financing of terrorist activities and organizing joint military exercises. [5.C.209-210].    1.

Following the example of China, a social rating of citizens should be introduced, for example, on the website of Public Services, the law-abiding Russians should be evaluated in balls. To persons who have fines for violation of traffic rules, to reduce balls, to persons who do not pay taxes on time, who have overdue loans, also to reduce, to volunteers and donors to add.  Russian society needs to develop incentive measures for law-abiding citizens and provide social bonuses for such persons. Such measures will help Russians get rid of legal nihilism, which contributes to the spread of extremism and terrorism.

   2. It seems necessary, following the example of China, to think over and implement technological and legal protection of Russians from the spread and influence of terrorist ideology on the Internet. Verify Internet users and limit the time spent by minors in social networks and games.

    3. Russian criminal legislation provides for the possibility of imposing on a convicted person the obligation to undergo treatment for drug addiction and medical and social rehabilitation (Part 1 of Article 72.1 "Sentencing a person recognized as a drug addict") of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. According to scientists, our legislation needs to create the same obligations for criminals. [6.P.192-193] It is advisable to fix the obligation for certain categories of persons related to extremism and terrorism to be trained in legal education and vocational training centers. Such centers should be under the jurisdiction of the National Anti-Terrorism Committee.

    4.In our opinion, following the example of China, criminals who have committed terrorist crimes should be held separately in places of detention. In Russian The Comprehensive Plan for countering the ideology of terrorism in the Russian Federation for 2019-2023 prescribes the need for law enforcement officers (FSIN, Ministry of Internal Affairs) to conduct classes with persons convicted of terrorism, their relatives, persons who came from countries with a high level of terrorist threat. The divisions of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, whose competence will include working with terrorists and their relatives, should: carefully prepare and select (morally stable and having pedagogical skills) employees to work on countering anti-terrorist activities; conduct training in the National Anti-Terrorist Committee (NAC) for such employees.

2. They should study religion, Islam, learn how to interpret the Koran in the right way for the state; in correctional institutions, it is necessary to organize speeches for terrorist criminals and their accomplices by convicts who have got rid of radical views and describe the advantages of rejecting extremism.

    In religious institutions, only figures who have passed the appropriate classes in the NAC, testing in the FSB of Russia should serve. It is also necessary to think about the possibility of issuing licenses for religious activities involving the reading of sermons.