Can One Woman’s Case Change a 70-Year Old System of Injustice?

The story of Tang Hui, a mother sentenced to hard labor through the “re-education through labor,” or RTL, program when seeking justice for her raped daughter, may have created new impetus for legislative change. Among the voices urging Tang’s release (Tang was finally released on August 10), some stepped even further to question the whole RTL system. As writer Cui Jinsheng (@雾满拦江) argues: “Reeducation through Labor is the most typical extra-judicial punishment. No court, no attorneys, and the police can strip citizens of their freedom at will. Have a look at Tang Hui’s case: the daughter was raped, and the police sent the mother to hard labor. Why does such injustice exist? Because of the ‘reeducation through labor’ system. The terrible system put all people, including police officers, at great peril. Is there any reason for such an unjust, inhumane system to continue?”