Beijing court gives financial aid to victims harmed during crimes

Since the beginning of the year, a Beijing court has provided stronger financial and judicial aid for women, children, seniors and those with disabilities who were harmed during the commission of crimes as it strives to protect human rights and help vulnerable people live better lives.

In a report issued on Thursday, the Beijing No 1 Intermediate People's Court said that it gave more than 1.98 million yuan ($270,000) of judicial relief to 35 people who applied for it from January 2022 to July this year.

"Some applicants were victims who got seriously injured or became severely disabled while a crime was being committed, and they couldn't be compensated because the criminals died," Cheng Hu, vice-president of the court, said while introducing the report at a news conference.

"Some were family members of victims who died during the commission of crimes, and the criminals either had no ability to compensate or had also died," he added.

He revealed that five minors, four disabled people and 22 seniors received financial aid from the court, as well as assistance in other areas such as education and healthcare.

"We recently distributed more than 60,000 yuan to twin girls who are middle school students after learning their mother died due to intentional injury, and their father had no steady income," said Hu Huafeng, head of the country's compensation office.

Highlighting the importance of juvenile education, he said that the amount of money would help the family pay the girls' school fees.

In addition to providing money, he added that the court has also worked with the women's federation, civil affairs agencies and child protection organizations to offer more targeted aid for the applicants, including for psychological and nursing care and social insurance.

Both judicial officials said that they will continue to take a people-centered approach in their work, seek more ways help struggling victims and protect human rights.