Approach it and guard it
The procurator of the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate conscientiously handled Wang's case, and after the case was completed, he came to Hu Yanglin again to visit and water the newly planted trees in the off-site restoration area with Wang.
In the autumn of October, the most beautiful season of poplar, the Ejina Banner of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region has become the focus of national attention due to the sudden new crown epidemic.
When the "small city" blocked the "great epidemic" and entered the stage of attacking and clearing the zero, the tourists who had been stranded in the Ejin Banner sang the song - "I will see you next autumn, lifting up the surprise that I have not seen enough this year." In Ejina, where the weak water is three thousand, there is no desert lonely smoke, only poplar standing tall..." They agreed to "see each other again next autumn", and the Ejina Banner prosecutor who had just participated in the anti-epidemic work told the story of protecting the poplar forest, and welcomed more tourists to come to appreciate the beauty of the desert - the poplar forest.
Burn weeds
Herders accidentally destroyed 73.9 acres of state-owned forest land
"Poplar does not die for a thousand years, does not fall for a thousand years after death, and is immortal for a thousand years after death." As a precious and endangered plant unique to desert areas, poplar plays a very important role in stabilizing the ecological balance of desert river areas, preventing wind and sand fixation, and regulating oasis climate. The poplar forest in Ejina Banner is one of the only three remaining natural river poplar woodlands in the world, and the only arbor forest area in the desert area of western Inner Mongolia. In order to strengthen the protection of poplar forests, in 1992, with the approval of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region government, a provincial poplar forest nature reserve was established in the core area of Ejina Oasis, and in January 2003, it was approved by the State Council to become a national nature reserve.
Herdsman Wang Mou has a piece of contracted land in the Ejina Banner Poplar Forest Nature Reserve. On April 10, 2020, when everything was in full swing, Wang Mou, as in previous years, burned weeds in the contracted land to prepare for the upcoming spring ploughing. Unexpectedly, the fire and wind ignited the tamarind on the edge of the ground. While extinguishing the fire, Wang called Gachada (that is, the director of the village committee), and Gachada immediately called the police.
The cadres and policemen of the Ejin Naqi Forest Public Security Bureau rushed to the scene and joined forces with the personnel of the forestry and grassland department, Wang Mou and the nearby masses to fight the rescue. Eventually, the fire, which lasted for nearly five hours, was extinguished, and although there were no casualties, the surrounding woodland was severely damaged. The public security organ entrusted the Ningxia Lusenyuan Forest Resources Forensic Appraisal Center to conduct the appraisal, and the latter issued an appraisal opinion: Wang Mou burned 73.9 mu of state-owned forest land in the core area of the Poplar Forest Nature Reserve, the type of vegetation burned was Tamarix, and the cost of restoring the burned vegetation was 148,000 yuan.
"Gachada has told us many times that we can't use open fire in the protected area, and I also know that weeds can't be burned, but in order to save trouble, we still took out matches..." After the incident, Wang Mou regretted it very much.
On May 8, 2020, Wang was criminally detained on suspicion of fire and was released on guarantee pending further investigation. On June 9 of the same year, the public security organs transferred Wang's case to the procuratorate for review and prosecution.
"Triple Check in One"
Criminal, civil, and administrative liability shall be tried simultaneously
"Although the case is not a serious criminal offense, it is a wake-up call for the protection of poplar forests." As a territorial procuratorial organ, it must perform well the duties entrusted by the law and make a difference. After Guo Wenxiu, chief procurator of the Alxa League Branch of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Procuratorate, learned about the case, he asked the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate to immediately form the strongest case-handling team and handle the case as a "model case" for the ecological protection of Hu Yanglin. Subsequently, the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate launched the "three inspections in one" case handling model (that is, criminal, civil and administrative liabilities are reviewed together for cases involving ecological environment and resource protection).
On-site measurements, fixing evidence with the help of drone aerial photography... The case-handling team conducted many on-site investigations, and while reviewing criminal evidence, collected evidence related to the economic value of the burned seedlings and the loss of ecological functions. Finally, the case-handling team confirmed that Wang Mou burned and destroyed 73.9 mu of state-owned forest land, which was suspected of constituting the crime of fire, which destroyed the ecological functions carried by the forest land and damaged the social and public interests.
As the lead prosecutor, Li Huan, director of the Second Procuratorial Department of the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate, believes that in order to restore the ecological environment of the forest area while punishing crimes, initiating a criminal incidental civil public interest lawsuit should be the best choice. Coinciding with the adoption of the Regulations on the Protection of Poplar Forests in Ejina Banner of inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on June 11, 2020, this gave him and his colleagues more confidence in handling cases, "The regulations provide a legal basis for protecting the resources of poplar forests in Ejina Banner, maintaining biodiversity, and promoting sustainable economic and social development." ”
On June 15, 2020, the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate performed the pre-trial announcement procedure in accordance with law. After the expiration of the announcement period, no organ or social organization provided for by law initiates a civil public interest lawsuit.
Admit guilt and accept punishment
"Smashing pots and selling iron, I also have to do a good job of compensation"
Li Huan and his colleagues learned during the visit and investigation that Wang Mou was a poor household in the local Gacha Lika, and there was still a 75-year-old mother in the family who needed to be supported. Wang not only actively extinguished the fire, but also cooperated with the public security organs to carry out investigations after the incident, and there were circumstances of voluntary surrender; after the case was transferred to the procuratorial organs for review and prosecution, he also repeatedly expressed his willingness to bear the civil liability of replanting and replanting and maintaining forest land. "I also have to make compensation for smashing pots and selling iron." On July 6, 2020, Wang solemnly signed the affidavit admitting guilt and accepting punishment.
On July 23, 2020, the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate filed a criminal incidental civil public interest lawsuit against Wang. In view of the fact that Wang's social harm is not great, the application of probation has no major impact on his community, and Wang's admission of guilt and acceptance of punishment, the court recommended that Wang be sentenced to one year's imprisonment and two years' probation. Since the burned forest land has been naturally restored, the court put forward a public interest litigation request to assume the responsibility for restoration through "off-site restoration", asking the court to order Wang to replant 150 acres of soso forest in the designated location, and publicly apologize to the public in the local media.
In the case of Wang admitting guilt and accepting punishment and actively bearing civil liability, how to balance the contradiction between punishing crime and restoring ecology? "We did not initiate the appraisal of the economic value of the burned vegetation and the appraisal of the ecological function loss during the period from the damage to the restoration of the vegetation in the protected area, but determined the economic value of the burned vegetation based on the appraisal opinion transferred by the investigation organ attached to the file, and determined the civil liability for replanting and re-greening in different places according to the opinion issued by the forestry and grassland department on the restoration of the burned area of the poplar forest nature reserve." Li Huan told reporters. Considering the financial constraints of Wang's family, this avoids the cost of re-identification.
Stay tuned
Make sure the "off-site repair" tree grows strong
On October 9, 2020, during the court trial, Wang voluntarily paid a deposit of 30,000 yuan instead of replanting. On October 12, 2020, the Ejin Naqi Court formed a 7-member collegial panel to publicly hear the case in accordance with the law and pronounced a verdict in court, sentencing Wang to one year's imprisonment and suspended for two years for the crime of misfire; ordering Wang to use 3 years to replant 150 mu of windproof and sand-fixing vegetation in a place designated by the administrative organ, and to care and manage the replanted saplings, and if the restoration of the replanted forest land did not meet the standards, he would bear the cost of replanting 30,000 yuan; ordered Wang to apologize to the public in the news media at the county level.
"Ensure the completion of the task of replanting and replanting, and fulfill the responsibility of care and care for replanting saplings." In court, Wang promised again. On the same day, the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate specially invited more than 60 people, including people's congress deputies, MEMBERS of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, responsible persons of Gacha, and representatives of farmers and herdsmen, to observe the trial.
"Ejin Naqi Poplar Forest is not only our ecological business card, but also a well-known tourism business card at home and abroad. As local herders, they should abide by the prohibition of burning weeds in poplar forest reserves, cherish and cherish this gift of nature, and protect this precious green. "The prosecutor calls on everyone to take joint action to protect the beautiful poplar forest and protect the ecological environment on which everyone depends." Mo Qide, a deputy to the Ejin Naqi People's Congress, believes that this trial is more like a law popularization lesson, so that Hu Yanglin's judicial protection is widely known and of great significance.
In order to implement the ecological restoration responsibility determined by the judgment, the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate continued to pay attention to the enforcement of the case. In view of how the defendant could replant 150 mu of sosothson forest in a different place to achieve the expected ecological effects, the institute asked the forestry and grassland department to compile the "Afforestation Operation Design" to design and plan the selection of seedlings, afforestation methods, time, land preparation, planting, drought resistance and water conservation, and care management. Considering the economic difficulties of Wang's family, the hospital donated some saplings to Wang, and coordinated Gacha to guide and supervise Wang's planting and care management of seedlings.
This spring, after a return visit, the procurator found that the vegetation in the fire area was growing happily, the recovery was good, and the survival rate of more than 50 mu of shuttle forest planted by Wang Mou in a different place was also very high, which met the requirements of the "Afforestation Operation Design".
Not long ago, this case was selected as a typical case of public interest litigation on biodiversity conservation issued by the Supreme People's Procuratorate. "We will continue to pay attention to the soso forest to ensure that the seedlings can be planted and grow strong, and become a demonstration forest for local ecological and environmental public interest litigation." Zhang Junhua, chief procurator of the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate, said.
【The Prosecutor General said】
"Small cases" are of great significance
Guo Wenxiu, chief procurator of the Alxa League Branch of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Procuratorate
Ejin Banner is an ecologically fragile area, and the local 444,000 mu of poplar is an important barrier to prevent the spread of the Badain Jaran Desert to the north, and it is also a natural treasure house for the ecology of western China. The case of Wang Mou's criminal incidental civil public interest litigation handled by the Ejin Naqi Procuratorate is of positive significance to the publicity of the rule of law for the protection of huyanglin and the implementation of the "Regulations on the Protection of Poplar Forest in Ejinaqi of inner Mongolia Autonomous Region", and also reflects the three "effective links" between criminal prosecution and public interest litigation procuratorate.
First, the effective connection between the review of criminal evidence and the investigation of public interest litigation. The Ejin Naqi Procuratorate uses the "three procuratorates in one" case-handling model, whereby the same case-handling team initiates public interest litigation supervision procedures while performing criminal procuratorial duties, and examines whether the case involves civil liability and administrative liability. This model is not only conducive to the timely discovery of public interest litigation clues, but also conducive to the timely initiation of public interest litigation procedures, and realizes the effective connection between criminal evidence review and public interest litigation investigation.
The second is the effective connection between the leniency system for criminal plea and the liability for compensation for public interest damages. Article 5 of the 2016 Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Handling of Criminal Cases of Environmental Pollution stipulates that first-time offenders who have just met the criteria for constituting a crime but have actively repaired the environmental damage caused by it and have shown remorse may be given lenient treatment. After the occurrence of this case, Wang Mou had surrendered voluntarily and had a good attitude of admitting guilt, and during the period of release on guarantee pending further investigation, he had been carefully maintaining the fire forest land, and the forest land was naturally restored, and he also signed an affidavit with the procuratorial organ admitting guilt and accepting punishment, and took the initiative to pay a deposit of 30,000 yuan to the court for alternative replanting. The procuratorial organs regard the active performance of ecological restoration responsibilities as an important circumstance of admitting guilt and accepting punishment, which is reflected in the sentencing recommendation, and gives the offender the opportunity to make up for his mistakes, which has been adopted by the court.
The third is the effective connection between the function of criminal punishment and the function of public interest litigation relief. Procuratorial organs initiating criminal incidental civil public interest litigation can not only achieve litigation effects that cannot be achieved by a single criminal procedure or civil public interest litigation, but also maximize the timely relief of the infringed social public interest, implement the criminal policy of blending leniency with severity, and effectively reduce social confrontation and maintain social order and stability.
In the future, we will further strengthen the procuratorial supervision of biodiversity conservation, improve the system and mechanism, strengthen internal and external communication and coordination, form a joint force for protection, provide more and better procuratorial products for the ecological environment and resource protection of Inner Mongolia, and tie the ecological security barrier in the far north of the motherland more firmly and tightly. (Shen Jingfang, Xie Zhiping, Guo Wenxiu, Photo: Zheng Wei, Li Bochao)
Source: Procuratorial Daily