The Application and Improvement of the Prohibition Order System in the Field of Wildlife Conservation

Abstract

The Eighth Amendment to the Criminal Law, promulgated in 2011, formally incorporated the prohibition order system into the criminal law statutes. In the same year, the Supreme People’s Court, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of Justice jointly issued the “Provisions (Trial) on the Application of Prohibition Orders to Offenders Sentenced to Probation or Given Suspended Sentences” (hereinafter referred to as the “Prohibition Order Provisions”), providing relevant guidance for the implementation of this system. However, fifteen years later, due to the lack of clear application rules and standards in the field of wildlife protection, the heavy reliance on judges’ discretionary powers, and weak enforcement and oversight mechanisms, the prohibition order system has seen low adoption rates and has become largely symbolic. Therefore, by clarifying application rules and standards, strengthening enforcement and oversight, and integrating ecological restoration measures, people can fully harness the educational, preventive, and corrective functions of the prohibition order system, thereby achieving multiple objectives: punishing crime, preventing recidivism, and protecting wildlife resources.