Mother's labor camp suit to be heard

CHANGSHA - A local court in Central China's Hunan province is expected to hear a case in which the mother of a young rape victim is suing a local authority that put her into re-education-through-labor camp.

The Yongzhou Intermediate People's Court is expected to hear the case within a "legal timeframe," according to the court and the plaintiff, Tang Hui, on Tuesday.

The court did not specify when the suit would be heard.

Tang had appealed for the court to report her case to the Higher People's Court in Hunan, which can designate another intermediate people's court to try the case, so as to rule out the possibility of interference from Yongzhou authorities.

However, the provincial higher people's court has still designated the Yongzhou intermediate court to hear the case.

If Tang believes certain court staff may interfere in the case, she can ask them to avoid involving themselves in the suit, a Yongzhou court official told Xinhua on Tuesday.

Tang, a mother who has petitioned for harsher punishments for those who were convicted of raping her daughter and forcing the girl into prostitution, demanded in the indictment 1,463.85 yuan ($235) in compensation from the local re-education-through-labor authority for infringing on her personal freedom.

She also demanded another 1,000 yuan for psychological damage and a written apology.

Last year, Tang campaigned in front of government buildings for harsher punishments for those found guilty of raping her then 11-year-old daughter in 2006 and forcing the girl into prostitution.

Tang also demanded that "two local police officers in Yongzhou be punished by law for raping my daughter."

Police took Tang to a labor camp on August 2, 2012 to serve an 18-month term for "seriously disturbing social order and exerting a negative impact on society" through her protests.

Her detention quickly set off a firestorm of public criticism. Under public pressure, Tang was released eight days later, as the center said her daughter, who turned 17 last year, was still a minor in need of her mother's care.

Tang's story has sparked public outcry for the reform of the re-education through labor system, which allows police to detain people for up to four years without an open trial.