In today's social media world, behind the veil of the "virtual network," some internet users often smear or even insult our heroes and martyrs for reasons such as "seeking attention" or venting their real-life dissatisfaction. Previously, because the Criminal Law did not explicitly stipulate acts that seriously infringe upon the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs, it was impossible to accurately pursue legal liability against these "online vermin."Now, the Amendment (XI) to the Criminal Law has added Article 299-1 of the Criminal Law, the Crime of Infringing upon the Reputation and Honor of Heroes and Martyrs, providing a protective shield for our heroes and martyrs.What is the "Crime of Infringing upon the Reputation and Honor of Heroes and Martyrs"?Whoever insults, defames, or by other means infringes upon the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs, thereby harming the public interest, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention, public surveillance, or deprivation of political rights.

Legal Interpretation Case:"Labi Xiaoqiu Case"

In June 2020, foreign troops公然违背与我方达成的共识，悍然越线挑衅。In accordance with the usual practice for handling border incidents and the prior agreement reached between the two sides, Qi Fabao, the head of a certain border defense regiment, went to negotiate with only a few officers and soldiers in good faith to resolve the issue, but was subjected to premeditated violent attacks by the other side. During the negotiation and fierce struggle, Regiment Commander Qi Fabao took the lead and was seriously injured; Battalion Commander Chen Hongjun and Soldier Chen Xiangrong broke into the encirclement to rescue others, fought back奋力反击, and sacrificed heroically; Soldier Xiao Siyuan, after breaking out of the encirclement, returned without hesitation to rescue his comrades and fought until his last breath; Soldier Wang Zhuoran, while crossing the river to provide support, made every effort to help his scattered comrades escape danger but was himself submerged in the icy river.

After this incident was reported, the entire nation was deeply grieved and expressed the highest respect to the border guards who defended the country with their lives. However, on the morning of February 19, 2021, the Sina Weibo account "Labi Xiaoqiu" (with over 2.5 million followers), in order to attract attention and gain more followers, used network equipment at his residence to post two Weibo messages at 10:29 and 10:46 respectively, distorting the heroic deeds of the border guards defending the country and slandering and belittling their heroic spirit, thereby infringing upon the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs. These Weibo messages spread rapidly online, triggering strong public indignation and causing adverse social impacts. On February 20, the suspect Qiu Ming was criminal detained by the public security organ, and the People's Procuratorate of Jianye District, Nanjing City intervened in the investigation. On February 25, the public security organ submitted to the procuratorate for approval of arrest on suspicion of picking quarrels and provoking trouble. After trial by the People's Court of Jianye District, Nanjing City, the court pronounced the judgment in court, finding the defendant Qiu Ziming guilty of the crime of infringing upon the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs, and sentencing him to fixed-term imprisonment of eight months; he was also ordered to make a public apology through major domestic portal websites and national media within ten days from the date of the judgment becoming effective to eliminate the impact.

This case is also the first case in China involving the crime of infringing upon the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs.

Legal Interpretation by Lawyer Ouyang Chenpeng:

When specifically convicting the Crime of Infringing upon the Reputation and Honor of Heroes and Martyrs, we should grasp the following key points:

I. Definition of "Heroes and Martyrs"

Currently, there is no clear definition of "heroes and martyrs" in China's laws and regulations. From a practical perspective, the scope of "heroes and martyrs" should be defined under the guidance of laws and policies, taking into account social reality. For the time being, the following materials can be used as basis for identifying "heroes and martyrs": First, heroic and martyred figures reported by central authoritative newspapers and periodicals or relevant lists of heroes and martyrs compiled and published by people's governments at all levels, such as the "List of Anti-Japanese Martyrs and Heroic Groups" published by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and the "Martyrs' Gallery for National Rejuvenation" carried by People's Daily; second, martyr certificates issued by people's governments; third, commendation decisions or honorary titles awarded by the Party and the government, that is, those advanced model figures who, although not yet awarded martyr certificates or included in the list of heroes and martyrs after their sacrifice, have had their advanced deeds confirmed by the Party and the government in the form of documents or other official means (such as Party newspapers and periodicals), given positive evaluation and publicity, and called on people to learn from their lofty spirit, can also be protected in accordance with the law by referring to heroes and martyrs.

II. Determination of "Harming the Public Interest"

As an uncertain legal concept, public interest refers to the satisfaction of the needs of an uncertain majority of people. We tend to believe that in judicial practice, the understanding of "harming public interest" should be objective. In cases of infringing upon the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs, the insult or defamation may be directed at a specific hero or martyrs, and it also hurts the feelings and memories of the relatives of these heroes and martyrs. On the surface, it seems to infringe upon the personal emotional interests of the relatives around these heroes and martyrs, but such emotional interests do not belong only to specific close relatives. As heroes and martyrs, their deeds and spirit have gone far beyond the individual and have even become the core of the national spirit, which undoubtedly belongs to the category of public interest.

In this case, the actor发表带有侮辱性质的不实言论 through media and online platforms, which has gone beyond the scope of freedom of speech, infringed upon the reputation of heroes and the public interest. Moreover, when the "Labi Xiaoqiu's Infringement upon the Reputation and Honor of Heroes and Martyrs" case occurred, the Amendment (XI) to the Criminal Law had been issued and came into effect, so the actor's act constituted a criminal offense and should bear criminal responsibility in accordance with the law.

III. Definition of "Serious Circumstances"

Regarding the determination of "serious circumstances," there is currently no judicial interpretation for this crime, and other relevant laws, regulations, and judicial interpretations can be used as references: (1) the Notice of the Ministry of Public Security on Strictly Handling Cases of Insult and Defamation in accordance with the Law in 2009; (2) the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in Handling Criminal Cases of Using Information Networks to Commit Defamation and Other Crimes in 2013. Specifically, in the "Labi Xiaoqiu Case," the actor Qiu Ming posted two pieces of information infringing upon the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs online, slandering a total of five heroic border guards defending the country. He发表诋毁英烈言论 in the virtual online space with extremely fast dissemination speed and great freedom of speech. In addition, the actor himself was once a journalist and has been active on Weibo and other forums all year round after leaving his job, so his remarks have certain influence. Considering these circumstances, the actor's remarks slandering heroes and martyrs inevitably and indeed aroused the indignation of numerous netizens, greatly hurt the simple feelings of the general public, and caused extremely adverse social impacts. Therefore, it is completely reasonable to认定其侵害英雄烈士名誉、荣誉的行为属于"情节严重".