中國大陸刑事責任年齡降低問題研究

Research on the Issue of Lowering the Age of Criminal Responsibility in China Mainland

中國大陸刑法修正案（十一）已於2020年12月26日通過，並於2021年3月1日起施行，此次修法最大的重點是將刑法承擔刑事責任的最低年齡從14周歲降低至12周歲。最低刑事責任年齡的設定，一方面體現對犯罪未成年人進行懲罰的理念，另一方面也要滿足社會對正義的期許，世界各國在規定刑事責任年齡時，都會考慮上述兩方面的平衡。刑罰作為一種法律制裁手段，是最為嚴厲的，但畢竟只是管理社會秩序的一種手段，在預防犯罪和矯正犯罪方面的作用是有限的，這是降低刑事責任年齡後，相關刑事司法制度的配套措施也必須建構。本文從中國大陸人大代表提案修法出發，分析修改刑事責任年齡問題，繼而探討關於刑事責任降低年齡的正反兩方爭論，輔以比較法的借鑒，繼而探討降低刑事責任年齡的選擇，最終提出降低刑事責任年齡後的配套措施，並提出本文的結論。

"The Amendment to the Criminal Law of China (11) was passed on December 26, 2020, and has enforced on March 1, 2021. The focus of this revision is to lower the minimum age for criminal responsibility in the Criminal Law from 14 to 12 years old. The establishment of a minimum age of criminal responsibility must not only reflect the concept of punishing juvenile offenders, but also satisfy society’s expectations of justice. Although punishment is a severe legal sanction, it is ultimately only a means to manage social order, and its role in crime prevention and correction is limited. Therefore, after lowering the age of criminal responsibility, corresponding criminal justice system supporting measures must also be constructed. This article begins with the amendment of the law proposed by the representatives of the People’s Congress of China, analyzes the reasons for the revision of the age of criminal responsibility, and then discusses the pros and cons of reducing the age of criminal responsibility, supplemented by the reference of comparative law, and then discusses the choice of lowering the age of criminal responsibility. Finally, it puts forward the supporting measures after lowering the age of criminal responsibility, and puts forward the conclusion of this article."