Chinese authorities have for the first time issued a guideline on preventing unjust or wrongful judgments, following the emergence of several court scandals.

The latest statement was issued by the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.

The guideline reiterates the articles in the Criminal Procedural Law, which was amended last year, and stipulate that suspect interrogations should be conducted in interrogation rooms in detention houses, with audio or video recordings of the entire process.

When investigative organs transfer a case through the chain of command, all evidence should be transferred, regardless of whether it proves a suspect's guilt or not.

The guideline stresses that for cases in which there is not enough evidence to prove a suspect's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, the court should stick to the principle of reserving punishment and pronouncing defendants not guilty, rather than issuing a judgment based on insufficient evidence.

It urges judicial organs to define the standards for unjust and wrongful judgments and establish a mechanism to pursue the true parties responsible.

The guideline came in response to loud public calls for judicial fairness after the emergence of several prominent wrongful judgments. The latest such case is that of Zhang Hui and his uncle, Zhang Gaoping, in Zhejiang Province.

Zhang Hui was given a death sentence and Zhang Gaoping was sentenced to life in prison by the Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court on April 21, 2004 for allegedly raping and killing a 17-year-old girl.

Their sentences were later commuted to a death sentence with a two-year reprieve for Zhang Hui and a 15-year prison term for Zhang Gaoping during a second trial by the Zhejiang Provincial Higher People's Court in October 2004.

The higher court acquitted the two of rape in March this year after a retrial found insufficient evidence to support their conviction.