In the early morning of September 29, 1978, several dull gunshots rang out from the 144th regimental hospital in Shihezi, Xinjiang, in which 22-year-old Jiang Aizhen, a young woman from Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province, shot and killed three people in a row with a Type 53 rifle. Jiang Aizhen was later convicted of "counterrevolutionary homicide" by the court of first instance and finally sentenced to death. However, on October 20, 1979, the third page of "People's **" published an article titled "Why Jiang Aizhen Killed Someone" on almost the entire page, which was more than 7,000 words long. Although this article did not directly intercede for Jiang Aizhen, it became her lifeline, and at the same time promoted the construction of China's democracy and legal system. Jiang Aizhen was born in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province in 1956, and has shown intelligent and hardworking qualities since she was a child, and her personality is very resolute. In the 60s and 70s of the 20th century, the "go to the mountains and go to the countryside" movement was set off across the country.
In 1972, after graduating from junior high school at the age of 16, Jiang Aizhen followed her eldest brother Jiang Gentu to Shihezi, Xinjiang, and started a new life in the 144th regiment and a battalion and a company. The 144th Regiment is located in the vast Junggar Basin, and its daily living conditions are far less than those in the affluent areas of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. At first, my brother was very worried about whether his sister would be able to adapt to the climate conditions. However, Jiang Aizhen never complains, she works diligently and efficiently, and does not stop. Due to the relatively hard soil and hard work, many male workers felt struggling, but Jiang Aizhen showed tenacious perseverance and perseverance. On her days off, she also volunteered to help out in the kitchen and mend the clothes of the other fighters, and the people around her were full of praise for this pretty southern girl. In May 1973, due to her outstanding performance, Jiang Aizhen joined the Communist Youth League and immediately attended the congress of young activists of the Eighth Agricultural Division.
The following year, the 144th Regiment Farm Hospital needed to recruit a group of nursing staff, and Jiang Aizhen was recommended to study in a short-term training course and stayed in the hospital as a nursing staff after graduation. In 1976, Jiang Aizhen honorably joined the Communist Party of China, and was soon elected as a member of the hospital's party branch, secretary of the Youth League branch, and militia platoon commander. At that time, she was only 20 years old and had become the backbone of production and a model worker in the regiment. If no accidents happen, Jiang Aizhen's future is full of hope. Unfortunately, however, fate beckoned her suddenly....... On October 6, 1976, the three leaders of Wang Dongxing joined forces to wipe out the "Gang of Four" and its comrades, completely ending the history of "ten years of turmoil". However, even after the end of the unrest, there are still many bad practices in the remote Shihezi area. In the 144th regiment hospital, there were many contradictions between a group of troublemakers headed by Li Peihua and Xie Shiping and the regimental leaders.
Xie Shiping was originally just an inconspicuous pharmacist, but after class struggle, he eventually rose to the position of director of the Youth League Movement Office. In contrast, the regiment leader Zhang Guozheng's private life is flawless, and his work ability is far better than Xie Shiping's. However, Xie Shiping and Li Peihua pointed the finger at Jiang Aizhen, taking advantage of the relationship between Jiang Aizhen's brother Jiang Gentu and Zhang Guozheng, and fabricated a vicious "catch rape" conspiracy. On the evening of March 17, 1978, Xie Shiping and others "raided" Jiang Aizhen's dormitory, baselessly claiming that she had an improper relationship with Zhang Guozheng, claiming to have come to "** Subsequently, they falsely reported the facts to the working group, resulting in the arrest of both Zhang Guozheng and Jiang Aizhen, and condemnation at the staff meeting. Although Zhang Guozheng has repeatedly clarified that he has no improper relationship with Jiang Aizhen, and Jiang Aizhen also insists that the relationship between him and Zhang Guozheng is purely superior-subordinate, these heartfelt justifications have become the laughing stock of clowns.
The working group colluded with Xie Shiping and Li Peihua to fabricate stories and spread them everywhere to slander Jiang Aizhen's innocence, causing her to suffer long-term insults and slanders, and finally deprived of her freedom. 20-year-old Jiang Aizhen has suffered a serious unfair accusation that she can barely bear!In the face of endless abuse and suspicion, she, a girl who has always been strong and decisive, was depressed, and even had suicidal thoughts and took action, but fortunately someone rescued her in time. Perhaps after taking a turn on the edge of the ghost gate, Jiang Aizhen realized that she didn't want to be harmed by the villain, even if she had to pay with her life, she had to justifiably uphold justice, so that those bad people who spread rumors and made trouble would be punished as they deserved. In the early morning of September 29, 1978, Jiang Aizhen, as a militia platoon commander, learned that the regiment would hold a shooting competition in the Gobi Desert and that the gun magazine should be open. So, she pulled out a Type 53 rifle and hid in her pocket the eight rounds left over from the past target.
When the warehouse staff asked her what she was doing with the gun, she replied, "Send it to the target shooter." The staff was not suspicious, and Jiang Aizhen's next actions were ......already clear. After Jiang Aizhen killed three people in a row, the 144th regiment immediately detained Zhang Guozheng, saying that he was Jiang Aizhen's behind-the-scenes mastermind. The party committee of the regiment immediately convicted Jiang Aizhen of "counterrevolutionary homicide" and posthumously recognized the three killed as "martyrs." Wang Xinru, then president of the Shihezi District Intermediate People's Court, and Li Zongru, director of the regional public security bureau, came to the 144th regiment to conduct an in-depth investigation. The two righteous men first interrogated Jiang Aizhen, and then decided to reopen the case after having a large amount of evidence. Despite the intervention of certain leaders, Jiang Aizhen was eventually sentenced to death and immediately executed.
On October 20, 1979, the third page of "People's **" published a report of more than 7,000 words on "Why Jiang Aizhen Killed", which comprehensively introduced the causes and consequences of Jiang Aizhen's murder case a month ago. At the end of the article, it is proposed: "Jiang Aizhen has taken the means of killing and should be punished by law, but is it enough to punish Jiang Aizhen?"Shouldn't those involved in this be held accountable?What lessons should we learn from this incident?This matter involves a wide range of issues, and should be handled jointly by the public procuratorate, procuratorate, and law and the party's discipline inspection committee, and a one-sided decision cannot be made. As soon as Jiang Aizhen's story spread, it immediately caused an uproar across the country. The Xinjiang People's Radio broadcast an investigative article on "People**" on a news program for three consecutive days, which brought Jiang Aizhen an unexpected touch, and she couldn't help but shed tears when she heard the radio in prison.
Countless letters from all over the country were sent to the Shihezi District Intermediate Court like snowflakes, and tens of thousands of people pleaded for Jiang Aizhen, hoping that the court would retry the case. However, at that time, Jiang Aizhen was silently enduring everything in the Shihezi Detention Center, concentrating on study, labor, and reform. It was not until 1984 that the Shihezi Intermediate People's Court retried Jiang Aizhen's murder case and sentenced her to life imprisonment and deprivation of political rights for life. Jiang Aizhen appealed the first-instance verdict to the Higher People's Court of the Autonomous Region. Four months later, the autonomous region's high court finally sentenced Jiang Aizhen to 15 years in prison for intentional homicide and prosecuted those involved in her defamation. On June 28, 1990, Jiang Aizhen was released after serving 12 years in prison (previously commuted three times).
After being released from prison, she went to work as a health doctor at the Zhuzhou Martial Arts School in Hunan Province, but learned of several unfortunate deaths of her family after working in the local area. Discouraged by these blows, she decided to apply to her superiors to return to her hometown of Zhejiang, where she had not returned for 18 years. In her hometown, Jiang Aizhen returned to work as a doctor, and in 1991 she married Xiao Gao (pseudonym), an older young man who was engaged in business. In September 1992, they held a wedding, and Jiang Aizhen's old leader Zhang Guozheng also rushed to Shaoxing from a city in southern Jiangsu. Zhang Guozheng has endured hardships, his hair is already gray, and he is quite moved when he talks about the past. Jiang Aizhen learned that Zhang Guozheng served as deputy secretary of the party committee in a state-owned agricultural and forestry enterprise, and his life and work were stable. In mid-July 1993, Jiang Aizhen successfully gave birth to a baby boy, and the family moved into a new three-bedroom house in downtown Shaoxing, living a happy life.
Everything is silent, and all tall buildings rise from the ground. Rumours are invisible, but they are more lethal than sharp knives and bullets, and in a special era, legal concepts such as justice and civil rights are fragile, which led to the tragedy of Jiang's case. Fortunately, the society finally influenced the final verdict of Jiang Aizhen's case and respected the voice of the people. However, for those involved, who is to make up for their suffering?And how should it be compensated?"Rumors stop at the wise" should not stop at words, but should be implemented in all aspects.