China to ban sleep deprivation in interrogation

China's highest court is drawing up a document that defines confessions obtained through depriving the suspect of sleep as illegal evidence, an insider of the Supreme People's Court was quoted by the Beijing News as saying on Monday.

According to the document, confessions obtained through grueling techniques, in which the interrogator deprives the suspects of sleep to force a confession, will be deemed as illegal, reported the Beijing News.

There has been widespread concern over torture used by some Chinese law enforcement who want to wrap up cases quickly through forced testimony or confessions.

The new document reportedly states that a suspect should rest for no less than eight hours a day, and an interrogation must not last for over 12 hours.

The document also proposes to allow lawyers to observe the interrogation of a suspect, according to the report by the Beijing News.

The removal of illegal evidence from trials will be an important step in China's long march towards the rule of law, said Fan Chongyi, a law professor at China University of Political Science and Law.