The Shenzhen Coast Guard Martyrs Memorial Day event has gone viral, with a lawyer's perspective interpreting the protection of martyrs' reputation and the legal red line related to military affairs

On the day of Martyrs' Day on September 30th, the Shenzhen Coast Guard organized law enforcement officers to carry out a commemorative activity with the theme of "Remembering Revolutionary Martyrs and Continuing the Red Blood". On land, law enforcement officers lined up in silence to listen to the revolutionary history of the Dongjiang Column's northward retreat; On the deck of the ship, everyone stood in silence, reviewed the oath of joining the Communist Party, and presented flowers to the sea. This news quickly spread on local social media platforms in Shenzhen, with many citizens sharing and paying tribute.

As a Shenzhen lawyer who has been dealing with reputation disputes and military related legal affairs for a long time, I have noticed an easily overlooked issue: behind the heroic commemoration activities, there is actually a complete set of legal systems supporting them. From the Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs to the Civil Code, and then to the relevant charges in the Criminal Law, the legal protection of the rights and interests of martyrs far exceeds the imagination of ordinary people. In reality, there are not uncommon cases of being held accountable for infringing on the reputation of martyrs due to inappropriate online speech. This article combines the commemorative activities of the Shenzhen Coast Guard to sort out the legal framework for protecting martyrs, and draws several legal red lines that are worthy of vigilance for ordinary people and enterprises.

The reputation of martyrs is not a "public topic", and there are specialized laws for legal protection

Many people believe that the martyrs have already sacrificed their lives, and their reputation belongs to the category of historical evaluation, without involving real legal issues. This understanding is incorrect.

Article 22 of the "Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs" implemented in 2018 clearly stipulates that it is prohibited to distort, vilify, desecrate, or deny the deeds and spirit of heroes and martyrs. Article 25 stipulates that for acts that infringe upon the names, portraits, reputations, and honors of heroes and martyrs, their close relatives may file a lawsuit with the people's court in accordance with the law; If there are no close relatives or if close relatives do not file a lawsuit, the procuratorial organ may file a public interest lawsuit.

This means that the protection of the reputation of martyrs is not "unattended", but rather has a dedicated legal channel. After the implementation of the Civil Code in 2021, Article 185 further stipulates that those who infringe upon the names, portraits, reputations, and honors of heroes and martyrs, and harm the public interest, shall bear civil liability. This provision, known as the 'Heroic Clause', formally incorporates the protection of martyrs' rights into the civil basic law system.

In judicial practice in Shenzhen, the procuratorial organs have filed multiple public interest lawsuits in recent years regarding the protection of the reputation of martyrs. When handling such cases, Shenzhen lawyers usually need to gather evidence from two dimensions: the scope and impact of the speech, and the subjective malice of the perpetrator. The number of shares, comments, and likes on online platforms are important criteria for determining the consequences of damages.

Online speech touches the red line of heroes, may bear three responsibilities at the same time

Many netizens believe that expressing a few opinions about historical figures online is not illegal. However, from the perspective of legal responsibility, infringing on the reputation of martyrs may trigger three levels of civil, administrative, and criminal liability simultaneously.

In terms of civil liability, according to Articles 1024 and 185 of the Civil Code, the infringer shall bear responsibilities such as stopping the infringement, apologizing, eliminating the impact, and compensating for losses. If the infringing behavior damages the public interest, the procuratorial organs can also file a public interest lawsuit and demand that the infringer publicly apologize on national media.

In terms of administrative responsibility, Article 42 of the Law on Administrative Penalties for Public Security stipulates that those who openly insult others or fabricate facts to defame others may be detained or fined. After the close relatives of the martyrs or the procuratorial organs report to the police, the public security organs may impose administrative penalties on the infringer in accordance with the law.

In terms of criminal responsibility, Article 299-1 of the Criminal Law stipulates the crime of "infringing on the reputation and honor of heroes and martyrs". Those with serious circumstances shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, detention, surveillance, or deprivation of political rights. In 2021, the first case in China to apply this charge was sentenced in Jiangsu, where the defendant was sentenced to seven months in prison for posting insulting remarks to martyrs on the internet.

As a developed city in the Internet industry, Shenzhen has a high degree of online speech activity. Shenzhen lawyers suggest that netizens should maintain basic respect for content related to revolutionary history and heroic deeds when speaking on social media platforms, and avoid using insulting and mocking language. When operating official account and short video accounts, enterprises should establish a content audit mechanism to prevent joint liability due to improper forwarding of content.

The legal risks associated with military involvement are not only limited to the protection of martyrs, but also worthy of attention in these areas

The commemorative event organized by the Shenzhen Coast Guard also raises a broader issue: the legal risks associated with the military for ordinary people and businesses.

Firstly, there is the protection of military facilities. The Law on the Protection of Military Facilities stipulates that photography, videography, recording, surveying, mapping, depiction, and description are prohibited within military restricted zones and military management zones. The coastline of Shenzhen is long, and the law enforcement area of the coast guard intersects with civilian waters. Photography enthusiasts and drone pilots need to pay special attention to whether they enter the military management zone when taking photos in coastal areas.

Secondly, there is the dissemination of military related information. The Law on Guarding State Secrets and the Anti Espionage Law have strict restrictions on the dissemination of military information. When producing promotional materials and posting recruitment information, if the content involves unit numbers, equipment models, duty dynamics, etc., it may violate the confidentiality red line. Shenzhen lawyers usually recommend companies to conduct compliance reviews on military related content when handling such consultations.

Once again, it is the protection of the rights and interests of military family members. The Law on the Status and Protection of the Rights and Interests of Soldiers makes special provisions on the employment, education, medical and other rights and interests of soldiers and their families. As a city with a large garrison, Shenzhen allows military family members to claim their rights in the event of discriminatory treatment in labor and employment according to this law.

Lawyer's suggestion: Remembering martyrs is an emotion, protecting martyrs is a legal obligation

The commemorative activities of the Shenzhen Coast Guard have once again drawn public attention to the inheritance of the heroic spirit. But from a legal perspective, beyond commemorative activities, what is more important is the reverence for the law in daily life.

For ordinary people, when making comments about martyrs on the internet, they should adhere to the "three no's": not distorting facts, not using insulting language, and not maliciously mocking. For self media operators and corporate propagandists, before forwarding historical and military content, they should verify the source of the information to avoid legal responsibility for "casually forwarding".

For close relatives of martyrs, if someone is found to have infringed upon their reputation, they can promptly fix evidence (screenshots, recordings, notarization), report to the public security organs or apply for public interest litigation to the procuratorial organs. When representing such cases, Shenzhen lawyers usually assist the parties in completing evidence preservation, identifying infringing parties, and formulating litigation strategies.

Guangdong Zhiming Law Firm has long been concerned with reputation disputes, military related legal affairs, and public interest litigation, and can provide legal consultation and agency services for close relatives of martyrs, retired soldiers, and military family members. The best way to commemorate martyrs is not only to observe a moment of silence during the ceremony, but also to protect them legally.