Abstract
The comprehensive aspects of the article of Allowing Concealing Relatives in the first chapter Names and Applications of Punishments of all extant ancient Chinese codes have been put forward. By analyzing on the meaning of the word concealment, and those related articles to this provision and historical changes, this monograph gets its own conclusion that to conceal has different meanings in different texts and its usage had been changed in those codes. Though it implicates to shield, it is necessary to distinguish its accurate meaning, namely, to hide or not to accuse, according to different circumstances, and it means to hide in the article of Allowing Concealing Relatives; that the provision of Allowing Concealing Relatives is aimed at such crimes to assisting the criminals whose commissions have been known by authorities in escaping from punishments, as hiding criminals, informing them that authorities are searching for them, etc., with no relation to not accusing; that the article of Allowing Concealing Relatives is a provision reflecting the impacts of relationships in family upon the law, conferring persons in certain circumstances the privilege of hiding criminals, which is a crime itself; that with overall changes of the codes, this provision also changes. Changes in Ming and Qing’s laws compared with those in dynasties before these two should be paid much attention to, and it is wise to use the evidences of Ming and Qing with caution to demonstrate the whole development of this provision. Upon this topic, this monograph has a further intention to track out the origins of the dominative arguments objected to by this monograph, and to point out their defects in both aspects of the methods and the perspectives.
Keywords
concealment; Argument of Concealing System; Argument of Not Accusing or Testifying; Hiding; Accusing
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