随蔡诚部长访问美国：习仲勋主持的蔡诚与苏青英婚礼

———纪念蔡诚

2009年9月9日

▲ 蔡诚部长（左）与作者的合影

徐建

2009年9月2日，司法部蔡诚老部长与世长辞，噩耗传来，十分悲恸。许多往事浮上心头。

1988年，时任深圳市司法局副局长的我，接到蔡部长的电话，通知我参加司法部赴美国访问的代表团，还嘱咐我准备点礼品。接到通知我很高兴，这是我笫一次出国，又是随蔡部长一起，还是中美建交后中国政法系统第一次派团访美，多么难得的机会！

访美的见闻与感触

8月5日，中国司法部代表团一行八人乘机抵达美国首都华盛顿。由于这是社会主义国家第一位司法部长访美，而司法部长在美国是四号人物，所以美国政府和媒体十分重视。美国司法部长索恩伯格亲临机场迎接，美国联邦调查局给代表团每人配两个保镖，给蔡部长配四个保镖。车队和宾馆都悬挂中国国旗，媒体也做头版报道。欢迎晚宴上，美国司法部长以及下属的副总检察长、联邦调查局长、监狱署长、移民局长悉数参加。在互赠礼品时，蔡部长取出我准备的一幅国画赠给索恩伯格部长，没想到索恩伯格部长仔细看了国画后，突然问：“为什么没有画家落款？”蔡部长让我回答。我急中生智作了回答。虽然事情过去了，但事后蔡部长对我说：“周总理说，外交无小事，今后做事要细心哪！”此话让我受用终生。

第二天，中美两国司法部长进行了历史性会谈。从国家政体到司法制度、从人权保护到律师制度、从司法合作到刑事引渡，双方各抒己见，求同存异，达成多项共识。蔡部长以丰富的司法知识和外交经验博得美国司法界的高度评价，揭开了中美司法交流的新纪元。

下午，代表团参观了美国联邦调查局信息中心，这是该中心有史以来第一次接待社会主义国家代表团。信息中心负责人让蔡部长提个问题，蔡部长问：“我离开中国最后一次秘密级讲话你们有吗？”几分钟后，信息中心电脑便打出他在离开国内17天前在庐山会议上的讲话。这使蔡部长大为吃惊，他说：“看来我们的保密工作漏洞不小啊！”当我发问时，问道：“深圳有中国第一家段武刘合伙制律师所，你们有相关资料吗？”一会工夫，电脑中打出23条信息。这使我感到惊讶！从段武刘三位律师的个人资料到律师所资料，甚至连我在成立大会上的讲话都有。

笫三天，我们去了白宫，到了美国总统的椭圆形办公室。里根总统正在楼上开会，西装上衣还放在办公桌后的椅子上。蔡部长曾在延安保卫局工作过，看了此景有些感慨，他说：“对总统的办公室开放到这种程度又能做好安全防范值得我们学习。”下午我们参观了美国参议院。参议院102位议员每人都有办公室和随员，每位议员每年有18万美元补贴。蔡部长说：“我们的人民代表制与美国有本质不同，但也要给人大代表提供必要的物质条件，使他们能更好地听取群众的意见。”

第四天，代表团参观纽约的监狱。这座耗资四亿美元的监狱近乎奢侈，有的犯人竟期满不愿离去，更令人不解的是该监狱居然建在寸土寸金的城市中。听了讲解后我们了解到，监狱设在城市中是让犯人的亲属和社会人士便于探视，使犯人感到没有被社会遗弃。蔡部长说：“我们不能跟美国在监狱上比奢侈，那就失去了监狱的惩罚功能，但监狱也不要都设在边远地区，全社会要重视对犯罪人员的关心教育，也要讲人道。”

第五天，代表团参观了纽约证券交易所。证交所的总裁亲自为我们讲述了美国证券的发展史，赠送了一百多年来制定的所有规章制度。临上飞机时，蔡部长把这些资料都送给了我。他说：“北京不会搞股票，也许你拿回深圳有用。”这话很有预见。一年后深圳开始筹建中国第一间证券交易所，这批资料发挥了重要作用。

第六天，蔡部长会见了美国律师公会主席。他介绍了美国律师业的发展与现状。每五百个美国人中便有一位律师的比例让人吃惊，40届美国总统中有28位是律师，100位议员中有70位是律师的比例令人羡慕。蔡部长说：“美国虽与中国国情不同，但司法行政机关直管律师要改为与律师协会共管，逐步走上行业自律的道路，这方面你们深圳应该先行一步，创造经验。”这句话让我谨记在心。

部长的信任和栽培

访美结束在洛杉矶机场时，蔡部长对我说：“这次访问让你参加是对你的考察。你今年35岁，科班毕业，又有深圳特区司法工作的经历，到部里来吧？”我听了很感动，思考了一下说：“谢谢部长的信任和栽培，可我不是做官的料，中国不缺当官的，缺的是德高望众的大律师，您要培养我，就让我到香港去学做律师吧！”蔡部长说：“人各有志不能强勉，就派你去香港吧！”

我在司法部驻香港中国法律公司一干就是十年。后来我辞职回到深圳，成立广东融关律师事务所，蔡部长亲自为我所题词。接着，我又与律师们发起了律师协会的民主改革，成为第一位民选的律协会长。今年清明节，老部长来深圳，提起此事还夸我做得好。

如今斯人已去，然而老部长对中国司法事业所做的贡献却会与世长存。今年是中美建交30周年，撰写此文，既是对老部长的悼念，也是对中美司法交流史的纪念。

英文翻译

Accompanying Minister Cai Cheng on His Visit to the United States: The Wedding of Cai Cheng and Su Qingying, Presided Over by Xi Zhongxun

—In Memory of Cai Cheng

September 9, 2009

▲ A photo of Minister Cai Cheng (left) and the author

Xu Jian

On September 2, 2009, Minister Cai Cheng of the Ministry of Justice passed away. The news was deeply saddening. Many memories flooded back.

In 1988, as the Deputy Director of the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Justice, I received a phone call from Minister Cai, informing me that I was joining a delegation from the Ministry of Justice to visit the United States. He also instructed me to prepare some gifts. I was overjoyed to receive the notification. This was my first trip abroad, and accompanying Minister Cai. It was also the first time the Chinese political and legal system had sent a delegation to the United States since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States—what a rare opportunity!

Observations and Impressions of the Visit to the United States

On August 5, an eight-member delegation from the Chinese Ministry of Justice arrived in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. Because this was the first visit to the United States by a minister of justice from a socialist country, and the minister of justice is the fourth most powerful person in the United States, the US government and media attached great importance to it. U.S. Attorney General Thornberg personally greeted Minister Tsai at the airport. The FBI assigned two bodyguards to each member of the delegation, and four to Minister Tsai. The motorcade and hotel were adorned with Chinese flags, and the media gave the event front-page coverage. At the welcome banquet, the U.S. Attorney General, along with his subordinates—the Deputy Attorney General, the FBI Director, the Commissioner of Corrections, and the Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement—all attended. During the exchange of gifts, Minister Tsai presented Minister Thornberg with a traditional Chinese painting I had prepared. Unexpectedly, after carefully examining the painting, Minister Thornberg suddenly asked, "Why is there no artist's signature?" Minister Tsai asked me to answer. I quickly and cleverly provided the answer. Although the incident passed, Minister Tsai later told me, "Premier Zhou Enlai said, 'There are no small matters in diplomacy; you must be meticulous in your work from now on!'" These words have benefited me throughout my life.

The following day, the Attorney Generals of China and the United States held a historic meeting. From national political systems to judicial systems, from human rights protection to the legal profession, from judicial cooperation to criminal extradition, both sides expressed their views, sought common ground while reserving differences, and reached several consensuses. Minister Cai's extensive legal knowledge and diplomatic experience earned him high praise from the American legal community, ushering in a new era of Sino-US judicial exchanges.

In the afternoon, the delegation visited the FBI Information Center, the first time in the center's history that it had hosted a delegation from a socialist country. The head of the Information Center asked Minister Cai a question, to which he replied, "Do you have my last classified speech before leaving China?" A few minutes later, the Information Center's computer displayed his speech at the Lushan Conference, delivered 17 days prior. This greatly surprised Minister Cai, who remarked, "It seems our security measures have significant loopholes!" When I asked, "Shenzhen has China's first Duan-Wu-Liu partnership law firm; do you have relevant information?" A short while later, 23 pieces of information appeared on the computer. This astonished me! It included personal profiles of the three lawyers, Duan, Wu, and Liu, as well as information about the law firm itself, and even my speech at its founding ceremony.

On the third day, we went to the White House, to the Oval Office. President Reagan was holding a meeting upstairs, his suit jacket still on the chair behind his desk. Minister Cai, who had worked in the Yan'an Security Bureau, was somewhat moved by the scene. He said, "The fact that the president's office is open to the public to this extent while maintaining such good security is something we should learn from." In the afternoon, we visited the U.S. Senate. Each of the 102 senators has an office and staff, and each receives an annual stipend of $180,000. Minister Cai said, "Our people's representative system is fundamentally different from that of the United States, but we must still provide the necessary material conditions for our representatives so that they can better hear the opinions of the masses."

On the fourth day, the delegation visited a New York prison. This $400 million prison was almost extravagant; some inmates even refused to leave after their terms expired. What was even more perplexing was that the prison was built in a city where land is incredibly valuable. After the explanation, we learned that the prison was located in the city to facilitate visits from relatives and the public, making the inmates feel they had not been abandoned by society. Minister Cai said, "We cannot compete with the United States in terms of the extravagance of prisons, otherwise we would lose the punitive function of prisons. However, prisons should not all be located in remote areas. The whole society should attach importance to the care and education of criminals and also be humane."

On the fifth day, the delegation visited the New York Stock Exchange. The president of the stock exchange personally recounted the history of the US securities industry and presented us with all the rules and regulations established over the past century. Just before boarding the plane, Minister Cai gave me all of these materials. He said, "Beijing doesn't know how to manage stocks; perhaps these will be useful when you take them back to Shenzhen." This was remarkably prescient. A year later, when Shenzhen began preparations to establish China's first stock exchange, these materials played a crucial role.

On the sixth day, Minister Cai met with the president of the American Bar Association. He introduced the development and current state of the American legal profession. The ratio of one lawyer for every 500 Americans is astonishing; 28 of the 40 US presidents were lawyers, and 70 of the 100 members of Congress are lawyers—an enviable ratio. Minister Cai said, "Although the US and China have different national conditions, the direct management of lawyers by the judicial administration should be changed to joint management with the bar association, gradually moving towards industry self-regulation. Shenzhen should take the lead in this regard and create experience." I will always remember this.

The Minister's Trust and Cultivation

At the Los Angeles airport after my visit to the United States, Minister Cai said to me, "This visit was a test of your abilities. You're 35 years old, a graduate of a legal profession, and have experience in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone's judicial system. Why don't you come to the Ministry?" I was deeply moved. After thinking for a moment, I said, "Thank you for your trust and cultivation, Minister, but I'm not cut out to be an official. China doesn't lack officials, it lacks highly respected lawyers. If you want to train me, let me go to Hong Kong to learn how to be a lawyer!" Minister Cai said, "Everyone has their own ambitions; we can't force them. I'll send you to Hong Kong!"

I worked for the Ministry of Justice's Hong Kong branch of the China Law Firm for ten years. Later, I resigned and returned to Shenzhen, establishing the Guangdong Rongguan Law Firm. Minister Cai personally inscribed a motto for my firm. Then, I and other lawyers initiated the democratic reform of the Bar Association, and I became the first democratically elected president of the Bar Association. This year, during the Qingming Festival, the former minister came to Shenzhen and praised me for doing a good job.

Now he has passed away, but his contributions to China's judicial system will live on forever. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States. This article is written both as a tribute to the former minister and as a commemoration of the history of judicial exchanges between China and the United States.