She Xianglin, a man from the central province of Hubei wrongfully accused, convicted and imprisoned 11 years for a murder that never occurred, accepted compensation of 460,000 yuan (US$56,700) from a local court and local government on Wednesday, Xinhua News Agency reported.

After signing the agreement, She choked back tears as he expressed relief that the day of getting some compensation had finally come, and said he would first use the money to treat his bad eyesight and legs.

The figure comprised 260,000 yuan (US$32,100) awarded by Jingmen Intermediate People's Court for his 11-year absence from work and 200,000 yuan (US$24,600) from the local government as a subsidy for his livelihood.

The court based its amount using the State Compensation Law standard of 64 yuan (US$7.89) per workday lost; She had been imprisoned for 4,009 days.

The compensation was not related to She's mental suffering as an innocent man behind bars, the wrongful imprisonment of his brother or the death of his mother while he was in jail.

Nor did it cover the torture and beatings he allegedly suffered from police officers and prison staff, who have reportedly still offered no apology.

She originally applied for state compensation of more than 4.3 million yuan (US$530,000) on May 11, but his lawyer, Zhang Chengmao, said this had been postponed because current State law has no provisions for compensating mental distress.

She said he would not give up seeking further compensation.

His extraordinary case, in which he was tortured and forced to confess to false charges of murdering his wife who had actually just left him, has gripped the nation.

She's wife, Zhang Zaiyu, disappeared from their home in the county of Jingshan, Jingmen City on January 20, 1994. Her relatives accused She of murdering her and a still-unidentified body was misidentified as hers.

Local police are alleged to have inadequately examined the dead woman's remains, and to have tortured a confession out of She, which led to a 15-year sentence for murder.

Zhang returned to Jingshan safe and well on March 28 and She's case was retried. He was declared innocent and released by Jingshan People's Court on April 13.

In another case, Li Huawei, from Yingkou City, Liaoning Province in northeast China, had been imprisoned for almost 11 years for a similar reason. He was found innocent in July 2000 after the real perpetrator was arrested and confessed. Li was released and got state compensation of 360,000 yuan (US$44,400).

(China Daily September 2, 2005)