(FILE)

Shang Aiyun, 62, mother of a wrongfully convicted young man who was later executed, finally succeeded in clearing her son's name on December 15, bringing to an end a years-long campaign.

After a rape and murder took place on April 9, 1996, in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Shang's 18-year-old son Hugjilitu was convicted and sentenced to death on May 23 that year. Just 18 days later, he was executed amid a national campaign to come down hard on criminal activities. However, another alleged serial rapist and killer confessed to the murder following his 2005 arrest.

After Shang retired from a local textile factory in 2005, she tried to find ways to clear her son's name, including petitioning law enforcement agencies. A retrial, which began in November this year, cleared off all charges against Hugjilitu. State compensation will be applied in light of his being posthumously exonerated.