Beijing will enact several wide-ranging security laws in 2024 to “resolutely safeguard” its sovereignty, a top lawmaker pledged at a key legislative session where President Xi Jinping’s government is seeking to address perceived threats to its rule.
The “Two Sessions” – parallel meetings of China’s parliament and political advisory body – offer a rare insight into the Communist Party-led government’s strategy for the coming year.
Setting out the agenda of the National People’s Congress (NPC) for the coming year, Zhao Leji pledged that lawmakers would “resolutely safeguard China’s sovereignty, security and development interests”. He said:
To modernise China’s system and capacity for national security Beijing will enact an emergency management law, an energy law, an atomic energy law, and a hazardous chemicals safety law.
Zhao’s report said he would also revise the “National Defence Education Law and Cybersecurity Law”. He did not provide further details on what the new laws would include or when exactly they would be passed.
The NPC is also set to introduce and amend laws in areas ranging from financial stability to preschool education and disease control. Jean-Pierre Cabestan, professor and Chinese politics expert at Hong Kong University, noted:
Military education and cybersecurity are clear priorities for China’s legislators. They want to strengthen the legal framework in these areas, which is part of Xi’s own priorities. It was “no surprise” that national security was highlighted in Zhao’s report.
Last year, China approved a revised anti-espionage law that greatly expanded the definition of espionage, giving Beijing more power than ever to punish those it deems a threat to national security.
The state secrets law passed last month added new categories of classified information, including “work secrets” – information that is not a state secret but could “interfere with the normal work of state bodies or work units” if leaked.
