An officer stands outside the Great Hall of the People, the venue of National People’s Congress, China’s parliament, in Beijing, June 18, 2015.
July 02, 2015 12:35 AM
WASHINGTON—Human rights groups are criticizing China’s sweeping new national security law, saying it will further enshrine and expand the country’s suppression of political dissent.
China’s largely ceremonial National People’s Congress passed the bill Wednesday with 144 yes votes and one abstention, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
The law allows authorities to “take all necessary” measures to safeguard territorial sovereignty and ensure full control over the country’s already tightly censored Internet. The bill is Beijing’s response to a national security situation that has become “increasingly severe,” according to Zheng Shu’na with the NPC Standing Committee.
“We will continue to follow the path of peaceful development but we absolutely will not give up our legitimate rights and absolutely will not sacrifice the country’s core interests,” said Zheng at a news conference.
T. Kumar, Director of International Advocacy at Amnesty International USA, said this is basically an attempt by the Chinese government to strengthen its hold on power and to protect it from challenges by the civilian population.
He said the new law “would encourage the police and the government to do what they want to do.” “Human rights situation will deteriorate, even now it’s bad, but it will be worse under this law,” he added.
Brad Adams, executive director of the Asian division at Human Rights Watch, said the new law is part of several measures, “counter-terror laws, law limiting the activities of NGOs, and series of crackdowns on people in China for engaging in peaceful activities.”
He said that means “China has become a more and more oppressed country even while it claims it’s becoming more democratic.”
“It is going to lead, I think, to a backlash in Chinese society that the Communist Party may or may not be able to control,” he added.
The new law included measures to make all key network infrastructure and Information systems “secure and controllable.”
Adams said these measures could effectively silence dissidents and restrict NGOs in China. He said the law is an extension of President Xi Jinping’s attempt to control all aspects of Chinese society.
“This new law will just make it easier to provide a broader rational or reason to close organizations down or use criminal law against individuals,” Adams said.
