A new law expanding China's legal reach over the Internet and space will lay ground work for national security and development interests, experts said Thursday.
The National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee approved the wide-ranging National Security Law on Wednesday, which the government said is vital for countering emerging threats at home and abroad.
The new law covers almost every aspect of public life in China. Its mandate includes politics, defense, finance, environment, cyberspace and even culture and religion.
One clause says the Internet and information systems will be made "secure and controllable". Another says the country will clamp down on terrorist groups while punishing violence and terror activities heavily.
It emphasizes the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in national security, saying centralized, efficient and authoritative leadership for national security must be established.
It vows to "protect people's fundamental interests, safeguard reform and opening up and socialist modernization drive, and rejuvenate the Chinese nation."
The law comes as China's development begins to head for uncharted waters: the country's economy is shifting from an investment-driven model to one more responsive to demand, maritime security is increasingly challenged, cyber crimes are on the rise while headline-making terrorist attacks are spreading nationwide.
The document defines national security as a condition in which a country's state power, sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity, people's well-being and sustainable economic and social development are relatively safe and not subject to internal and external threats. It also includes the capacity to sustain such a secure condition.
An all-encompassing national security law thus can provide a broad toolkit for the country to ensure stability and henceforth development, said Xiao Fengcheng, a law professor with the China University of Political Science and Law.
"Security is the first and foremost prerequisite for any country's survival and development," Xiao said.
"Without security, development is nothing more than a castle in the air."
By outlining overarching legal framework on the protection of China's core interests, the new law will help cement China's future security and development, said Li Zhong, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
