China's top legislator Zhang Dejiang delivered the annual work report of the NPC Standing Committee on Wednesday, outlining its achievements and plans. He lauded enhanced legislation on the country's national security in the past year. [Special Coverage]
op legislator Zhang Dejiang briefed over three thousand lawmakers on the achievements in legislative work last year. The NPC Standing Committee enacted five laws, revised 37 laws and passed 17 reports.
"The law is of great value in the governance of a country, and good laws are a prerequisite for good governance. Focusing on the key task of raising the quality of legislation, we channeled great effort into advancing legislation in key areas," Zhang said.
Lawmakers adopted an amended family planning law, a historic move allowing all couples to have two children amid efforts to balance the country's population structure.
Also approved was a landmark counter-domestic violence law which aims to bring traditionally silent abuse victims under legal protection.
Other notable achievements include the National Security Law, adopted by lawmakers after three deliberations, and the Anti-Terrorism Law, passed in December 2015.
Zhang called the National Security Law "comprehensive, overarching and fundamental".
"The new law laid a solid legal foundation for accelerating the establishment of a national security system and took a distinctly Chinese approach to national security," Zhang said.
He went on to commend the Anti-Terrorism Law as of crucial importance "in the face of a grave and complex situation in the fight against terrorism both at home and abroad."
He said the new law defined the basic principles of China's anti-terrorism initiatives, improved working systems and mechanisms. It also gives a boost to preventative safety measures, emergency response and international cooperation.
When talking about the major tasks of 2016, Top Legislator Zhang Dejiang said the NPC Standing Committee will continue to improve its legislative work in some key areas.
