29 December 2015

Editorial: China's New Anti-Terrorism Law

By Shannon Tiezzi

There’s much more to China’s anti-terror law than the few sections dealing with tech providers.

China has its first anti-terrorism law on the books, after the National People’s Congress Standing Committee approved the new legislation on Sunday. The law, which will take effect in January, provides a legal framework for the country’s war on terrorism, a focus of increasing concern for Beijing after attacks at home and abroad jeopardized the lives of its citizens.

Abroad, most of the debate about the law focused on its technological provisions. A draft version sparked vocal pushback from the United States, with government officials and businesses alike worried about provisions that could require foreign tech firms to handover proprietary data to Beijing. China defended the law as necessary and in line with international precedents.

Notably, the final version of the legislation did not contain some of the most controversial provisions, including requirements for companies to store user data on serves within China and to allow the Chinese government to review their encryption systems. Instead, companies are required to provide “technical means of support” for anti-terror investigations, including decrypting data. They are also told to prevent the spread of materials supporting terrorism or extremism.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang was asked about the changes from the draft to the legislation in a press conference on Monday. He said that the anti-terror law as passed “is the answer to the latest situation and our objective needs” and stressed that it is no different from “relevant legislation [passed] by western countries.”

Read the full story at The Diplomat