The Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, concluded its 30th session on Friday morning. It passed multiple laws and revisions, including the Personal Information Protection Law and a decision to amend the Population and Family Planning Law.

Chinese President Xi Jinping signed presidential orders to promulgate the laws and decisions. Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, presided over the closing meeting.

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Chinese lawmakers review three-child policy, personal information law

Three-child policy

The amendment stipulates that under the Population and Family Planning Law, China will support couples having a third child with supportive measures in such areas as funding, taxation, insurance, education, housing and employment to reduce the burden of childbirth and child-rearing.

A meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee in May stressed that the three-child policy will help improve the nation's population structure, preserve human resource advantages and actively respond to the aging of the population. 

According to the latest census data, people aged 60 and above accounted for 18.7 percent of China's total population in 2020, 5.44 percentage points higher than that in 2010.

China in 2013 allowed couples to have a second child if either parent was an only child, and in 2016 allowed all married couples to have two children, ending the one-child policy.

A new law to protect personal data privacy

Lawmakers Friday voted to adopt a new law on personal information protection, which will take effect on November 1.

When pushing information and business marketing to individuals through automated decision-making, personal information processors should provide options that don't target personal characteristics at the same time, or offer ways of rejection, says the law.

It stipulates that individual consent should be obtained when processing sensitive personal information such as biometrics, medical and health, financial accounts and location.

The law also requires suspension or termination of services for apps that illegally process personal data.

A new law to protect doctors

The top legislature on Friday also passed a law on protecting the lawful rights and interests of physicians, providing a legal guarantee for the implementation of the Healthy China strategy.

The law, consisting of seven chapters and 67 articles, stipulates that August 19 is observed as China's Medical Workers' Day.

It also makes provisions on the qualification examination and registration, rules of practice, training and assessment, supporting measures, and legal liabilities for physicians.

The law will take effect on March 1, 2022.

A new law on graft busters

The law on "supervisors" – anti-corruption personnel comprising the four levels of supervisory commissions – was also passed on Friday as part of efforts to deepen the reform of the country's anti-corruption system.

The new law on graft busters, which will come into effect from January 1, 2022, will standardize the appointment and removal of anti-corruption officials and stipulate their functions, duties, management and oversight.

The supervisory commissions have the power to investigate officials' conduct for the abuse of public office and hand out administrative sanctions. In addition, they can hand over public sector employees to the prosecutors in the case of suspected job-related crimes.

A new law on legal aid

A law on legal aid was adopted by China's top legislature on Friday amid the country's efforts to regulate and promote legal assistance to better safeguard social fairness and justice.

Taking effect on January 1, 2022, the law specifies that law firms, grassroots legal service agencies, lawyers and primary-level legal service workers are all obligated to provide legal aid services in accordance with laws.

Under circumstances when close relatives safeguard the personal rights and interests of heroic martyrs, people who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty, or when people claim civil rights and interests relevant to their righteous and courageous acts, applications for legal aid will not be restricted by their financial difficulties, according to the law.

Law firms, lawyers and legal aid volunteers are encouraged to offer legal aid services in areas with insufficient legal resources, according to the law.

(With input from Xinhua)

(Cover: Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, presides over the closing meeting of the 30th session of the 13th NPC Standing Committee in Beijing, capital of China, August 20, 2021. /Xinhua)