BEIJING, Oct. 27  -- China's top legislature started reading a draft Counterespionage Law on Monday aimed at more comprehensive state security.

Formerly known as the National Security Law, the draft law is expected to include new rules that have proven effective in practice but have not yet been written into the current law, according to the Law Committee of the National People's Congress Standing Committee.

Sun Baoshu, the committee's deputy director, said it is necessary to transform the current National Security Law into the Counterespionage Law in order to "prepare for a comprehensive and fundamental state security law."

According to the draft, "Counterespionage work should proceed according to law, respect and ensure human rights, and guarantee the legal interests of citizens and organizations." The provision was added based on suggestions from lawmakers and experts on regulation of counterespionage power.

Information and material obtained for counterespionage work should only be limited in the field, and confidentiality should be ensured regarding state and commercial secrets and personal privacy, the draft says.

It also bans illegally possessing special espionage instruments. In order to prevent law enforcement at discretion, the draft says whether something is considered an instrument of espionage should be confirmed by state security departments according to regulations.

The stipulation was added after lawmakers suggested that electronic devices like smart phones can also be used in espionage.

The draft also rewrites articles that were not in line with other laws that have been revised in recent years, including the Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Law.

The bill also specifies espionage's definition: foreign organizations and individuals who conduct espionage activities or who instigate and sponsor others in conducting them will be punished, as will domestic organizations and individuals who spy on the country for foreign organizations and individuals.

It grants national security agencies the authority to ask an organization or individual to stop or change activities considered harmful to national security. If they refuse or fail to do so, the agencies will be entitled to seal or seize related properties.

The agencies are also entitled to seal and seize any device, money, venue, supplies and other properties that are related to espionage activities, according to the bill.

They will be either confiscated by national security agencies or handed over to judicial departments.

The illegal income and properties gained through knowingly hiding and fencing properties related to espionage will be confiscated, according to the bill.

Taking effect in 1993, the National Security Law mainly regulates the work of the country's national security agencies, whose major duty is counterespionage. It has not been revised since then.

Once the Counterespionage Law takes effect, the National Security Law will cease, according to the draft.

At the first meeting of the central national security commission in April, President Xi Jinping advocated an "overall national security outlook."

Xi stressed that the challenges China faces in maintaining national security today are more diverse than they have ever been, as it has seen complicated internal and external situations.