China plans to institute regulations regarding the national anthem in order to ensure its dignity, according to the Legislation Work Plan of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress in 2017, issued by China’s National People’s Congress, Xinhuanet.com reported on May 9.

The legislation will undergo a preliminary examination this June. In 2014, the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and General Office of the State Council published a document about normalizing the singing and playing of the national anthem. Now, the proposed legislation will effectively stop insufficiently serious and non-standard renditions of the song. Most importantly, the legislation will guide the public to adopt a proper attitude toward the anthem as part of a patriotic education.

The national anthem legislation stresses that on formal occasions, the public should respect the anthem as they do the nation. However, this does not mean individuals will be breaking the law if they cannot sing the anthem well, noted Yu Hai, former head of the military band of the People’s Liberation Army.

China is not the first country to make laws about its national anthem. Russia, Canada and Malaysia have all previously done so, with some creating legislation about their national flags and symbols in addition to the anthem.