China mulls tougher law against women trafficking

BEIJING, April 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese lawmakers are considering a draft law revision to provide tougher rules against trafficking women.

The draft revision to the Law on the Protection of Rights and Interests of Women was submitted on Monday to the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee for a second reading.

The draft proposes a "mandatory reporting and screening mechanism" to swiftly identify and handle crimes against women.

Marriage registration organs, local governments, women's associations, and hotels shall report to the police if they suspect women are being trafficked or abducted, says the draft.

Those who fail to perform the mandatory duties will be punished. Hotels that fail to report such law violations or crimes may have their business licenses revoked or fined up to 50,000 yuan (about 7,845 U.S. dollars).

The draft revision underwent a first reading in December, after which the legislature posted the draft online to solicit public comments. Over 420,000 comments were submitted, a sign that the legislation has garnered wide public attention.

Many comments called for prompt measures to identify and prevent law violations or crimes that infringe upon the rights and interests of women, including trafficking, according to Zang Tiewei, a spokesperson for the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee.

The Ministry of Public Security in March kicked off a special operation that will run through year-end to crack down on the abduction and trafficking of women and children. A government work report made public during this year's "two sessions" in March also vowed to "crack down hard" on the trafficking and buying of women and children.

Lawmakers will deliberate the draft revision in group discussions during the NPC Standing Committee session, which will be convened until Wednesday.