Electronic monitoring set out for community correction

China's draft law on community correction was submitted for a third reading on Monday at the ongoing bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

The latest draft adds more details on electronic monitoring on subjects, which would need the approval of the head of the justice authorities at the county level, according to the draft law.

The draft law stipulates who can be monitored electronically, including those who violate court injunctions, people leaving the city or county of residence without proper reasons or approval, and people who fail to report their activities in accordance with regulations after being given a warning.

The time limit for monitoring will not exceed three months, according to the draft. When it is necessary to continue tracking after three months, the time may be extended upon approval, but extensions cannot exceed three months each time, it added.

The draft law protects personal information obtained through positioning, saying that community correction institutions must keep the information confidential, and it can only be used for community correction work.

China mulls enshrining tree planting day in law

China is mulling enshrining its National Tree Planting Day in law to better protect the country's forests and give an extra push to its continuous pursuit of green development.

The proposal was made in a draft revision to the forest law, which was submitted on Monday for a third reading at the ongoing bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

March 12 was designated China's National Tree Planting Day by an NPC Standing Committee resolution in 1979.

The country's forest coverage rate has increased by nearly 10 percentage points since the late 1970s. In 2018, China planted 7.07 million hectares of trees, and the country is home to the world's largest manmade forest.

Xinhua