China may further restrict the right of the media to report on details of terror attacks, state media reported on Tuesday, under a tough new law that could be passed before the end of the month.
The draft anti-terrorism law has already attracted concern in Western capitals as it could require technology companies to install “backdoors” in products or to hand over sensitive information such as encryption keys to the government.
The law is currently having another reading at the latest session of the standing committee for China’s largely rubber-stamp parliament, the National People’s Congress, which ends on Sunday.
The official People's Daily said the law's new draft included a provision that media and social media cannot report on details of terror activities that might lead to imitation, nor show scenes that are “cruel and inhuman”.
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Chinese state-run media already operates under strict controls when it comes to reporting on terrorism, and the government brooks no challenge to its official accounts of attacks or other incidents.