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Vanessa Cai

China’s Law on Guarding State Secrets is having its first major update in a decade to expand the depth and reach of its coverage.
The law was introduced in 1988 and last revised in 2010.
Details of the draft changes were made public in October after being submitted for deliberation to the country’s top legislature.
Some of the major proposed amendments include stricter limits on travel for personnel with access to state secrets, additional government funds for keeping information secret and fresh power for authorities to search documents, personnel and electronic devices.
What is a state secret under the law?
The law gives a general description of what is a state secret but Chinese authorities have given few – if any – specific examples.
The law defines state secrets as matters that “have a vital bearing on state security and national interests and, as specified by legal procedure, are entrusted to a limited number of people for a given period of time”.
It defines state secrets as confidential matters concerning the country’s security and interests related to major policy decisions, national defence and armed forces, diplomatic activities, national economic and social development, science and technology, state security and the investigation of criminal cases.
Under the law, state secrets are defined as “top secret”, “classified” or “secret”. The most confidential information comes under “vital state secrets”, which, if divulged, would “cause extremely serious harm to state security and national interests”.
Classified information that falls into these three categories is subject to different classification periods, with top secret information to be retained for up to 30 years.
The law lists 12 ways it can be violated, including illegally obtaining or holding carriers of state secrets, and illegally copying, recording or storing of state secrets. Disclosing state secrets can include passing them to any unauthorised parties.
China’s move to amend state secrets law fuels concern among businesses
What personnel are affected?
The definition of “personnel involved with state secrets” is believed to cover a swathe of employees in various government bodies, Communist Party organisations, state-owned enterprises and the military. But there has never been an official list of those groups and the law does not give a clear definition.
Under the law, individuals with access to classified information also fall into one of three categories – “core”, “important” or “general”, depending on their position and the level of the secrets they are exposed to.
According to a 2018 statement from the National Administration of State Secrets Protection, employees in positions that “generate, manage or have regular contact with, or are aware of top-secret state secrets” in their daily work are considered as having “core secret-related positions”.
The existing law stipulates that such individuals are required to obtain approval before travelling overseas. It also places restrictions on their employment during a confidentiality period after they leave their initial position.
The latest draft revision adds that they would also be banned from travelling overseas during the confidentiality period. And they should also continue to protect state secrets that they had access to when the confidentiality period ends.
Beware of foreign spies on job and dating websites, China warns public
What are the criminal penalties for disclosing state secrets?
Under China’s Criminal Law, individuals who “steal, spy on, buy or unlawfully supply state secrets or intelligence for an overseas body, organisation or individual” can face life in prison.
According to a judicial interpretation issued by the Supreme People’s Court, intelligence is defined as “matters that concern state security and interests, which are either not yet public or should not be made public”.
The heaviest penalties can be given when the case is considered “particularly serious” – when offenders provide “top secret” information or more than three items of “classified” information, according to a judicial interpretation from China’s top court that came into effect in 2001.
The Criminal Law also stipulates that state employees can be charged with dereliction of duty and sentenced to up to seven years in prison for “intentionally or negligently divulging state secrets”.
People who illegally obtain military secrets can be imprisoned for at least 10 years if the circumstances are deemed “especially serious” while those who supply them to overseas agents or individuals can face the death penalty.


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Explainers

How is China changing its state secrets law and who will be affected?

China’s national legislature is reviewing the first overhaul of its state secrets law in a decade. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese lawmakers review proposed changes to state secrets law amid national security push

As geopolitical tensions between China and the United States grow, Beijing has sought to refine its laws related to national security. Photo: Reuters

Hong Kong’s Article 23 national security law to define state secrets according to city’s needs, minister says

Lawmakers are expected to take up Article 23 legislation, first proposed two decades ago, either this year or early in 2024. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

“Our laws must be able to face past risks, especially those in the likes of the black violence seen in 2019,” Secretary for Security Chris Tang says. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Hong Kong’s Legislative Council building is surrounded by demonstrators during a candlelight vigil in Central in July 2003. Around 50,000 protesters gathered to show their disapprobal of city Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa and his handling of the Article 23 anti-subversion bill. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

‘Worried and fearful’: China’s move to amend state secrets law fuels concern among businesses

A draft revision to the state secrets law is believed to be extensive. Photo: Reuters

The amendment is almost certain to be passed by the legislature. Photo: Robert Ng

State Security Minister Chen Yixin has called for a crackdown. Photo: Weibo

News

China

Politics

The national legislature will examine proposed amendments including tighter limits on people who have or have had access to restricted information
The changes outline what would be a violation of the legislation while other sources suggest what penalties might apply


The changes outline what would be a violation of the legislation while other sources suggest what penalties might apply.


Espionage

Provide background, definition and detail of a specific topic, helping the reader understand how something works or what has happened in the past.  (Eg. What is Nafta? US and Mexico are on the verge of revising trade deal.)


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