New anti-terror laws must protect human right, say legal experts

Attempts to introduce anti-terrorism laws could create further problems if they fail to define the powers of various enforcement agencies or strike a balance between battling extremism and protecting civil rights, legal experts say.

National People's Congress (NPC) deputies and delegates to the government's main political advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), have called on the central government to enact anti-terrorism laws during their annual meetings in Beijing.

They have been given extra urgency following the killing of 29 people and wounding of scores more by knife-wielding attackers at Kunming railway station on March 1. Officials blame the attack on separatists from Xinjiang .

The government current anti-terrorism efforts draw on various provisions under its criminal law, but legal experts and politicians say a specific code is needed to deal with the attacks.

"Only with comprehensive legislation can China continue its development without fear of disturbances," said Lee Jai-ying, a Hong Kong delegate to the CPPCC. "Anti-terrorism efforts must be backed with legislation."

The Communist Party chief of Xinjiang, Zhang Chunxian , has vowed to crackdown on terrorism, pledging that the region would work under the direction of the newly established national security commission, headed by President Xi Jinping .