China is busy drafting a law on tangible property rights to meet the requirements of the market economy that the country is striving to build.

It was revealed by top legislator Li Peng over the weekend when the lawmakers were lectured on the legal system of such rights.

The draft law was intended to complete the Chinese legal system of property laws, better protect possessions of different ownership by making a clear definition on them, and safeguard the trade security and market order, said Li, chairman of the Ninth National People's Congress Standing Committee.

Li said the committee, China's top legislative body, which will end its five-year term in March 2003, has enlisted the property rights law among its legislative plan.

China has made a series of property laws including the General Principles of Civil Law and laws on guarantees, land management, grasslands, water, mineral resources, patents, trademarks and copyright since it implemented its opening up and reform policies two decades ago.

However, Li said a sound tangible property rights law is in urgent need when current legislation can barely meet the increasing demand of the market economy to guarantee a clear-cut property rights division as well as smooth and safe transaction.

Li urged the legislators to make the law mirror the real situation in China and follow international standards at the same time so that the nation can meet the challenges of entry to the World Trade Organization.

He also requested lawmakers consult more with legal experts to make the law more practical and forward-looking.

The main purpose of the property rights law is to define and specify rights of possession in China, according to Wang Liming, a professor of civil law at Renmin University of China, who gave the lecture last Friday.

Moreover, it is the basic rule for the regulation of a market economy because the prerequisite for any transaction is the ownership of property and the result of the transaction is the shift of property rights, he added.

The lack of basic rules in tangible property rights has hampered the functioning of current legislation such as the Contract Law and the Guarantee Law, Wang said.

The law on tangible property rights is the core of a civil code that Chinese legislators have been pursuing for more than two decades.

It is expected to encourage and stimulate people to create more wealth for society by giving equal protection to property under different ownership, Wang said.

(China Daily 09/03/2001)