A draft legal amendment will enable government departments, prosecutors and civil society organizations to take big businesses to court on behalf of individuals or small groups of citizens when their interests are compromised.

Such an amendment, which was formally filed Monday, the first day of the bi-monthly meeting of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, is an attempt to provide the public more ability to supervise social affairs.

It comes in the wake of several environmental pollution and consumer rights infringement incidents in China. Earlier this month, Wal-Mart was fined for mislabeling ordinary pork as "green pork" in a number of its outlets in Chongqing, for example.

Under the current law, only government agencies and people affected by an incident are allowed to sue over environmental pollution and food safety, which has "impeded many cases from being filed", said Tang Weijian, a law professor at Beijing-based Renmin University of China.

In the recent oil leak case at Bohai Bay, 11 environmental groups tried to file a lawsuit against ConocoPhillips China and China National Offshore Oil Corporation, but their request was turned down by local court.

Wang Haijun, a Beijing-based lawyer representing the 11 accusers, said the court verbally turned down his clients' requests, but never issued a written document specifying the reason why the case cannot be filed.

Some attributed the rejection to the current law's failure to empower authorities or social organizations to file lawsuits against those who violate public interests.

Chang Cheng, a program officer from Friends of Nature, a non-governmental organization, said he shares a similar feeling with Wang that to file a case on environmental pollution in China is "almost impossible" for a social group.

(China Daily contributed to this story)

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