China mulls first law on intangible cultural heritage

BEIJING, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese lawmakers on Wednesday began reviewing a revised draft law on the country's intangible cultural heritage (ICH) with the start of a bimonthly legislature session.

The draft law was submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, for its third reading.

This is the first attempt by China to enact a law in the ICH sector that safeguards heritage that is of historical, literary, artistic or scientific value.

It also stipulates that foreign organizations and individuals, before conducting surveys of ICH in China, will have to first obtain approval from cultural authorities that are at least on the provincial level.

The previous version of the draft law, which was discussed in December last year, provided that individuals only need to obtain approval from county-level authorities.

According to the draft law, foreign organizations will have to conduct surveys in cooperation with Chinese ICH research institutions. Also, foreign organizations and individuals must submit their research reports along with copies of on-site data and pictures during the survey, according to the draft law.

Legislators were also quoted saying that the utilization and development of the ICH, which involves intellectual property rights (IPR), should also supplement relevant laws and regulations.

The draft law supports the representative heirs in carrying out claims during the exploitation and utilization of ICH projects.

New appointments should be made if representative heirs lose the ability to pass on related skills or knowledge, the draft law said.

The draft law was submitted for its first reading in August last year. The ICH manifested itself in oral traditions, performing arts, traditional knowledge and craftsmanship.

Statistics from the Ministry of Culture shows that the State Council and the ministry have designated 2,516 national ICH items and 1,488 heirs to ICH items by 2009.