China has passed a new legislation banning derogatory remarks against its armed forces, in an apparent attempt to brush off statements critical of the military personnel amid India-China border tensions.

The new law states that no organisation or individual may in any way slander or derogate the honour of servicemen, nor may they insult or slander the reputation of members of the armed forces, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The legislation was adopted by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) on Thursday.

The new law adds to the existing array of legal measures under a 2018 legislation, which stipulates that it is illegal to defame the country’s heroes and martyrs.

Chinese blogger sentenced for defaming PLA troops

Recently, a popular Chinese blogger was sentenced to eight months in jail under the existing law for “defaming” People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers killed in last year’s clash with the Indian Army at the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh.

Qiu Ziming, who had over 2.5 million followers, was also ordered to publicly apologise through major domestic portals and the national media within 10 days to eliminate the negative impact.

While the Indian Army announced that 20 of its personnel were killed in the clash on June 15 last year just a few days after the face-off, the Chinese PLA took nearly eight months to acknowledge that it had suffered casualties during the incident and revealed that it had lost four of its military personnel.

Prosecutors can file PIL for defaming Chinese army

The new law allows prosecutors to file public interest litigation in cases of defamation of military personnel and the infringement on their legitimate rights and interests that have seriously affected their performance of duties and missions and damaged the public interests of society. It also bans the desecration of plaques in honour of military personnel.

Song Zhongping, a former PLA instructor and Hong Kong-based military affairs commentator said the legislation which also covers families of service personnel was meant to bolster the military personnel’s sense of mission.

“Previously, our legal instruments were not complete and this new law will provide more comprehensive protection for the rights and honours of our