China passed a counter-espionage law aimed at tightening state security and helping build a "comprehensive" national security system. The law will allow authorities to seal or seize any property linked to activities deemed harmful to the country; authorities can also ask organisations or individuals to stop or modify any behaviour regarded as damaging to China's interests. As China has already made broader laws governing state secrets and security, it was not clear what to extent the new law would enhance policing powers. The revised security law followed a Communist Party meeting that promised to allow courts more independence and curtail officials' influence over legal cases, though the vows were criticised by some as lacking in substance. The defendants in these legal cases would be fined or detained if they “force a plaintiff to withdraw the suit through illegal means such as threats or fraud”. The gLawcal Team LIBEAC project Saturday, 1 November 2014 (Source: Reuters)