(Adopted at the 30th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People's Congress on November 4, 2017)

In order to punish the criminal act of insulting the national anthem, effectively maintain the seriousness of playing, singing, and using the national anthem, and uphold national dignity, a second paragraph is added to Article 299 of the Criminal Law, which is amended as follows:

Whoever intentionally insults the national flag and emblem of the People's Republic of China by burning, damaging, scribbling, staining, trampling or other means in public places shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, detention, surveillance or deprivation of political rights.

Whoever intentionally alters the lyrics or music score of the national anthem of the People's Republic of China in public places, plays and sings the national anthem in a distorted or derogatory manner, or insults the national anthem in other ways, and the circumstances are serious, shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph

This amendment shall come into effect from the date of its publication.