A senior legislator on Saturday said China is drafting a law to combat climate change, a move that signals the country's proactive role in honoring its commitment to curtailing emissions, among other measures.

"The responsibility of lawmakers is to urge the government to take concrete steps to meet its promises," Chen Zhili, vice-chairwoman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), said in Tianjin at a two-day forum on climate change legislation, which began on Saturday.

Chen said lawmakers will base China's climate change legislation on a resolution passed by the NPC in August 2009.

According to the resolution, China will adhere to "the basic framework" set up at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), signed by more than 150 countries in 1992, and the Kyoto Protocol, agreed to in 1997 by a majority of the international community, to set binding targets for developed countries to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, along with the principles of UNFCCC-endorsed "common but differentiated responsibilities".

Chen said many developing countries have been gravely suffering from the damage caused by extreme weather this year. The international community should provide greater support to these countries in terms of finance, technical support and enabling them to improve their ability to deal with natural disasters.

(China Daily November 8, 2010)