China revised its primary law to address animal diseases that are harmful to people and have been linked to the Covid-19 pandemic—but public interest groups say the changes could fail without real enforcement mechanisms and deep reforms.
The global pandemic is widely suspected to have emerged from the wildlife trade within China, as did its cousin virus SARS nearly two decades before. Observers say it’s crucial for the country’s authorities to get strict enforcement and oversight in place to prevent the next outbreak.
China’s top lawmakers last week approved the amended Animal Epidemic Prevention Law, last...