The Legislative Office of China's State Council is reported to be soliciting public opinion for a draft rule on defective products recall that has been submitted by the General Administration of Quality Inspection, Supervision and Quarantine of China.
The public can submit their comments and opinions on the draft by logging onto the website of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council, by writing letters, or by sending emails. The deadline for comment is May 26, 2009.
The draft states that manufacturers should stop the production and sales of the defective products, recall them, and make a report to the local quality inspection department immediately after their product is confirmed to be harmful to health and safety. The draft says that manufacturers must not conceal the hazards of their defective products and they should report to the quality department such details as the risk to people's health and safety, any damage or accident that they have caused as well as defects that have been identified outside of China.
The draft states that violators of the rule will be issued a warning or asked to rectify the problem within a given period. Companies that fail to do this can be fined between CNY200,000 and CNY500,000 or may be punished under Chinese criminal law.
The draft does not apply to the recall and supervision of drugs and military products.
