China Approves Ethnic Unity Law Emphasising Mandarin in Public Life

On March 12, 2026, China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) passed a controversial new law officially titled the “Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress”, aimed at forging a “shared national identity” among the country’s 55 officially recognized ethnic minority groups. The legislation is set to take effect on July 1, 2026 as part of Beijing’s broader strategy to strengthen national cohesion under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

A key focus of the law is the priority use of Mandarin Chinese—known domestically as Putonghua—in education, government affairs, and public life. It mandates that Mandarin be the basic language of instruction in schools and that, where Mandarin and minority languages coexist in public settings, Mandarin should be given prominence in placement, order, and similar respects. While the law states that the state respects and protects the “learning and use” of minority languages, critics argue that these provisions effectively marginalise native tongues and accelerate cultural assimilation.

The legislation also encourages interethnic integration, including through promoting intermarriage and discouraging what it defines as ethnic or religious interference in personal relationships. Additionally, it incorporates legal penalties for actions seen as undermining ethnic unity, with language in the law extending potential liability even to individuals and organisations outside China who are perceived to harm “ethnic unity.”

Human rights advocates and scholars have sharply criticised the law, saying it departs from earlier guarantees of minority autonomy and language rights embedded in China’s constitution and other laws, such as the Law on Regional Ethnic Autonomy. They warn it could further erode the cultural distinctiveness of groups like the Tibetans, Uyghurs, Mongols, Hui, and others.

The Chinese government, for its part, defends the law as a balanced measure to promote unity across diverse communities and to ensure equal access to educational and economic opportunities, asserting it will respect cultural traditions while strengthening social stability.