On October 23, 2021, the 31st session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) adopted the Decision of the NPC Standing Committee on the Ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Marrakesh Treaty’).

The Marrakesh Treaty is a historic treaty in the international copyright system. It is one of the treaties administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), signed in Marrakech, Morocco on June 27, 2013, effective on September 30, 2016. According to data of WIPO, more than 80 WIPO members (covering nearly 110 countries and regions) have accessed to the Marrakesh Treaty. The treaty aims to create a set of mandatory limitations and exceptions for the benefit of the blind, visually impaired and otherwise print disabled (VIPs), to guarantee the equal rights of persons with print disabilities to enjoy works and access to education. It is the world's first and so far the only human rights treaty in the field of copyright.

China signed the treaty on June 28, 2013, and has now ratified the treaty. In order to ratify the treaty, China has made great efforts to amend the copyright law. There is a certain gap between China's Copyright Law and Regulations on the Protection of the Right of Communication through Information Network and the requirements of the treaty, so relevant legislation must be adjusted. This is also one of the important reasons that China has not ratified the treaty for a long time after signing the treaty in 2013.

In November 2020, the draft amendment to China's Copyright Law was finally passed, which included adaptive amendments to the Marrakesh Treaty, and the amended Copyright Law was officially implemented on June 1, 2021. The revised Copyright Law stipulates: "providing published works to persons with print disabilities in a barrier-free way that they can perceive, without the permission of the copyright owner, and no payment to them, however, the author's name or title and the title of the work should be specified, and the normal use of the work must not be affected, and could not unreasonably impairs the legitimate rights and interests of copyright owners.”

The ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty fully demonstrates China's human rights protection in the field of copyright, and provides a large and convenient accessible book resource for the print disabled persons.