The registration process itself is cumbersome, and as a result many organizations will likely either forgo activities in China or get lost in a labyrinth of bureaucracy. Those that successfully register local representative offices, or get permits for temporary activities, will be subject to police searches of their offices, computers and financial records.

One of the most chilling parts of the draft, Article 59, extends to activities outside China’s borders. Any of the following vaguely defined actions, if attributed not only to a representative within China but also to a foreign organization abroad, would be a violation: subversion of state power, undermining ethnic harmony, spreading rumors, or “other situations that endanger state security or damage the national interest or society’s public interest.”

In other words, if a student group on an American campus protests against Chinese government treatment of Tibetans, the university could be barred from activities in China, and its representatives in China could be detained and prosecuted.

Outsiders do not yet know how rigid or broad the law’s enforcement would be, but it’s telling that enforcement would be carried out by the police, not by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, which regulates domestic organizations. The message is clear: Those seeking access to China must beware the party line.

Beijing has previously retaliated against governments that met with the Dalai Lama or that permitted the awarding of prizes to advocates of political reform in China. It has blocked news outlets, restricted electronic communications and denied entry and work visas to journalists based upon the content of their reporting. Now attention is turning to foreign nonprofit organizations.

The role of foreign engagement in aiding China’s economic and social progress over the past 35 years is unquestionable. It was the post-Cultural Revolution policy of reform and opening up, championed by Deng Xiaoping, that paved the way for China’s achievements through greater integration with the world economically, socially and culturally.

There is still time for China’s leaders to revise this draft. The National People’s Congress has invited public comment on the proposal. If the draft only reflects the views of a faction within the party, as many believe, responses from the public, including foreigners, could be influential. Those people who wish to see China continue on its path of peaceful engagement should come forward and be heard. The comment period for the draft law ends June 4.

The drafters of this law do not understand how China has benefited from its opening up. All they see are sinister “foreign agents” instigating change. It would be a mistake for China, and unfortunate for the rest of the world, if its leadership caves in to its most radical elements and tells the world that, while foreign investment is welcome in China, foreign ideas are not.