New gender equality laws were submitted to Beijing, following a meeting of lawmakers.

State media reports sexual harassment offenses face crimimal charges under changes to laws aimed at protecting women's rights.

The amendment will also say, for the first time, equal rights for women are part of state policy.

The changes come after a number of reports claiming sexual harassment is a widespread problem in China.

Sina.com and Chat magazine conducted a national survey of 8,000 women, and found 79% of female respondents had experienced sexual harassment; compared to 22% of men.

A study by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences found 40% of women working for private or foreign firms had been targets of harassment compared to 18% of those in state-owned companies.

Experts suggest many women have suffered in silence, since the country has no explicit law to deal with the problem.

Xinhua media agency says since 2001 just 10 cases of sexual harassment have been brought before the courts and only one case had been proved.

As well as banning harassment, the new laws also call on all companies and government agencies to take steps to prevent the occurrence of such cases.

However, experts warn it could be some time before the changes take effect because studies have shown women find it difficult to file complaint on the subject.