Quarantine violators may face life in jail in China

China has said anyone violating quarantine and intentionally spreading Sars could face execution or jail for life.

The Supreme Court and the country's top prosecutor laid down the punishment in an interpretation of laws on hindering the prevention or treatment of sudden disease outbreaks and other disasters, the Xinhua news agency said.

The interpretation is part of a tough government push to tackle the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome.

Several reports have surfaced in China, home to the worst outbreak of Sars on earth, of people busting out of quarantine or escaping medical care for fear of the disease.