Top News 头条
Hong Kong's biggest ever national security trial, also known as the landmark “Hong Kong 47” trial, resumed on Monday with mitigation pleas, the final stage before sentencing. The defendants, who were charged with "conspiracy to commit subversion" under the National Security Law, were among those arrested in early 2021 for taking part in an unofficial, non-binding poll to select candidates for a legislative election. Amongst the 47, legal scholar Benny Tai Yiu-ting rejected the prosecution’s call for at least 10 years for those convicted of subversion. Some defendants could potentially be jailed for life.
These developments come just days before July 1, Hong Kong’s anniversary of return to Chinese rule since 1997, which is traditionally a day of protest for pro-democracy groups. Mass displays of opposition have not been seen since Beijing imposed the National Security Law in June 2020. Addressing reporters at a weekly press briefing on Tuesday, Chief Executive John Lee said the 27th Handover anniversary next Monday would be “warmly celebrated” by Hongkongers. Police chief Raymond Siu said on Saturday that authorities were stepping up intelligence gathering ahead of the Handover anniversary.
Law & Policy 法律与政策
China Threatens Harsh Punishments for Supporting Taiwanese Independence: In Beijing's latest attempt at 'long-arm' law enforcement, China has issued sweeping legal guidelines that impose harsh punishments for supporting Taiwanese independence, up to and including the death penalty. The new rules cover a wide range of activities and can be applied retroactively and in absentia.
Related: Autocracy is 'evil', Taiwan president says after China threatens death for separatism. Democracy is not a crime and autocracy is the real “evil,” Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said after China threatened to impose the death penalty in extreme cases for "diehard" Taiwan independence separatists.
Top British judge hears Hong Kong protest case amid foreign judges row: Adding to the debate over whether foreign judges should continue to sit on Hong Kong's highest court amid a national security crackdown, David Neuberger is one of the judges of a panel of five on the Court of Final Appeal (CFA) hearing an appeal by seven high profile democrats to have their conviction of illegal assembly overturned.
Cyber Security & Digital Rights 网络安全与数字权利
Geologists raise concerns over possible censorship and bias in Chinese chatbot: A chatbot being developed by a largely Chinese-funded program with the backing of the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS), one of the world’s largest scientific organizations and a UNESCO partner, has thrown up issues about potential Chinese censorship and bias: for instance, questions regarding China’s aggressive search for minerals are seemingly filtered.
Cities, provinces across China join global propaganda push: At least 23 foreign propaganda centers at China's city and provincial levels have been documented as they join to push tailored messages towards other countries through media and ads, promoting the Belt and Road Initiative and other messages promoting CCP objectives.
Chinese hackers have stepped up attacks on Taiwanese organizations, cybersecurity firm says: RedJuliett, a suspected Chinese state-sponsored hacking group, increased its targeting of Taiwanese organizations on an unprecedented scale, possibly to collect intelligence and support Beijing's policy-making on cross-strait relations.
US closer to curbing investments in China's AI, tech sector: The U.S. Treasury Department published draft rules for banning or requiring notification of certain investments in artificial intelligence and other technology sectors in China that could threaten U.S. national security.
Microsoft in damage-control mode, says it will prioritize security over AI: President of Microsoft Brad Smith promised the U.S. Congress that security will be "more important even than the company’s work on artificial intelligence" after Microsoft admitted that it could have taken steps to prevent two aggressive nation-state cyberattacks from China and Russia.
Tech war: OpenAI to further block access by mainland China, Hong Kong-based developers: ChatGPT creator OpenAI is tightening measures to block attempts from “unsupported countries and territories,” including mainland China and Hong Kong, to access its generative artificial intelligence (AI) services via application programming interfaces (APIs), according to a notice sent to Chinese developers, thus deepening the AI divide between China and the United States.
Diaspora Community & Transnational Repression 海外社群和跨国镇压
China's political refugees remain at risk long after leaving country: On World Refugee Day, powerful stories from Chinese asylum seekers are shared: for instance, Liu Dongling, a Chinese activist who supported an online free speech campaign that saw its leader arrested in Laos and is “terrified” of being sent back to China, is now facing deportation from Denmark after her asylum application was rejected by authorities there.
Related: Ecuador ends visa-free entry for Chinese nationals fleeing country: Authorities in Ecuador have suspended visa-free entry to Chinese nationals starting July 1. The move, which was announced ahead of World Refugee Day on June 20, is a heavy blow for the "run" movement, as it will make it harder for anyone hoping to seek political asylum in the United States.
After Escaping China by Sea, a Dissident Faces His Next Act: Kwon Pyong, a Chinese dissident of Korean descent who fled to South Korea by jet ski last year to escape political repression by the Chinese authorities, tells the story of his escape from China.
Hong Kongers embrace politics in UK, but some still fear Beijing: With relations between Britain and China at a low ebb, amid accusations from London that Beijing had intimidated a foreign national on British soil and counter claims of spying activities, some Hong Kongers are still fearful of China's reach.
Related: Hong Kongers in UK 'feeling nervous' over ID card changes. Hong Kong residents will need to replace their ID cards over the next two years, authorities say, which could force those living in the U.K. or elsewhere to choose between going back and risking possible arrest, or being unable to return indefinitely.
Australia complains after Chinese officials block view of Cheng Lei: The Australian government said Tuesday it has complained to Beijing after Chinese officials tried to block formerly jailed Chinese state TV journalist Cheng Lei from view during a news conference by Premier Li Qiang during his visit to the country. Cheng Lei was jailed in China for nearly three years in 2022 after being accused of "illegally providing state secrets she acquired at work to overseas institutions."
Chinese artist hits back at party censorship with trashy performance: A Chinese artist Xiao Lu is hitting back at the Communist Party's ongoing attempts to censor cultural expression even far beyond China's borders with an exhibit in Sydney depicting the kind of "garbage" that gets produced when artists agree to stay within the government's “red lines”, as part of her performance art exhibit at Sydney's Passage Gallery.
Human Rights Defenders & Civil Society 人权捍卫者与公民社会
历史的回响:35年后六四的纪念与中共的镇压 [Reverberations of History: 35 Years Later, Commemorations of June 4th and the CCP's Suppression]: For this year’s 35th anniversary of the Tiananmen Massacre, to evade censorship and surveillance, many mainland Chinese used unusual methods to commemorate and spread the truth about June Fourth.
Bookstores Become Sites of Subtle Protest Against Xi Jinping: A photograph taken inside a Hangzhou bookshop showed the novel “Changing of the Guard” displayed next to the 2023 edition of “Study Outline for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics,” a juxtaposition that some read as an implicit call for Xi to step down; previous instances have seen Xi’s books paired with the work of the philosopher Karl Popper, novels by Ernest Hemingway, childhood psychology books, Winnie the Pooh, books on Hitler, and studies of China’s imperial system.
Former Tiananmen vigil activist Chow Hang-tung seeks to remove judge from national security trial over potential bias: Rights activist Chow Hang-tung, who has been charged with inciting subversion of state power under the National Security Law, is calling for the removal of Judge Anna Lai due to Lai’s past involvement in deciding an earlier case involving Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which could comprise Chow’s right to a fair trial.
Man charged under new Hong Kong security law over ‘seditious’ social media posts remanded in custody: A man in Hong Kong was charged for publishing “seditious” statements on social media under the new HK security law; social media posts said to be made by Au Kin-wai allegedly involved the words “Revolution is no crime, to rebel is justified,” a slogan dating back to China’s Cultural Revolution.
Sculpture with figures in yellow raincoats ‘under repair,’ Hong Kong gov’t says as removal sparks censorship fears: The covering up and removal of Ju Ming’s Lining Up sculpture which features two figures in yellow raincoats, has sparked censorship fears; yellow raincoats became a symbol of Hong Kong’s 2019 protests after a protester fell to his death while wearing one.
17 people jailed up to 5 years, 10 months over attempted escape from besieged Hong Kong campus during 2019 protests: District Judge Lily Wong said the authorities had issued daily warnings urging the public not to go to PolyU, but the defendants had been “stubborn” and ignored such warnings. The judge concluded that the defendants must, therefore, have been on the side of the “black-clad” protesters.
Jimmy Lai, Martin Lee among 7 Hong Kong democrats taking last shot at overturning 2019 demo conviction: Hong Kong courts must ensure that a conviction is “proportionate” to the protection of fundamental rights, lawyers representing seven veteran democrats have argued at the city’s top court in an appeal against convictions linked to an unauthorized demonstration in 2019.
China’s Reach & Internal Control 中国: 内控与外扩
China threatens death penalty for supporters of Taiwan independence: China has issued a directive threatening death penalties for supporters of Taiwan independence, extending its jurisdiction beyond its borders. This directive, targeting those promoting Taiwan's statehood, was issued by China's Supreme People's Court and other law enforcement agencies. The move is seen as an attempt to pressure Taiwan and its supporters, potentially making travel riskier for Taiwanese and others advocating for independence. Taiwan's government has denounced the directive as an intimidation tactic.
China targets younger Taiwanese with junkets for island’s celebrities: China is using junkets and influence operations to target young Taiwanese through a "United Front" strategy, inviting influencers and celebrities to China for tourism promotion. This effort is part of broader attempts to sway Taiwanese public opinion and support Beijing's claims over Taiwan. The Taiwanese government is investigating the funding sources for these activities, emphasizing that while healthy exchanges are welcome, they are wary of operations undermining Taiwan's autonomy.
China’s leader Xi Jinping vows to step up crackdown on corruption in armed forces: Chinese President Xi Jinping has announced a renewed and intensified crackdown on corruption within the armed forces. This move is part of his long-standing anti-corruption campaign, which has been a hallmark of his leadership since he came to power over a decade ago. Xi emphasized the need to "eradicate the soil and conditions in which corruption thrives" and called for increased supervision over senior military officials. This announcement comes amid ongoing regional tensions, particularly in the South China Sea and around Taiwan
China changed village names 'to erase Uyghur culture': Human Rights Watch (HRW) reports that hundreds of village names, many with significant cultural, religious, and historical meanings, have been replaced between 2009 and 2023. The changes are seen as part of a broader strategy to assimilate the Uyghur population and suppress their identity. This move is part of China's broader policies in Xinjiang, which have drawn international condemnation for alleged human rights abuses against the Uyghur community.
International Responses 国际反应
US lawsuit against TikTok to focus on children's privacy: The U.S. Department of Justice plans to focus an upcoming lawsuit against TikTok on allegations that the popular social media platform violated the privacy rights of children, rather than claims it misled adult users about its data privacy practices.
China dismisses EU comments on human rights crackdown: The EU said on Monday after an EU delegation visited Tibet and met with Chinese officials last week that it was concerned about what it called the "very serious" human rights situation in China, in particular in Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong.
Defying China, US lawmakers meet with Dalai Lama: U.S. officials met with the Dalai Lama in India last week to discuss the Resolve Tibet Act, which urged Beijing to resolve the China-Tibet dispute through dialogue with the Dalai Lama.
Related: China says Dalai Lama must 'thoroughly correct' his political views. Beijing has rejected the Resolve Tibet Act, saying Tibet is part of China and brooks no interference from external forces.
China dismisses Canadian complaints over Xinjiang human rights: Canadian Ambassador Jennifer May visited Xinjiang June 19 to 22, the first such visit by a Canadian envoy in a decade, and "raised concerns over credible reports of systematic violations of human rights."
Related: Campaigners urge UN rights chief to act on China Xinjiang abuse report: The groups, including the World Uyghur Congress and Amnesty International said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk had not followed up on a 2022 report by his predecessor that found China may have committed crimes against humanity.
In Italy, lawyers file Uyghur forced labor complaints about tomato paste: Dozens of containers of tomato paste exported from Xinjiang to Italy are the subject of domestic criminal and international complaints filed by rights lawyers on behalf of Uyghur advocacy groups who allege that the goods were produced using Uyghur forced labor.