Top News 头条
Ramadan has been banned in China’s Xinjiang region since 2017 as part of the CCP’s attempt to eliminate Islam and Uyghur culture. This year, the authorities cracked down on participating in fasting and prayer, using a combination of threats, home visits, and temptation such as festivals and free food. Simultaneously, experts have raised the alarm once more around forced organ harvesting in the region.
Meanwhile, Chinese soft power efforts have turned to direct collaboration abroad. An exhibit titled “Xinjiang is a Wonderful Land,” held on South Korea’s Jeju Island and combined with a tourism promotion, is an example of China’s direct propaganda outreach to foreign populations, while journalists working for Chinese state media have been appearing as “correspondents” for Brazilian media without disclosing their affiliation.
Finally, in a recent interview with journalist Marco Respinti, HRIC’s Zhou Fengsuo described the country as significantly worsened under President Xi Jinping's leadership. Zhou, a Tiananmen Square survivor, characterized Xi's rule as the inevitable outcome of the Chinese Communist Party's inherently oppressive nature.
Law & Policy 法律与政策
March 2024: Previewing the NPC Standing Committee’s 2024 Legislative and Oversight Agenda: The National People’s Congress Standing Committee’s 2024 Legislative Agenda has been released, both an overview of the previous year and a preview of its upcoming plans. National security and “social stability” related laws both merit their own categories; for example, we can expect to see revisions to the National Defense Education Law and the Cybersecurity Law. There is also a “mystery” (carefully unlabeled) law pending, which indicates that the subject is likely something sensitive, such as property tax.
Standard Contract Measures for Personal Information Export Come into Force June 1, Additional Guidelines Released: The Cyberspace Administration of China has issued new guidelines under the Personal Information Protection Law, including a standard contract mechanism aimed at certain qualifying companies. The guidelines also clarify that “export” of personal information will include remote access to the data by anyone outside of China.
China Releases Technical Standards Guiding the Classification of “Important” Data: The Chinese government has issued technical standards to clarify the categories of data covered by the Data Security Law. It classifies “important data” as that which could impact “national security, economic operation, social stability, public health, and safety” if leaked or tampered with.
Hong Kong LGBTQ activists upset at revised ID card gender rules: Following a court decision last year, the Hong Kong government finally announced revised rules for changing gender markers on ID cards that no longer requires full sex reassignment surgery. But, the revised requirements still mandate substantive surgery, two years of hormones, and tests to prove hormone levels, which activists say violates transgender individuals’ right to privacy and equates to forced sterilization of transgender women.
Cyber Security & Digital Rights 网络安全与数字权利
Scathing federal report rips Microsoft for shoddy security, insincerity in response to Chinese hack: A U.S. government Cyber Security Review Board has released a report sharply criticizing Microsoft for its “shoddy security” leading to a Chinese cyber breach of top government officials’ email accounts.
China will use AI to disrupt elections in the US, South Korea and India, Microsoft warns: Microsoft’s threat report, on the other hand, discusses China’s likely usage of AI to attempt to influence elections in the United States, South Korea and India in 2024.
Presence of China-manufactured tech on U.S. networks continues to grow: According to cybersecurity company Forescout, “the number of internet-connected devices made by Chinese companies on U.S. enterprise networks grew 41%” over the last 12 months, totaling nearly 300,000 devices, mostly phones and tablets.
China blocks popular Tibetan-language blog: Luktsang Palyon (Tibetan Sheep), a popular blog that posts articles, translations, and other educational materials about Tibetan language and culture, has been shut down by the Chinese authorities as part of efforts to restrict access to the language.
Diaspora Community & Transnational Repression 海外社群和跨国镇压
Canadian Lawmaker Testifies Chinese Students Were Bused In to Elect Him: Canadian lawmaker Han Dong testified that high school students from China were bused to an election center to vote for him in a party election, despite living outside of his district. In Canada, noncitizens over 14 years of age can vote in party elections, but only if they can prove they reside within the district. The buses were paid for by the Chinese Consulate, and it is alleged that they also provided the students with falsified documents to allow them to vote.
Self-kidnappings by Chinese Students Abroad: Mystery Solved: A rash of recent “self-kidnappings,” in which young Chinese students abroad follow the orders of “cyber-kidnappers” posing as Chinese authorities give them instructions to isolate themselves in order to demand money from their families, only makes sense in the context of the Chinese authorities’ ordinary behavior—where kidnappings, threats, and mistreatment is to be expected.
Uyghurs remember 1990 Baren Uprising over China’s forced abortions: Last week, rallies were held around the world for the 34th anniversary of the Baren Uprising. In 1990, a group of Uyghurs attempted to break into a government building in anger over forced sterilizations of Uyghur women. The Chinese government responded by sending in troops and killing a still-unknown number of Uyghur residents.
Human Rights Defenders & Civil Society 人权捍卫者与公民社会
Tibetan monk arrested for holding Dalai Lama’s portrait during protest: Pema, a Tibetan monk and teacher from Kirti Monastery, has been arrested for staging a solo protest in which he held pictures of the Dalai Lama and protested Chinese policy in Tibet. His location is currently unknown, and the Chinese authorities have ramped up security in the area.
Beneath the calm, Hong Kong’s new security law drives deeper, quieter changes: Interest in migrating abroad has spiked in Hong Kong, as residents adjust to restricted freedoms and the authorities’ suspicion of so-called “soft resistance.”
Spurned by local viewers, Hong Kong TV stations look north for profit: As a result of censorship and targeting aimed at local Hong Kong media, Hong Kong TV stations are turning to mainland Chinese programs to fill the gaps and attract Chinese advertising dollars.
Hong Kong’s academic freedom saw ‘substantial’ decline over past decade, index finds: Over the past decade, Hong Kong’s academic freedom score declined from 0.69 to 0.24 out of 1, making the city a “substantial, statistically significant” case of declining academic freedom.
Related: Hong Kong students return ‘moved and inspired’ after national security study trip to mainland China.
Hong Kong accountant found guilty of rioting after Yuen Long mob attack in 2019: 43-year-old Jacky Ho is the first person uninvolved in the initial Yuen Long attack to be convicted of “rioting.” Ho went to the scene after seeing clips online, and threw “a soda can and an umbrella” towards the white-clad attackers.
China’s Reach & Internal Control 中国: 内控与外扩
Media feel pressure to tell ‘positive’ China story as party tightens grip: In recent years, even state-run media outlets have come under increased pressure to “tell China’s story well,” with heightened censorship and oversight. Sixth Tone, previously one of China’s less heavily censored outlets, geared towards international audiences, has been heavily impacted by the increased censorship.
Tightened Security During Qingming Festival Appears to Target Public Mourning of Li Keqiang: Chinese law enforcement appeared to be on high alert during the Qingming Festival last week, aka Tomb-Sweeping Day, in order to prevent mourners from laying flowers for Li Keqiang. The wide-scale public mourning at Li’s death last fall put the authorities on edge.
Hong Kong customs staff to receive training to stop items seen as risk to national security from entering city: Hong Kong has announced that customs staff will be trained to prevent entry of items that could break laws, including “sensitive” publications, and may contact law enforcement “if a visitor has no reasonable defence for [carrying] a publication that may be seditious.”
International Responses 国际反应
Travel first, then apply: UK further relaxes Hong Kong visa rules: In response to the new Article 23 national security law, the United Kingdom has relaxed the British National Overseas visa requirements to permit travelling to the country first before applying.
US treads carefully in responding to Hong Kong’s new national security law: “Since the law’s swift passage on March 19, the U.S. has announced visa restrictions on an unspecified number of unnamed Hong Kong officials but taken no further action.” The United States’ unwillingness to act may be related to the election year, or a belief that Hong Kong’s takeover is irreversible.
Related: The Biden Administration is Failing Hong Kong.
Central Asia leaders overlook plight of Uyghurs to woo China: In Central Asia, China’s role as a major trading partner seems to have won over governments that may otherwise be sympathetic to Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities who are suffering under Chinese repression. A recent tour of the region by officials who are known to have committed persecution of Uyghurs, and their warm reception by Central Asian governments, serves to highlight this reality.