Over a hundred Christians were detained during a crackdown on a house church in Yayang, Zhejiang; 80 Tibetans are reported to have been detained protesting an illegal gold mine; artist Gao Shen was denied release on bail; and more in the Weekly Brief: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Update: Today, DHS dropped the request to send Guan Heng to Uganda, a significant positive development. Many thanks to everyone who has supported his case!

This week: Jimmy Lai's two-year trial ended with a guilty verdict, met with global condemnation; Guan Heng awaits a second immigration hearing on January 12; and Hong Kong activists in exile were threatened by explicit letters sent from HK and Macau. open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Today, a lawyer for DHS suggested sending Guan Heng to Uganda, a country with close ties to China that is "more likely than not" to send him back, says Mr. Guan's lawyer. Due to increased public attention to the case, he has been scheduled for a 2nd hearing on Jan 12. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/u...

A fierce, decentralized digital uprising has recently erupted within the confines of China’s Great Firewall. From Douyin to Bilibili, Chinese netizens are throwing themselves into a form of digital protest known as the Great Tower Rush (#大冲塔运动). Read more: hrichina.substack.com/p/the-great-...

Great article on Guan Heng from the WSJ. "If he is deported, he will certainly face a very severe prison sentence due to the social impact of this incident," @zhoufengsuo.bsky.social explained. According to Guan's lawyer, he was denied release on bond today. www.wsj.com/world/china/...

In 2020, Guan Heng embarked on a risky mission to prove the existence of Uyghur concentration camps. Now, his fate hangs in the balance as he awaits his immigration hearing on December 15th. If sent back to China, he would face drastic consequences. Read: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

HK authorities are cracking down on civil society responses to the Tai Po tragedy; four were arrested for encouraging non-voting in the "patriot only" LegCo elections; and 70k social media accounts were shut down in Shanghai over real estate "pessimism": open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

“FreeWeChat,” a project that archives "sensitive" WeChat content that has been censored by the Chinese government, was shut down by Florida-based cloud hosting company Vultr last month in compliance with a demand from Tencent, submitted via a proxy. en.greatfire.org/blog/2025/de...

In September 2025, journalist Zhang Zhan was unjustly sentenced to another four years in prison for her work defending human rights. HRIC has translated the full text of her judgment and sentencing, now publicly available for the first time, into English: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Three years after a fire in Urumqi claimed at least ten lives, Hong Kong suffered a terrible tragedy this week as at least 156 were killed in a fire in Tai Po. HK authorities cracked down on calls for accountability in the name of "national security." open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

The complete trial of Major General Xu Qinxian regarding the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests was exposed online where he stated “students were mixed with the public,” insisted on using political means, and refused to sign the troop deployment order. Read more: hrichina.substack.com/p/trial-tran...

Personal X accounts promoting Chinese culture and defending official positions were found to have IPs located within China. Since China has banned the X platform, these accounts are likely operated by official CCP institutions or authorized propaganda organizations. See more: x.com/hrichina/sta...

Chinese scientists have published a stimulation study on the technical feasibility of Starlink across a region as large as Taiwan, indicating that China is systematically making technical preparations to attack Taiwan, especially valuing communication as an important tactical objective.

This week's top news: Journalist Dong Yuyu's 7-year sentence was upheld; Anthropic reports an "autonomous" Chinese hacking campaign used their AI tool Claude; Germany deported a Uyghur woman to China against official policy; and more in the Weekly Brief. open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

A NYC film festival was canceled over transnational repression; the UK, Denmark, and Norway investigate whether Chinese-made buses can be controlled remotely; Apple pulled LGBT+ apps on the orders of the Chinese government; and more in the Weekly Brief. open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

On October 27, HRIC Executive Director Zhou Fengsuo spoke at FIDH's 42nd Congress in Bogotá, Colombia. His comments addressed the duality of cyberspace in China as "both an authoritarian weapon and a democratic lifeline." Read the full speech here: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Now translated into English by HRIC, journalist Jiang Xue tells the story of China's human rights lawyers who challenged the legal system, fought alongside civil society, and ventured into the forbidden realm of political and faith-related cases. Read: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

New York's IndieChina Film Festival, scheduled for November 8-15, has been abruptly cancelled over safety concerns. The Chinese authorities had targeted participants and even the organizer's friends and family with harassment and threats. Read the official statement: indiechina.org/%e5%85%b3%e4...

The Weekly Brief: the CCP cracks down on Halloween, mass protests in Hainan reflect longstanding resentments over the restructuring of Hainan's farm system, and two Hong Kong teenagers plead guilty to sedition/secession over their online activities. Read: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

China's Fourth Plenum was accompanied by offline and online protests; China expands its censorship efforts globally by pressuring third-party service providers; Chikungunya measures in Guangdong were met with backlash over government overreach, and more: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

On October 25, 2025, just after CCP’s Fourth Plenum, a brave protester hung two banners in Beijing's Sanlitun district, denouncing the CCP and calling for freedom, humanity, and rule of law. Signed “pque2025,” it deliberately echoed Peng Lifa’s 2022 Sitong Bridge protest.

The int'l community calls for the release of Swedish publisher Gui Minhai, 10 years after his abduction to China from Thailand; a new report finds that there has been little progress in the last 5 years towards abolishing the death penalty in Asia; and more: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

The Weekly Brief: Chinese authorities launched a nationwide crackdown against Zion Church; a lawyer urges consideration for female prisoners' rights; Lu Siwei has been diagnosed with lung cancer; and OpenAI says China is using ChatGPT for "authoritarian abuses." open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Lu Miaoqing, a female lawyer from Guangdong, has submitted a formal proposal urging Chinese lawmakers to incorporate gender sensitivity and substantive equality into the ongoing revision of the Prison Law of the People’s Republic of China. Read more here: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

On the eve of World Mental Health Day, the Chinese Human Rights Defenders Families Network has released the first comprehensive research report revealing the profound psychological trauma suffered by the children of human rights defenders. Access in full here: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

The PRC's 76th National Day was met with protests abroad while Tibet and Xinjiang experienced tightened controls, exiles in SE Asia fear Beijing's transnational reach, and women's rights content was censored ahead of the Global Women's Summit in Beijing: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

The Weekly Brief: Xi promotes "social stability" in Xinjiang, the 11th anniversary of the Umbrella Movement received small commemorations in Hong Kong, and HK activist Nathan Law was denied entry to Singapore over "national interests." Read here: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Citizen journalist Zhang Zhan has been sentenced to four more years in prison in a closed-door trial; 22yo Zhang Yadi has been charged with "inciting separatism"; and Beijing launches the world’s first prototype “Satellite Internet Firewall." Read more: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

“I am a brave person," Zhang Yadi wrote. Before she was detained in Yunnan this July on charges of "inciting separatism," 22-year-old Zhang was a prolific writer and multilingual advocate for Tibetan and Chinese rights. Read HRIC's in-depth profile here: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Lawyer Jiang Tianyong has been abruptly detained; leaks exposed the inner workings of the Chinese censorship and surveillance system; dissident Wang Yuping was forcibly hospitalized; China is piloting "village surveillance" in the Solomon Islands, and much more: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Last week, over 500GB of leaked confidential files exposed the inner workings of China's censorship and surveillance system, including international and domestic expansion and new advancements in real-time tracking of individuals and groups. Read here: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

A longform piece tells the story of Chinese human rights lawyers over the last 20 years; the NPC Standing Committee reviews laws on ethnic assimilation and cybersecurity; a report reveals "unlivable" conditions in HK prisons, and more in the Weekly Brief: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

On August 29, an anti-CCP message was projected on the exterior of a wall in Chongqing University; Netherlands-based student Hu Yang returned to China to visit family and was detained by police; and the Jimmy Lai trial concluded in Hong Kong. Read more: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Former district councillor Tiffany Yuen was released from prison in Hong Kong; five blockchain users were detained and USD$6M in assets seized; a 7-year-old American citizen is trapped in China due to an “exit ban”; and more in the Weekly Brief: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

Jimmy Lai’s trial resumes amid fears for Lai’s health; two Hong Kong activists in exile have been granted asylum; independent filmmaker Guo Zhenming describes the intrusive monitoring he experienced while renting an apartment in Urumqi; and more: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

A UN expert called on China to respect the rights of imprisoned HRDs; Chinese technology company GoLaxy used AI-personalized propaganda to track and target people in Hong Kong and Taiwan; a Thai gallery censored artworks under pressure from China, and more: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

声援正义的人，在中共眼中就是敌人。四川江油14岁女生遭霸凌，引发大规模抗议，当地警方暴力清场，仍挡不住“还我民主”“拒绝霸凌”的呼声。中国人权执行主任周锋锁指出：这场风暴说明中共已无法全面封锁舆论，外地网友甚至赶赴江油声援。他称，哪怕群众只是呼吁正义、劝警察不要滥权，在中共眼中，“只要敢主持正义，就是敌人”。江油人的行动，不只是为一个女孩讨公道，而是用行动戳破中共的暴政合法性。 rti.org.tw/news?uid=3&p...

The Weekly Brief: mass protests in Sichuan, the first known arrest under Macau's national security law, UK police tell a Hong Kong activist to self-censor, China scholars face administrative and external pressure to avoid sensitive topics, and more. Read- open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

澳门首次动用国安法逮捕民主派人士。7月31日，澳门当局拘捕前立法会议员区锦新，指控其"勾结境外敌对势力"、"危害国家安全"。这是澳门自2009年制定《维护国家安全法》以来首次实施逮捕。68岁的区锦新是澳门仅存的民主派声音，曾连续20年通过直选进入议会。几天前，他在社交媒体批评"爱国者治澳"政策，指出这一逻辑实为排除所有异议者的工具。当局指控他"向境外媒体提供不实资讯"，案件已移交检方处理。与香港极为相似的打压逻辑，正在澳门复制展开。

Hong Kong issued arrest warrants for 19 overseas activists; deepfake videos of Hong Kong activists are circling in an attempt to sow division; and young dissident Zhang Qiyuan has been missing for two weeks after he posted a "no suicide" statement. Read: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

没有人权保护，企业家也人人自危。4月至7月期间，中国家居建筑行业接连发生高管坠楼事件：4月16日金点子董事长毕光钧、6月2日西子电梯董事长刘文超、7月3日浙江建投董事沈康明、7月17日靓家居创始人曾育周，以及7月27日居然之家董事长汪林朋。值得注意的是，汪林朋在7月23日刚解除"留置"，四天后即坠楼身亡。同期，红星美凯龙创始人车建兴5月被调查并留置；成都富森美家居董事长刘兵也于7月24日被留置。一连串事件背后，是缺乏司法透明与独立监督的"留置"制度所带来的巨大心理压力，让商业精英在无尽的恐惧和不确定中选择极端方式结束生命。当正当程序与人权保障缺席时，更多的中国企业家该如何在制度恐惧中求得生存？

河北青年张琪沅实名质疑习近平后录制"不自杀"声明，失联已超两周。7月10日，河北青年张琪沅因在B站博主直播间公开质疑习近平是否为独裁者，被河北保定市东风派出所传唤。在前往派出所前，他录制声明视频表示："如果我消失，如果你们看到我在电视上认罪，那都是假的，是威胁下的结果。我不妥协，也不会自杀。"自7月10日起，张琪沅已失联15天。

中国再次升级对VPN机场的打击，网络封锁愈加严重。今年5月以来，多家提供翻墙服务的"机场"运营商反映，其服务节点遭遇"连续爆破式"封禁，大量用于连接海外网络的服务器IP地址在特定时段被集中屏蔽失效，相关网站域名也被网络运营商处理。据消息人士透露，中共当局人员开始主动购买翻墙服务，获取机场的服务器IP地址后，通过ISP通报机制追踪服务器提供商及客户信息。一旦确认服务器涉及翻墙用途，当局立即中断相关节点并对购买者展开调查。

Concerns over exit bans have increased this week as several high-profile cases have emerged, including a U.S. gov't employee and a Wells Fargo banker. Exit bans aren't new, but their use has expanded in recent years. Read the Weekly Brief here: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

中国网络控制已演化为智能舆论控制系统。ChinaFile最新研究显示，中国的网络控制早已超越传统"防火墙"概念，形成了一套协同运作的系统化舆论控制机制。在国家层面，中共通过立法、监管与技术手段设定控制底线，对各大平台施压执行监管，决定舆论是否推广或是屏蔽。平台层面，社交媒体平台主动筛查敏感内容，通过屏蔽、下架、限流等方式进行主动过滤或推广，形成算法式维稳。社会层面，通过实名制、自我审查、举报文化的普及，让所有人都参与到言论审查中。这套系统可根据政治敏感程度灵活调控，让每个人成为审查者和传播者。令人担忧的是，这种治理模式正通过中国科技平台的海外扩张，逐步影响和侵蚀全球网络自由空间。

中共黑客“为国效力”多年，遭美制裁后迅速被中共抛弃。近日，遭美国制裁的APT27成员周帅及其公司“黑英信息”发布维权声明，怒斥包括中国银行、工行、建行、交行、邮储在内的大批中资银行“配合美方侵权”，冻结其账户、强制销户，连腾讯支付也一并封禁。周帅要求各大机构停止限制、公开道歉，并扬言将采取法律行动。周帅及其公司早被曝光为公安部背景下的黑客承包商。2024年2月，美联社披露该公司多年来持续对外发动攻击，连中共“友好国家”亦未幸免：包括巴基斯坦反恐中心、阿富汗安全委员会、泰国财政部、蒙古外交部、哈萨克斯坦电信与航空系统等均为其目标。泄漏文件还显示，该公司还与新疆警方合作，协助监控境外维吾尔人。

This week, HRIC remembers Nobel Peace Prize winner, literary critic, professor, and human rights activist Liu Xiaobo, who passed away while in prison on July 13, 2017. We also continue to honor the work of the lawyers of the 709 Crackdown. Read the Brief: open.substack.com/pub/hrichina...

卢思位与李国蓓获中国人权律师奖。在2025年"人权律师节"上，这一奖项授予两位备受迫害却从未退却的法律人士，卢思位与李国蓓。卢思位曾代理"12港人案""四君子案""六四酒案"等案，因坚持辩护而遭吊销执照、跨境绑架，被以"非法越境"判刑11个月，预计今年8月出狱。李国蓓是少数仍在中国执业的人权律师，为李翘楚、陈品霖等政治案件提供法律辩护。中国人权执行主任周锋锁指出，在几乎人权律师被噤声或流亡的今天，李国蓓仍在高压下坚持为政治案辩护，已属罕见。她的存在，就是对极权下法治可能性的试炼；而卢思位的遭遇，则进一步印证了中共对人权捍卫者“跨境打压、刑事定罪”的高压策略，早已成为系统性、常态化的治理模式。

As HRIC's Fengsuo Zhou told Nikkei, the China Human Rights Lawyer Award is meant to "show support for the Chinese lawyers [who are] still fighting for justice and the rule of law, despite the worsening situation and increasing repression from the Chinese government." asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Two...