China Warns Hong Kong Democracy Activists After Election

BBC
Many in Hong Kong are increasingly concerned about Beijing's interventions in its politics.

Environment

08.29.16

Environmental Law Blunted by Crippling Court Costs

from chinadialogue
Zhenhua Ltd. is a glass-making firm based in Dezhou, a city in China’s northeastern Shandong province. The factory sits amid a cluster of modern residential areas, so when the company failed to limit its emissions of polluted air and dust into the...

Caixin Media

08.22.16

What’s Next for Uber and Didi in China?

New regulations and a blockbuster merger between the industry’s largest players are reshaping the business landscape for China’s car-hailing app companies.And the landscape is widening as car-hailing companies, including Didi Chuxing Technology Co...

Media

08.17.16

How the Philippines Can Win in the South China Sea

The Philippine Islands has a problem. It has international law on its side in its quarrel with China over maritime territory, but no policeman walking his beat to enforce the law. That means that, despite an international court’s findings, the...

Media

08.11.16

The Future of China’s Legal System

Neysun A. Mahboubi, Carl Minzner & more
In early August, Beijing held show trials of four legal activists—a disheartening turn for those optimistic about legal reform in China. What are the prospects for the development of the rule of law in China under Communist Party Secretary Xi...

What a Former CIA China Expert Has Learned from 30 Years in the Field

Paul Haenle & Dennis Wilder from Carnegie China
As tensions between the United States and China rise over security issues in the Asia-Pacific region, some are concerned about the possibility of conflict between the world’s two largest economies. Dennis Wilder, former Senior Director for East Asia...

Chinese Activist Zhai Yasmin Found Guilty of Subversion

BBC
Hundreds are detained since last year as a part of a crackdown on ‘legal activism’.....

South China Sea: Beijing Vow to Prosecute ‘Trespassers’

James Griffiths
CNN
China is still territorial under no ‘legal bias’.....

China: The People’s Fury

Richard Bernstein from New York Review of Books
It has long been routine to find in both China’s official news organizations and its social media a barrage of anti-American comment, but rarely has it reached quite the intensity and fury of the last few days. There have been calls from citizens on...

Reports

07.26.16

The Condom Quandary

Asia Catalyst
Sex work is illegal in China, and law enforcement practices that focus on condoms as evidence of prostitution are having a negative impact on HIV prevention among sex workers. When Lanlan, who runs a community-based organization (CBO) and support...

Dialogue the Right Way Forward in Settling South China Sea Disputes

Fei Liena
Xinhua
“China's ‘dual-track’ approach offers an excellent opportunity” for dialogue, a Xinhua commentary argues.

Interpreting the South China Sea Tribunal Ruling

Paul Haenle & Elizabeth Economy from Carnegie China
International responses to the tribunal’s ruling in the South China Sea have raised questions about the stability of the Asia-Pacific region and what roles the United States and China have in it. In this podcast, Paul Haenle and Elizabeth Economy...

China Announces New Military Drills in South China Sea

Financial Times
The new drills are the first since last week’s decision by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague.

Viewpoint

07.14.16

China’s Failure in the South China Sea

Orville Schell
By reiterating its policy of “no acceptance, no participation, no recognition, and no implementation,” China has painted itself into a difficult corner and diminished the chances of resolving the myriad maritime disputes—involving Vietnam, Brunei,...

Tribunal Has Handled Arbitration Case Irresponsibly, Law Experts Say

Li Xiaokun and Mo Jingxi
China Daily
‘I don't think China is getting a fair shake,’ one expert said.

Ruling ‘Null and Void,’ With No Binding Force

Fu Jing and An Baijie
China Daily
Nation remains committed to resolving maritime disputes through negotiation, President Xi says.

‘Ghostbusters’ In Line for China Ban Due to Supernatural Theme

Henry Barnes
Guardian
Under China’s censorship laws any films suggesting the existence of the supernatural can be banned from distribution.

Conversation

07.12.16

China’s Claims in the South China Sea Rejected

Andrew S. Erickson, Peter Dutton & more
On Tuesday in the Hague, the Permanent Court of Arbitration rejected China’s claims that a scattering of rocks and reefs in the contested South China Sea qualify as Exclusive Economic Zones for China. The court found in favor of the Philippines’...

China Should Let Soccer Fans Gamble

Adam Minter
Bloomberg
To save football from corruption, the betting should no longer be illicit...

Survey: Indian Firms Best, China Worst on Transparency

New York Times
The report highlighted the urgent need for big multinational companies to do more to fight corruption.

China Violated Rights of Detained American, U.N. Panel Says

Edward Wong
New York Times
The panel has called for her immediate release.

Hong Kong Refuses to Return Bookseller Lam Wing Kee to China

BBC
Chinese police say he is in breach of his bail terms and have threatened further action if he does not return.

Environment

07.06.16

China-Backed Hydropower Project Could Disturb a Sensitive Siberian Ecosystem

from Rivers without Boundaries
Lake Baikal contains 20 percent of the world’s freshwater resources and affects the regional climate of North Asia and the Arctic Basin. The lake is home to 2,500 aquatic species and local communities in Mongolia and Russia revere the lake as the “...

The Fate of China’s Freest City Could Depend on This One Frail Bookseller

Nash Jenkings
Time
Mighty Current Media booksellers make a statement from prison....

Connecting to China's Patchy Internet Freedom

Euro News
EG365
Determined Chinese internet users turn to Virtual private Networks....

Conversation

06.30.16

Where Is China’s Internet Headed?

David Schlesinger, Jeremy Goldkorn & more
Lu Wei, the often combative Chinese official known as China’s “Internet Czar,” will step down, and is to be replaced by a former deputy of Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The personnel change comes after a period of mounting restrictions on China’s...

Beijing Slams South China Sea Case as Court Ruling Nears

Ben Blanchard and Anthony Deutsch
Reuters
"China does not accept any dispute resolution from a third party."

Culture

06.29.16

Using Free Sex to Expose Sexual Abuse in China

Jonathan Landreth
Nanfu Wang hoped that a woman called Ye Haiyan (“Hooligan Sparrow”), who had offered free sex on the Internet to draw attention to the plight of poor women selling their bodies to support their children, would lead her to the prostitutes she wanted...

China Cracks Down on ‘Harmful’ Speech

Cal Wong
Diplomat
Government demands an apology from a writer questioning an ‘official account of a wartime story’.....

China Is Another Step Closer to Controversial Cybersecurity Law

Fortune
The draft requires network operators to comply with social morals and accept the supervision of the government and public.

Top Chinese Envoy Visits Vietnam as South China Sea Tension Rises

Mai Nguyen and Martin Petty
Reuters
Yang Jiechi and Pham Binh Minh expressed a need for agreements that prevent rows from getting out of hand.

Taiwanese Scam Suspects in Cambodia to be Expelled to China

Asahi Shimbun
Rights activists and Taiwan say the plan reflects the great influence Beijing exercises over Cambodia through aid and investment.

China Still Harvesting Organs from Prisoners at a Massive Scale

James Griffiths
CNN
The report shows a discrepancy between official figures for the number of transplants carried out throughout the country.

China Brushes Off Doubts Over Support on South China Sea, Says It's Growing

Ben Blanchard
Reuters
China has stepped up its rhetoric ahead of a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague.

Chinese Official Whose Arrest Stirred Protests Confesses To Taking Bribes

Austin Ramzy
New York Times
Mr. Lin is detained on suspicion of recieving bribes and abuse of power....

Caixin Media

06.21.16

Mother’s Fight to Exonerate Executed Son Highlights Gaping Holes in Justice System

More than two decades after a young man in the northern province of Hebei was executed for the alleged rape and murder of a woman, his mother is anxiously awaiting a retrial to clear his name.Zhang Huanzhi’s only son, Nie Shubin, was executed in...

Hundreds of Residents of South China 'Rebel' Village Protest, Poised for Showdown

James Pomfret
Reuters
Villagers called for the return of seized land and the release of a former protest leader who was elected village chief in 2012.

Hong Kong Leader Vows Action After Bookseller Recounts Ordeal in China

Laurence Witherington and Joanne Chiu
Wall Street Journal
The incidents have raised concerns that Chinese authorities violated the “one country, two systems” formula.

Taiwan Bars Ex-President From Visiting Hong Kong

Austin Ramzy
New York Times
After leaving office, travel is limited for three years for high-level officials....

This Man Was Sectioned For Being Gay. Now He’s Fighting Back

Hannah Beech
Time
Man files suit for homophobic maltreatment within a mental institution....

Conversation

06.13.16

A War of Words Over the South China Sea

Edward Friedman, Feng Zhang & more
Beginning earlier this year, four-star Admiral Harry Harris, the U.S. Navy’s top commander in the Pacific, has spoken out in speeches, interviews, private meetings, and testimony to Congress urging that the U.S. take more aggressive action against...

China’s Content Crackdown Forces Western Media Concessions

Lilian Lin
Wall Street Journal
Rules barring foreign media firms from video-streaming licenses are being more strictly enforced.

In China, Cheating on an Exam Will Get Students Detention—in Prison

Max Bearak
Washington Post
More than 9.4 million Chinese students attended this year's college entrance exams (Gaokao) in China, and cheating in Gaokao is now considered a criminal offense.

California Sees Surge in Chinese Illegally Crossing Border from Mexico

Tatiana Sanchez
Los Angeles Times
Between October and May, the first eight months of the fiscal year, Border Patrol agents in the San Diego sector apprehended an estimated 663 Chinese nationals, compared with 48 in the entire previous fiscal year and eight...

In China, Homeowners Find Themselves in a Land of Doubt

Stuart Leavenworth and Kiki Zhao
New York Times
All land in China is owned by the government, which parcels it out to developers and homeowners through 20- to 70-year leases.

Viewpoint

05.26.16

China and the End of Reform

Thomas Kellogg
Is the Chinese Communist Party putting an end to the decades-long process of China’s opening to the outside world? Is the era of liberal reform over? Consider the latest piece of evidence: on April 28, the Standing Committee of the National People’s...

Viewpoint

05.25.16

Hong Kong’s International Law Problem

Alvin Y.H. Cheung
In the years leading up to Hong Kong’s return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, Beijing was keen to reassure the world that nothing significant would change in the territory. Business elites and local politicians alike busied themselves with...

Caixin Media

05.25.16

Search Giant Baidu Shuts Online Literature Forums to Stamp Out Piracy

Internet giant Baidu said May 23, it would gradually take down discussion forums on literature from its popular online bulletin board service to remove content suspected of infringing upon intellectual property rights.China’s biggest search engine...

Viewpoint

05.24.16

“It’s Time for Us To Set a New Political Agenda for Hong Kong”

Jonathan Landreth, Susan Jakes & more
Last month, midway through a whirlwind tour of United States universities, Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong took a break for a crab cake and mac-and-cheese lunch at a Manhattan brasserie. Wong, 19, came to international prominence during the...

Real-Estate Lawsuits Surge in China

Esther Fung
Wall Street Journal
Undelivered homes drive some buyers to sue while developers seek refunds on land.

Conversation

05.16.16

Escalation in the South China Sea

Julian G. Ku, M. Taylor Fravel & more
International tensions are rising over the shipping lanes and land formations in the South China Sea. Last week, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force scrambled fighter jets in response to a U.S. Navy ship sailing near the disputed Fiery Cross Reef...

Chinese Police Uncover Huge Fake Jellyfish 'Scam'

Martin Yip
BBC
Police in eastern China have raided two fake jellyfish workshops, saying more than 10 tonnes is thought to have made its way into local food markets.

Facebook Wins China Trademark Case

Tom Mitchell
Financial Times
Such cases involve a Chinese company registering a high-profile Western name to benefit by forcing the company to either buy it back or take the matter to court.

Conversation

05.05.16

How Should Global Stakeholders Respond to China’s New NGO Management Law?

Sebastian Heilmann , Thomas Kellogg & more
A new law gives broad powers to China’s police in regulating and surveilling the activities of foreign NGOs in China. The law would require foreign groups including foundations, charities, advocacy organizations, and academic exchange programs to...

U.S. Diplomat’s Same-Sex Marriage Causes Stir in China

Edward Wong
New York Times
Hanscom Smith, the U.S. Consul General in Shanghai, marrying Eric Lu in San Francisco has generated interest in China.

Apple No Longer Has Exclusive Rights to The "iPhone" Name in China

Zheping Huang
Quartz
Apple lost a trademark suit against a Chinese company, which now has right to make and sell leather products branded “IPHONE.”

Taiwan Objects as Malaysia Deports Taiwanese Citizens to China

Hilary Whiteman
CNN
Taiwan has filed a formal objection with the Malaysian government over its deportation of 32 Taiwanese nationals to China.

Video of Beatings Amid Demolition in China Leads to Official Reprisals

Austin Ramzy
New York Times
Officers wearing law enforcement uniforms brandishing clubs, striking women and children cowering at the foot of a wall.