The HRIC Daily Brief is a daily selection of news stories and commentary related to human rights in China, drawn from Chinese- and English-language news and online media sources that we monitor daily. In addition to headlines and source links, HRIC also provides English translation of Chinese headlines.

Monday, August 15, 2016

Access to Justice (司法公正)

In international spotlight, China convicts human right lawyers and activists on “subversion” charges
Global Voices, August 12, 2016
https://globalvoices.org/2016/08/12/in-international-spotlight-china-convicts-human-right-lawyers-and-activists-on-subversion-charges/

Related:
Chinese activists' families face house arrest, travel bans: Lawyers
Radio Free Asia, August 12, 2016
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/chinese-activists-families-face-house-arrest-travel-bans-lawyers-08122016113741.html

Wife and relatives issue statement over torture of rights lawyer Xie Yang in Changsha
China Change, August 14, 2016
https://chinachange.org/2016/08/14/wife-and-relatives-issue-statement-over-torture-of-rights-lawyer-xie-yang-in-changsha/

Mass Crackdown on Chinese Lawyers, Defenders and International Reactions: A Brief Chronology
Human Rights in China, August 11, 2016
http://www.hrichina.org/en/mass-crackdown-chinese-lawyers-defenders-and-international-reactions-brief-chronology

Champion of human rights in China leaves a tarnished legacy
The New York Times, August 14, 2016
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/14/us/champion-of-human-rights-in-china-leaves-a-tarnished-legacy.html

Access to Information (信息公开)

A year after the Tianjin blast, public mourning and discussion about it are still censored in China
Quartz, August 12, 2016
http://qz.com/756872/a-year-after-the-tianjin-blast-public-mourning-and-discussion-about-it-are-still-censored-in-china/

Minitrue: Delete article on nuclear project suspension
China Digital Times, August 11, 2016
http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2016/08/minitrue-delete-article-lianyungang-nuclear-suspension/

Why do China’s leaders holiday in secret?
中国领导人为何从不公开度假消息
South China Morning Post, August 13, 2016
EN: http://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/2003023/why-do-chinas-leaders-holiday-secret
CH: http://www.nanzao.com/sc/opinion/1568c7ed5a170c3/zhong-guo-ling-dao-ren-wei-he-cong-bu-gong-kai-du-jia-xiao-xi

“炎黄春秋”新版被指冒牌货 (New version of “Yanhuang Chunqiu” criticized as “counterfeit”)
Voice of America, August 15, 2016
http://www.voachinese.com/a/news-outspoken-magazine-complained-beijing-forcefully-taken-over-abd-faked-by-authorities-20160815/3464829.html

Citizen Participation (公民参与)

民间人权报告: 7月363人受到维稳和打压 (Civil society human rights report: 363 people silenced or repressed in July)
Radio Free Asia, August 12, 2016
http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/renquanfazhi/ql2-08122016100808.html

More openly gay Olympians than ever, but no Chinese among them
奥运会“出柜”选手创纪录,无一来自中国
The New York Times, August 13, 2016
EN: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/13/world/asia/olympics-china-gay-athletes.html
CH: http://cn.nytstyle.com/culture/20160815/olympics-china-gay-athletes/

China cracks down on “toadies” celebrating former president Jiang
Financial Times, August 15, 2016
https://www.ft.com/content/273fce40-61dc-11e6-a08a-c7ac04ef00aa

Government Accountability (政府问责)

Tianjin chemical blast: Deadly disaster marked one year on
British Broadcasting Corporation, August 12, 2016
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-37019025

Related:
Has China failed to learn the lessons of deadly Tianjin explosions?
South China Morning Post, August 12, 2016
http://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/2002987/has-china-failed-learn-lessons-deadly-tianjin-explosions

One year after Tianjin, power plant explosion kills at least 21
China Labor Bulletin, August 12, 2016
http://www.clb.org.hk/content/one-year-after-tianjin-power-plant-explosion-kills-least-21

Chief of staff to Chinese president reveals details surrounding purge in secretariat
South China Morning Post, August 12, 2016
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2003042/chief-staff-chinese-president-reveals-details

Authorities in Chinese cities try to reassure public over nuclear fuel reprocessing plant
South China Morning Post, August 13, 2016
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/2003415/authorities-chinese-cities-try-reassure-public-over-nuclear-fuel

人权组织呼吁G20峰会关注中国人权 (Human rights organization urges leaders to pay attention to China’s human rights situation at G20 summit)
Voice of America, August 15, 2016
http://www.voachinese.com/a/g20-china-rights-20160815/3464533.html

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

7 years of “China’s Twitter”
Tech in Asia, August 14, 2016
https://www.techinasia.com/7-years-of-weibo-china-social-media

Internet or splinternet?
Al Jazeera, August 12, 2016
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2016/08/internet-splinternet-160810110930364.html

Hong Kong (香港)

Hong Kong student Joshua Wong avoids jail over pro-democracy protest
The Guardian, August 15, 2016
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/15/hong-kong-student-joshua-wong-avoids-jail-over-pro-democracy-protest

Surge in Hong Kong students applying to mainland universities contrasts sharply with anti-China sentiment
香港学生申请内地大学比例10年升10倍
South China Morning Post, August 14, 2016
EN: http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/2003819/number-hong-kong-students-applying-mainland-china
CH: http://www.nanzao.com/sc/hk-macau-tw/1568d197dc9979d/xiang-gang-xue-sheng-shen-qing-nei-di-da-xue-bi-li-10-sheng-10-bei

Teachers warned they could lose qualifications for advocating independence in schools
Hong Kong Free Press, August 15, 2016
https://www.hongkongfp.com/2016/08/15/teachers-warned-lose-qualifications-advocating-independence-schools/

Opinion and Editorial (观点和社论)

Mo Zhixu on the “great subversion case”
China Digital Times, August 12, 2016
http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2016/08/mo-zhixu-great-subversion-case/

Tianjin firefighter: “The blast that killed my team”
British Broadcasting Corporation, August 12, 2016
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-37046940

Pushing politics: Why China is supercharging dissident trials
The Wall Street Journal, August 12, 2016
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2016/08/12/subversion-sells-why-china-is-playing-up-dissident-trials/

The Communist Party of China's recipe for success
The Diplomat, August 12, 2016
http://thediplomat.com/2016/08/the-communist-party-of-chinas-recipe-for-success/

A writer’s quest to unearth the roots of Tibet’s unrest
The New York Times, August 15, 2016
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/15/world/asia/china-tibet-lhasa-jianglin-li.html

何清涟:一封写错收信人的联名信 (He Qinglian: A joint letter with a wrong addressee)
Voice of America, August 14, 2016
http://www.voachinese.com/a/heqinglian-blog-20160813/3463232.html