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.

Wednesday, August 11, 2021

Tibet (西藏)

藏族老师因用藏语教学而被中国当局逮捕 (Tibetan teacher arrested for teaching the Tibetan language)
Voice of America, August 11, 2021

Access to Justice (司法公正)

Michael Spavor: Canadian jailed for 11 years in China on spying charges
BBC News, August 11, 2021

China Sentences Canadian Businessman to 11 Years in Prison
中国以间谍罪名判处加拿大商人11年有期徒刑

The New York Times, August 11, 2021

Activist Dies in China's Hunan After Years Campaigning Over Brother-in-Law's 'Suicide'
Radio Free Asia, August 10, 2021

丁家喜案进展通报:已被以颠覆国家政权罪提起公诉 律师今联系临沂市中级法院但查案无果 (Ding Jiaxi case update: Lawyer's inquiry at Linyi Intermediate Court yields no result despite official notice of subversion of state power indictment)
Weiquanwang, August 10, 2021

两名中国律师被跨省抓捕 坚称无罪 (2 lawyers detained in cross-province police action maintain innocence)
Radio Free Asia, August 10, 2021

Access to Information (公众知情权)

Chinese state media has seized on a Swiss scientist critical of a covid origins probe. The one problem: He might not exist.
The Washington Post, August 11, 2021

China to ban karaoke songs with ‘illegal content’ that endangers national unity
Reuters, August 11, 2021

中国大陆统一中小学教材,习近平思想成为灵魂指导 (China unifies textbooks for primary schools; Xi Jinping Thoughts becomes the spiritual guide)
Voice of America, August 11, 2021

煽动对外媒敌意的同时,中国谎称外媒在华报道环境“开放、自由” (While inciting hostility toward foreign media, China falsely claims environment for foreign reporting in China is “free and open”)
Voice of America, August 11, 2021

Citizen Participation (公民参与)

Alibaba's rape allegation is a milestone in China’s #MeToo movement
Protocol, August 10, 2021

Government Accountability (政府问责)

China’s investment abroad undermined by human rights claims, report finds
Reuters, August 11, 2021

Related:
“Going out” responsibly: THE HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACT OF CHINA’S GLOBAL INVESTMENTS
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, August, 2021

Human rights abuses claimed in hundreds of China belt and road projects
South China Morning Post, August 11, 2021

Is China’s New U.S. Ambassador a ‘Wolf Warrior’—or a Fox?
Foreign Policy, August 10, 2021

新冠疫情:中国加码全球疫苗供应 “疫苗外交”再升温 (Covid19 updates: China increases vaccine production to step up “vaccine diplomacy”)
BBC News, August 11, 2021

立陶宛与中国起摩擦 环球时报:不排除断交可能 (On China-Lithuania tension, Global Times: Will not rule out breaking diplomatic ties)
Deutsche Welle, August 11, 2021

中国电信网络布局非洲 政治影响力不断扩大 (China uses telecom infrastructure to expand political influence in Africa)
Voice of America, August 11, 2021

Hong Kong (香港)

Hong Kong’s biggest teachers’ union ‘seeks to speed up dissolution by changing its rules’ as Beijing attack continues
South China Morning Post, August 11, 2021

Related:
‘Heartbreaking but expected’: members of Hong Kong’s biggest teachers’ union mourn loss of their defender
South China Morning Post, August 11, 2021

Questions over remaining teacher union caseload, as pro-Beijing figures hail disbandment
Hong Kong Free Press, August 11, 2021

Hong Kong protest group to disband, as pressure mounts amid police investigation into its activities
South China Morning Post, August 11, 2021

Related:民陣或解散 消息:上周曾討論 料本周五作出決定(Source says Civil Human Rights Front will make decision whether to disband on Friday)
Stand News, August 11, 2021

Hong Kong’s RTHK will become state media after partnership with China’s CCTV, says press group chief
Hong Kong Free Press, August 11, 2021

Hong Kong man to apply for appeal against 7-year jail term for Yuen Long mob attack
Hong Kong Free Press, August 11, 2021

政府擬修訂國旗國徽條例 明確禮儀及釐清罪行條文等(Gov't to amend National Flag and National Emblem Bill to clarify requirements on etiquette, respect, etc.)
Radio Television Hong Kong, August 11, 2021

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

Beijing’s Big Tech crackdown stirs a debate over whether it’s hurting or helping the sector compete with US rivals
South China Morning Post, August 11, 2021

2022 Beijing Winter Olympics (2022北京冬奥)

Canada athletes may not be safe at 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, opposition leader says
The Guardian, August 11, 2021

Commentary (评论)

What price martyrdom?
Jeromecohen.net, August 11, 2021

Patriot games: it’s not the job of Hong Kong’s Chief Secretary to help vet candidates
Hong Kong Free Press, August 11, 2021

The anaconda in the chandeliers: The Hong Kong National Security Law and its implications for middle powers
SupChina, August 10, 2021

维权评论:周筱赟律师遭跨省抓捕,转发一段视频何罪之有? (Weiquanwang commentary: On lawyer Zhou Xiaoyun's cross-province arrest—Is reposting video a crime?)
Weiquanwang, August 11, 2021

Ying-shih Yu, Renowned Scholar of Chinese Thought, Dies at 91
史学泰斗余英时去世,坚守中国传统与自由价值

The New York Times, August 11, 2021