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, January 15, 2020

Xinjiang (新疆)

威脅傷害新疆家人 世維會主席稱遭噤聲 (Family members of Xinjiang chief, Shohret Zakir, threaten harm to family members of Dolkun Isa, president of World Uyghur Congress, if Isa continues to criticize Zakir for complicity in war crimes against Uyghurs.)
Ming Pao, January 15, 2020

Related:
Chinese Government Threatens, Intimidates And Slanders WUC
World Uyghur Congress, January 13, 2020

China fears CAA could have repercussions in Xinjiang
The Hindu, January 13, 2020

Access to Justice (司法公正)

Court in Beijing Hears Lawsuit From Evicted Family of Rights Lawyer
Radio Free Asia, January 14, 2020

Access to Information (信息公开)

Freedom House calls for oversight on China's efforts to influence media abroad
Reuters, January 15, 2020

Related:
自由之家:中共正扩大在全球的媒体影响力 (Communist Party of China is broadening influence on media worldwide, Freedom House warns)
Voice of America, January 14, 2020

赴武漢醫院採訪肺炎疫情 無綫等港媒遭公安扣查 要求刪除攝錄片段 (Public security detain Hong Kong journalists reporting in Wuhan, demand deletion of footage taken inside hospitals)
Stand News, January 14, 2020

Citizen Participation (公民参与)

Students At China’s Top Art School Demand Sacking Of Professor Accused Of Sexual Misconduct
Sup China, January 14, 2020

Government Accountability (政府问责)

'Existential threat': Report warns on China risk to human rights
Al Jazeera, January 14, 2020

Related:
人权组织称中国利用影响力压制海外批评
China Uses Growing Clout to Stifle Critics Abroad, Rights Group Says
The New York Times, January 14, 2020

Chinese Government Poses Global Threat to Human Rights
Human Rights Watch, January 14, 2020

China is blaming everyone but itself for Taiwan’s presidential election result
Quartz, January 14, 2020

Related:
China needs to show Taiwan respect, says president
BBC, January 14, 2020

State Media Outlines Eight Key Missions for State-owned Enterprise Reforms in 2020
China Banking News, January 13, 2020

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

Johnson: Huawei critics 'must tell us what's the alternative'
The Guardian, January 14, 2020

Related:
United States presents Britain with fresh intelligence on Huawei risks in last-ditch attempt to block deal
The Telegraph, January 13, 2020

Hong Kong (香港)

Hong Kong’s ‘yellow economy’ rewards protester-friendly businesses
Agence France-Presse, January 15, 2020

Hong Kong police consider arming officers with electroshock devices and net guns amid protests
South China Morning Post, January 15, 2020

Hong Kong police defuse pipe bomb, arrest four for manufacturing explosives
Reuters, January 14, 2020

大律師公會再促設獨立委員會 徹查 7.21、8.31等事件 建議由終院法官任主席 (Hong Kong Bar Association issues public proposal to Chief Executive, renews call for independent commission of inquiry and offers suggestions)
Stand News, January 14, 2020

Related:
Hong Kong Bar Association offers city leader Carrie Lam blueprint for independent inquiry into protests
South China Morning Post, January 14, 2020

Letter to Chief Executive dated 14 January 2020 and Paper on the Establishment of a Commission of Inquiry into the Social Unrest in Hong Kong
Hong Kong Bar Association, January 14, 2020

港大將啟動審理解除教席 師生校友明日集會聲援戴耀廷 抗議程序不公 (Students and alumni to rally in support of Benny Tai, criticize procedural injustice as HKU management set to commence hearing to review tenure)
Stand News, January 14, 2020

District councillors slam Hong Kong minister over refusal to halt work on controversial HK$50 million musical fountain
South China Morning Post, January 14, 2020

Hong Kong protests: High Court test for warrants that let police search phones
South China Morning Post, January 13, 2020

Commentary (评论)

政府無法無天是社會亂象的根源 (Government impunity is the source of Hong Kong's turmoil)
Inmediahk.net, January 15, 2020

大選人潮中的香港示威者:我不值得這種自由和平靜 (Hong Kong protester in Taiwan: "I don't deserve this freedom and peace")
The Initium, January 14, 2020

Listening should be first job for Beijing's new man in Hong Kong
Nikkei Asian Review, January 14, 2020

Why Aren’t More Countries Confronting China over Xinjiang?
China File, January 14, 2020

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Access to Justice (司法公正)

吉林残障访民与外界隔绝 十个月后终获准见家属 (Jailed Jilin rights defender with disability finally sees parents after 10 months incommunicado)
Radio Free Asia, January 13, 2020

Citizen Participation (公民参与)

Interview: ‘As Human Beings, Everyone Should Care About This Issue’
Radio Free Asia, January 13, 2020

HRIC note: An interview with Feroza Aziz, a 17-year-old Muslim-American high school student, who posted a 40-second video about eyelash curling on the Chinese social media app TikTok in November as a ruse to discuss China’s oppression and maltreatment of the Uyghur Muslim minority.

Government Accountability (政府问责)

Beijing says Taiwan's unification with China is 'inevitable' despite election result
The Guardian, January 14, 2020

China Tightens Grips on North Korean Defectors
The Diplomat, January 13, 2020

CCP Goes All out Forcing Catholic Clergy Into Official Church
Bitter Winter, January 13, 2020

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

中國電訊宣傳片指 5G 可秒內定位億萬人臉 大媽街上掃一掃助緝匪 (A Chinese telecom company's new advertisement showcases geo-location tracking with facial recognition and 5G within seconds)
Stand News, January 13, 2020

Hong Kong (香港)

China says NGO chief barred from entering Hong Kong is 'paying price' for inciting protests
Independent, January 14, 2020

Related:
Denial of Entry to Hong Kong? Our Call, Says Beijing
Human Rights Watch, January 13, 2020

恐襲、海嘯、疫潮:香港人的精神創傷禁忌 (Psychological trauma suffered by Hong Kongers similar to that of victims of natural disasters, terror attacks, or epidemics)
Stand News, January 14, 2020

理大重開須拍卡進出 學生批如監獄、不敢於飯堂進食 ("Like a prison": Students criticize new electronic gates at PolyU entrance, stay away from canteen)
Inmediahk.net, January 13, 2020

Hong Kong protests: High Court test for warrants that let police search phones
South China Morning Post, January 13, 2020

鄧炳強周四赴中西區議會 回應警方執法質疑 議員網上徵集問題 (Police Commissioner to attend District Council meeting for Q&A on law enforcement conduct, councilors gather questions online)
Stand News, January 13, 2020

Take ‘public interest’ into account on whether to bring cases to court, instead of just sufficient evidence, head of Hong Kong Bar Association says in speech
South China Morning Post, January 13, 2020

Related:
In Full: Hong Kong judiciary has set up ‘task force’ to deal with large number of protest-related trials, says top judge
Hong Kong Free Press, January 13, 2020

Beijing’s top official in Hong Kong pledges deeper integration with mainland China province Guangdong amid months of anti-government protests
South China Morning Post, January 13, 2020

【民間記者會】辦另類年宵 30東區黃店集合「和你宵」 消費贈印花換福袋 (Over 30 shops join protest-themed Chinese New Year markets)
Stand News, January 13, 2020

Commentary (评论)

Hong Kong must heal what the protest-crisis has torn apart, not just relationships but also our minds
South China Morning Post, January 14, 2020

Capitalism and ‘Culturecide’
The New York Times, January 13, 2020

Lord Alton: Hong Kong is the new frontline of freedom
The House, January 13, 2020

香港人的“催泪弹”冰淇淋和“加油”月饼
Tear-Gas Gelato, Foulmouthed Mooncakes and Other Foods Fit for a Revolution
The New York Times, January 13, 2020

Do you hear the (young) people sing? How politics in Hong Kong and Taiwan show it’s time to empower the next generation
South China Morning Post, January 13, 2020

Monday, January 13, 2020

Xinjiang (新疆)

First Xinjiang, now Tibet passes rules to promote ‘ethnic unity’
South China Morning Post, January 13, 2020

Related:
新疆之後 西藏立法「保障民族團結」 5 月上路 (Following Xinjiang, Tibet also passes new "ethnic unity" law, effective May 2020)
Stand News, January 13, 2020

新疆维族夫妇被判刑18年 罪名是儿子获瑞典政治庇护 (Uyghur man receives political asylum in Sweden, parents in Xinjian sentenced to 18 years in prison)
Radio Free Asia, January 10, 2020

China’s Uygur policy, human rights defended by Wang Yi during Africa trip, amid latest US call for sanctions
South China Morning Post, January 10, 2020

Uyghurs in Xinjiang Ordered to Replace Traditional Décor With Sinicized Furniture
Radio Free Asia, January 9, 2020

Access to Justice (司法公正)

China human rights activist Ding Jiaxi under investigation for ‘incitement of subversion’
South China Morning Post, January 11, 2020

‘Inside the big cage’: Hong Kong protester ‘Grandma Wong’ reportedly awaiting trial in Shenzhen
Hong Kong Free Press, January 10, 2020

Access to Information (信息公开)

饶舌歌手在中国为何不挑战权力 (Why rappers in China don't challenge authority)
BBC, January 12, 2020

The Moral Hazard of Dealing With China
The Atlantic, January 11, 2020

China’s biggest independent film festival forced to suspend operations indefinitely
South China Morning Post, January 10, 2020

Government Accountability (政府问责)

蔡英文高票连任,台湾选民对北京说不
In Blow to Beijing, Taiwan Re-elects Tsai Ing-wen as President
The New York Times, January 12, 2020

Related:
Beijing’s man lost by a shocking landslide in Taiwan’s presidential election
Quartz, January 11, 2020

Hong Kong protesters fete landslide election win for Taiwan's Tsai
Reuters, January 12, 2020

China says will not change position on Taiwan after landslide election
Reuters, January 11, 2020

Related:
China slams nations for congratulating Tsai
Agence France-Presse, January 12, 2020

China’s dream of using Hong Kong as model for Taiwan’s future is dead
Financial Times, January 11, 2020

Wuhan pneumonia: First death reported by mystery Chinese virus
Independent, January 12, 2020

Mainland Chinese authorities to allow two Taiwan specialists to visit Wuhan to gather information on pneumonia outbreak
South China Morning Post, January 12, 2020

Prague mayor hits out at ‘unreliable’ China, as Czech capital switches from Beijing to Taipei in twinning deal
South China Morning Post, January 12, 2020

Foreign Students and China’s Soft Power: The Case of Uganda
The Diplomat, January 10, 2020

The Costs Of The Belt And Road Initiative
China Digital Times, January 10, 2020

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

China facial-recognition case puts Big Brother on trial
Agence France-Presse, January 12, 2020

Hong Kong (香港)

【抗暴之戰】提供施襲者相片警仍稱無證據中止調查 鍾翰林:唔係hea查而係索性唔查 ("No evidence": Police drop investigations into attack on pro-independence student leader)
Apple Daily, January 13, 2020

Hong Kong Bars Human Rights Watch Head
Human Rights Watch, January 12, 2020

Related:
Video: Hong Kong bars Human Rights Watch chief Kenneth Roth from city
Hong Kong Free Press, January 12, 2020

Hong Kong party Demosisto drops support for self-determination after Joshua Wong and Agnes Chow’s election bans
South China Morning Post, January 12, 2020

Democrat says pro-Beijing protesters are ‘repeating a lie’ that he was behind Yuen Long mob attack
Hong Kong Free Press, January 13, 2020

Related:
珍惜群組等元朗遊行 「沒有林卓廷,沒有 721 」 稱當晚白衫人減輕警察工作量 (Pro-Beijing group rallies in Yuen Long, urges police to arrest Democratic Party legislator Lam Cheuk Ting for "inciting" rioters to cause attacks in Yuen Long on July 21)
Radio Television Hong Kong, January 12, 2020

明報記者元朗採訪期間受襲 編輯部譴責野蠻行為 (Ming Pao journalist attacked while covering pro-Beijing protest in Yuen Long)
Radio Television Hong Kong, January 12, 2020

逾 3 萬人參與「天下制裁集氣大會」集會 大批防暴警截查 帶走至少兩人 (Over 30,000 attend pre-march rally calling for international sanctions to push for universal suffrage; police carry out stop-and-search, arrest two)
Stand News, January 12, 2020

Related:
Hong Kong Protesters Rehearse for ‘Anti-Communist March’
Bloomberg, January 12, 2020

青年英領館外佈置文宣 警拘一少女 疑在領館範圍內執法 保守黨成員關注 (Teenager arrested for putting up posters outside British consulate, UK legislators concerned about law enforcement in consulate area)
Stand News, January 11, 2020

學界辯論賽辯「重組警隊」等政治議題 19 中學退賽 辯聯:教育局曾致電中學施壓 (19 secondary schools quit inter-school debate after pressure from Education Bureau to avoid "sensitive topic"; schools remaining in competition asked to release students' names)
Stand News, January 11, 2020

Related:
A touchy subject: Hong Kong government accused of stifling debate in city by organisers of schools’ competition
South China Morning Post, January 11, 2020

人道支援中醫組織「國難忠醫」負責人廣州被帶走 母親指音訊全無 (Chinese medicine doctor offering humanitarian aid during protests incommunicado since January 8, roommate says he is held under administrative detention in Guangzhou)
Stand News, January 10, 2020

Interviews: 'I Don't Think I Can Go Back to Hong Kong'
Radio Free Asia, January 10, 2020

《禁蒙面法》違憲律政司上訴 陳文敏:警無差別放催淚彈 參與和平遊行亦需防毒面具保護 (Indiscriminate use of tear gas means gas-masks are needed even in peaceful protests, argues Johannes Chan in Court hearing for anti-mask law appeal)
Stand News, January 10, 2020

Related:
Hong Kong anti-mask law: ban on face coverings would deal blow to freedom of expression, lawyer argues
South China Morning Post, January 11, 2020

Hong Kong gov’t not required to set up new offence to criminalise human trafficking, top court rules
Hong Kong Free Press, January 10, 2020