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.

Thursday, January 07, 2021

Xinjiang (新疆)

新疆哈萨克人举报黑监狱死亡 家属质疑当局灭口(Kazakh in Xinjiang dies in prison; family fears he was “silenced” for reporting black jails)
Radio Free Asia, January 7, 2021

Taiwan (台湾)

US ambassador to United Nations will visit Taiwan, Mike Pompeo says
South China Morning Post, January 7, 2021

台湾智库忧心“制脑权” 中国修订《统战条例》(Taiwan think tank: Amendment of CPC United Front Regulations raises concern of “brain control” )
Deutsche Welle, January 7, 2021

Related:
中国共产党统一战线工作条例 (CPC Regulations on United Front Work)
People's Daily, January 6, 2021

Access to Justice (司法公正)

Chinese lawyer suspended after posting videos allegedly showing police torture
South China Morning Post, January 7, 2021

Related:
周泽律师遭北京朝阳区司法局给予停止执业一年的行政处罚(Beijing authorities suspend lawyer Zhou Ze for one year for revealing client’s torture)
Weiquanwang, January 7, 2021

试图偷带生物研究试管出境 在哈佛研究癌症的中国学者被判刑(Chinese scholar at Harvard is sentenced for smuggling biological test tubes out of U.S.)
Voice of America, January 7, 2021

Government Accountability (政府问责)

China’s Communist Party targets Chinese abroad to rally support
South China Morning Post, January 7, 2021

新冠病毒溯源小组无法入境中国,世卫组织罕见公开向北京表达不满(In rare complaint about Beijing, WHO says its team investigating COVID-19 origins is denied entry to China)
British Broadcasting Corporation, January 7, 2021

Hong Kong (香港)

Arrested democrats to be bailed on Thurs as jailed activists Joshua Wong and Tam Tak-chi are arrested – report
Hong Kong Free Press, January 7, 2021

Hong Kong police release US lawyer arrested with democracy figures
The Guardian, January 7, 2021

US Considering Sanctions on Those Involved in Hong Kong Arrests, Pompeo Says
Reuters, January 7, 2021

Ex-Hong Kong Democratic Party chair Wu Chi-wai suspected to have violated bail after allegedly keeping BN(O) passport
Hong Kong Free Press, January 7, 2021

香港《国安法》:拘捕行动过后 议员否决议案是否构成罪行成焦点 (Hong Kong national security law: In wake of mass arrests, will council members' objections become crimes?)
British Broadcasting Corporation, January 7, 2021

With Mass Arrests, Beijing Exerts an Increasingly Heavy Hand in Hong Kong
香港大抓捕展示中共权力与铁腕

The New York Times, January 7, 2021

【初選瘋狂搜捕】5 律師會理事發聲明 譴責打壓人權 質疑初選如何構成「非法手段」 (Mass arrests on primary election: In statement 5 board members of the Law Society of Hong Kong condemn human rights suppression, question how primary election could constitute “unlawful means”)
The Stand News, January 7, 2021

Commentary (评论)

Why comparisons between the US Capital turmoil and Hong Kong’s protests amount to perverse propaganda
Hong Kong Free Press, January 7, 2021

Wednesday, January 06, 2021

Taiwan (台湾)

China says it will respond to planned Taiwan, US defence talks
Channel News Asia, January 6, 2021

Access to Justice (司法公正)

中国进一步打压维权律师 法律公正空间恐“越来越少” (China intensifies crackdown on rights defense lawyers, shrinking law and justice space)
British Broadcasting Corporation, January 6, 2021

Government Accountability (政府问责)

WHO ‘disappointed’ at Chinese delays letting experts in
Associated Press, January 6, 2021

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

Trump Bans Alipay and 7 Other Chinese Apps
特朗普签署行政令,禁止与支付宝等中国应用交易

The New York Times, January 6, 2021

Hong Kong (香港)

Hong Kong national security law: 53 former opposition lawmakers, activists arrested; authorities accuse them of plot to ‘overthrow’ government
South China Morning Post, January 6, 2021

Hong Kong Police Arrest Dozens of Pro-Democracy Leaders
香港警方逮捕数十名民主派官员和活动人士

The New York Times, January 6, 2021

Related
國安法│中聯辦:堅定支持嚴正執法 國安公署:犯國安法者必制裁 (Hong Kong Liaison Office: Firmly support Hong Kong police’s strict enforcement of the law; Office for Safeguarding National Security: All National Security Law violators will be punished)
HK01, January 6, 2021

美国候任国务卿为港发声:“拜登政府将和港人同行抗中” (U.S. Secretary of State-designate Blinken speaks out for Hong Kong: “The Biden-Harris administration will stand with the people of Hong Kong and against Beijing's crackdown on democracy”)
Radio Free Asia, January 6, 2021

China 'misled world' on Hong Kong security law, says Dominic Raab
The Guardian, January 6, 2021

蔡英文:大規模拘捕摧毀香港所剩無幾民主自由 (Tsai Ing-wen: Mass arrests destroy the remaining democracy and freedom in Hong Kong)
Radio Television Hong Kong, January 6, 2021

EU calls for ‘immediate release’ of Hong Kong activists
Associated Press, January 6, 2021

國安處警員到《立場》等 4 媒體辦公室 派發法庭「交出令」 李桂華:無要求交採訪資料 (The Department for Safeguarding National Security of the Hong Kong Police Force staff deliver “Production Order” to 4 media offices including Stand News; Steve Li, senior superintendent of DSNS, denies issuing request for interview materials)
The Stand News, January 6, 2020

Related:
Police serve pro-democracy newsrooms with search warrants over 2020 pro-democracy primaries amid mass arrests
Hong Kong Free Press, January 6, 2021

Hong Kong police raid office of primary election co-organisers PORI, but voter data ‘physically crushed’, says deputy
Hong Kong Free Press, January 6, 2021

美籍人权律师关尚义成首名美国公民因国安法被捕 (Human rights lawyer John Clancey becomes first U.S. citizen arrested for National Security Law)
Radio Free Asia, January 6, 2021

中共新版統戰條例 港澳需維護國家主權安全 (CPC's newly amended Regulations on United Front Work mandates Hong Kong, Macao to safeguard national sovereignty and security)
Ming Pao, January 6, 2021

Timeline: The Impact of the National Security Law on Hong Kong
Reuters, January 6, 2021

Commentary (评论)

The arrest of Hong Kong activists is an assault on civil society
The Guardian, January 6, 2021

Tuesday, January 05, 2021

Taiwan (台湾)

Beijing using ‘cognitive warfare’ to sway Taiwan public opinion by feeding it misinformation, warns report
South China Morning Post, January 5, 2021

Access to Justice (司法公正)

China sentences top banker to death for corruption and bigamy
The Guardian, January 5, 2021

从张展案看“口袋罪”寻衅滋事:不听话的统统装进去 (Deciphering the “pocket crime” of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” through Zhang Zhan’s case: How China uses it to bag all who disobey)
Voice of America, January 5, 2021

Citizen Participation (公民参与)

拼多多年轻员工“996”加班后猝死 官方账号“冷血”回复引发众怒 (Public outrage over Pinduoduo's cold-blooded response to the sudden death of young employee working the “996” schedule)
British Broadcasting Corporation, January 5, 2021

Government Accountability (政府问责)

Chinese Communist Party introduces new rules on what members can say as it ‘boosts internal democracy’
South China Morning Post, January 5, 2021

In a Topsy-Turvy Pandemic World, China Offers Its Version of Freedom
疫情新常态下,中国版本的“自由”

January 5, 2021

美国务卿与军控特使联合撰文:中国发展核力量的疯狂 (U.S. Secretary of State and Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing: The madness behind China's nuclear power expansion)
Voice of America, January 5, 2020

Related:
China's Nuclear Build-Up Should Worry the West | Opinion
Newsweek, January 5, 2021

回應美國對中國核武建設的指責 外交部:賊喊捉賊 (China MFA response to U.S. accusation on China's nuclear buildup: A thief crying "stop the thief")
Radio Television Hong Kong, January 5, 2021

2021年1月5日外交部发言人华春莹主持例行记者会
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on January 5, 2021
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, January 5, 2021

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

NYSE withdraws plans to delist 3 Chinese phone carriers
Associated Press, January 5, 2021

Hong Kong (香港)

宣誓修例擬涵蓋區議員、選委 消息:《區議會條例》料加DQ機制 (Legislation reforms: Oaths and Declarations Ordinance to apply to district council members; District Councils Ordinance to include disqualification mechanism)
HK01, January 5, 2021

Retiring top judge pleas to maintain Hong Kong's judicial independence
Radio France Internationale, January 5, 2021

Hong Kong police arrest another man over Yuen Long MTR mob attack
Hong Kong Free Press, January 5, 2021

突推「車牌查冊通知」 林鄭:新措施合理不礙新聞自由 記協:特首將新聞工作與起底問題混為一談 (Carrie Lam defends new restrictions on disclosure of motor vehicle registration info; Hong Kong Journalists Association: Chief Executive confuses journalism for doxing)
CitizenNews, January 5, 2021

Commentary (评论)

The Struggle Over Jimmy Lai’s Bail Is a Struggle Over Hong Kong’s Freedom of Expression
The Diplomat, January 5, 2021

专访:维权律师无意与极权制度为敌 (Interview with Xie Yanyi: Rights defense lawyers did not aim to be the enemy of authoritarianism)
Deutsche Welle, January 5, 2020