ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

The big data and AI projects China is pinning its global tech ambitions on
South China Morning Post, December 29, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/economy/article/2126029/big-data-and-ai-projects-china-pinning-its-global-tech-ambitions

National Security & Counterterrorism (国家安全和反恐)

阿坝又有一藏民点火自焚身亡 (Another Tibetan dies after self-immolation in Sichuan)
Deutsche Welle, December 28, 2017
http://bit.ly/2CliXWJ

Hong Kong (香港)

Statement of the Hong Kong Bar Association on the decision of the NPCSC of 27 December 2017 on the co-operation agreement between the mainland and the HKSAR on the establishment of the port at the West Kowloon station of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong express rail link for implementing co-location arrangement
香港大律師公會就全國人大常委會於2017年12月27日批准「一地兩檢」合作安排的決定之聲明
Hong Kong Bar Association, December 28, 2017
EN: http://bit.ly/2lfa4qd
CH: http://bit.ly/2C6vxfH

Related:
梁愛詩：不能直接用普通法原則詮釋《基本法》 大律師公會不明白中國憲法 (Elsie Leung says can’t directly use Common law principles to interpret the Basic Law and claims HK Bar Association doesn’t understand Constitution of PRC)
Stand News, December 29, 2017
http://bit.ly/2BRplEd

Protesters slam “fake” opening of Hong Kong’s long-shuttered Civic Square
公民廣場重開 民主派不滿限日限時示威
Radio Free Asia, December 28, 2017
EN: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/hongkong-square-12282017134202.html
CH: http://www.rfa.org/cantonese/news/htm/hk-square-12282017062339.html?encoding=traditional

Commentary (评论)

原來香港可以逐吋切割 (It turns out Hong Kong can be ceded inch by inch)
Mingpao, December 29, 2017
https://news.mingpao.com/ins/instantnews/web_tc/article/20171229/s00022/1514465978929

Asia made big strides in LGBT rights in 2017
Quartz, December 28, 2017
https://qz.com/1149730/asia-made-big-strides-in-lgbt-rights-in-2017/

世界报：习近平怎么发明的新独裁 (Xi Jinping has reinvented dictatorship)
Le Monde, December 27, 2017
http://bit.ly/2CliLHa

Related:
Trump, Xi and a dark year for democracy
Financial Times, December 29, 2017
https://www.ft.com/content/899d6190-eaf9-11e7-bd17-521324c81e23

Access to Justice (司法公正)

最高检：零容忍虐童案，儿童合法权益缺乏全面系统立法规定 (Supreme People's Procuratorate claims it has zero tolerance towards child abuse and calls for comprehensive legislature to protect children’s rights)
The Paper, December 28, 2017
http://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_1925445

Tibetan filmmaker flees China, arrives in United States
Reuters, December 28, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2125923/tibetan-filmmaker-flees-china-arrives-united-states

Related:
一名西藏政治犯逃至加州 (Tibetan political prisoner Dhondup Wangchen flees to California after spending almost 10 years in jail)
Voice of America, December 28, 2017
https://www.voachinese.com/a/tibet-escape-20171227/4182230.html

Kazakhstan national missing, believed detained in China, amid ongoing crackdown
新疆前官员入籍哈国遭公安越境绑架 伊力哈木16个月不准见妻儿
Radio Free Asia, December 27, 2017
EN: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/kazakh-missing-12272017141959.html
CH: http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/shaoshuminzu/ql1-12272017101941.html

程海律师、蔺其磊律师:立即撤销案件释放王全璋律师或予以取保候审的要求书 (Cheng Hai and Lin Qilei, defense lawyers of Wang Quanzhang, demand Wang’s case to be immediately closed and call for his release or bail)
Weiquanwang, December 27, 2017
http://wqw2010.blogspot.hk/2017/12/blog-post_44.html

吳淦獲刑聲明：不反對專制，我還是人嗎？ (Rights defender Wu Gan faces jail and says: Am I still human if I do not oppose authoritarianism?)
Stand News, December 27, 2017
http://bit.ly/2C94uzB

Related:
US and Germany call for release of Chinese activist “Super Vulgar Butcher”
The Guardian, December 28, 2017
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/28/us-and-germany-call-for-release-of-chinese-activist-super-vulgar-butcher

张海涛维权获罪19年，新疆妻儿被迫逃美 (Zhang Haitao’s wife and child forced to flee to US, after he was sentenced to 19 years in Xinjiang for defending rights)
Voice of America, December 27
https://www.voachinese.com/a/voaweishi-20171227-connect-zhang-haitao/4181149.html

Related:
How questioning China’s security crackdown in Xinjiang led to a 20-year jail term
Associated Press, December 28, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2125910/how-questioning-chinas-security-crackdown-xinjiang-led

Beijing to discuss revising constitution for first time since 2004
South China Morning Post, December 27, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2125871/beijing-discuss-revising-constitution-first-time-2004

Related:
十九届二中全会明年1月召开，讨论研究修改宪法部分内容建议 (Second plenum of 19th party congress to discuss amendments to Constitution in January 2018)
Xinhua News Agency, December 27, 2017
http://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_1923954

最高检：发挥检察职能协助解决农民工讨薪问题 (Supreme People’s Procuratorate vows to help migrant workers get paid)
Legal Daily, December 27, 2017
http://www.legaldaily.com.cn/index_article/content/2017-12/27/content_7432366.htm?node=5955

全国人大法律委：信访法起草工作正在抓紧进行 (NPC Legal Committee: Letters and Calls Law now being drafted)
Xinhua News Agency, December 27, 2017
http://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_1924876

Access to Information (信息公开)

Don't call “Xi the Bun” - Chinese netizens are being jailed for chatroom jokes
Global Voices, December 27, 2017
https://advox.globalvoices.org/2017/12/27/dont-call-xi-the-bun-chinese-netizens-are-being-jailed-for-chatroom-jokes/

China’s Internet “clean-up” has closed over 13,000 illegal websites since 2015
Quartz, December 27, 2017
https://qz.com/1166024/china-shut-down-over-13000-illegal-websites-and-10-million-user-accounts-since-2015/

中共中央印发《中国共产党党务公开条例（试行）》 (Central Committee of CPC releases “Regulation on Disclosure of CPC Affairs (Pilot)”)
Xinhua News Agency, December 25, 2017
http://www.xinhuanet.com/politics/2017-12/25/c_1122164920.htm

Citizen Participation (公民参与)

乘火车吸二手烟 女大学生告铁路局 (After being exposed to secondhand smoke on train, university student sues railway authority)
The Beijing News, December 28, 2017
http://www.bjnews.com.cn/news/2017/12/28/470384.html

广东顺德征地疑涉官商勾结 村民示威遭带走 (Villagers in Guangdong protest against government-business collusion in land rights dispute, and get taken away by police)
Radio Free Asia, December 27, 2017
http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/renquanfazhi/gf1-12272017112213.html

左派张云帆被捕遭秘密关押 学界联署要求放人 (Academia launches signature campaign demanding release of left-wing advocate Zhang Yunfan, after he was arrested and secretly detained last month)
Agence France-Presse, December 27, 2017
http://bit.ly/2ljz7HT

Related:
Scholars call for release of detained Maoist Zhang Yunfan in China
Agence France-Presse, December 27, 2017
https://www.hongkongfp.com/2017/12/27/scholars-call-release-detained-maoist-zhang-yunfan-china/

8 top Chinese intellectuals demand constitutional review of Beijing’s mass eviction
The Diplomat, December 27, 2017
https://thediplomat.com/2017/12/8-top-chinese-intellectuals-demand-constitutional-review-of-beijings-mass-eviction/

Government Accountability (政府问责)

中央环保督察完成31省份全覆盖 已问责超1.8万人 (Environmental inspectors from Central Government now cover 31 provinces and have held over 18,000 people to account)
Chinanews.com, December 28, 2017
http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2017/12-28/8411080.shtml

Chinese authorities define student bullying
China News Service, December 27, 2017
http://www.ecns.cn/cns-wire/2017/12-27/286102.shtml

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

Uyghur biodata collection in China
The Diplomat, December 28, 2017
https://thediplomat.com/2017/12/uyghur-biodata-collection-in-china/

China lashes out at German ambassador over cyber security
Associated Press, December 27, 2017
https://goo.gl/q1Mb9n

National Security & Counterterrorism (国家安全和反恐)

武警元旦起歸黨和中央軍委領導 (Paramilitary police force to be led by Party and Central Military Commission starting January 1, 2018)
NOW, December 28, 2017
http://news.now.com/home/international/player?newsId=248382

Related:
China Communist Party takes control of paramilitary police
Agence France-Presse, December 27, 2017
https://www.afp.com/en/news/826/china-communist-party-takes-control-paramilitary-police-doc-vg17e1

Hong Kong (香港)

海麗邨清潔工續罷工 公民廣場外抗議 要求政府介入 (Public housing cleaners strike and protest for severance pay outside government building)
Inmediahk, December 28, 2017
https://www.inmediahk.net/node/1054160

Bar Council chairman Paul Lam seeks re-election amid challenge from rights lawyer Philip Dykes
Hong Kong Free Press, December 28, 2017
https://www.hongkongfp.com/2017/12/28/bar-council-chairman-paul-lam-seeks-re-election-amid-challenge-rights-lawyer-philip-dykes/

China’s top legislature approves joint checkpoint plan; says it complies with Hong Kong constitution
Hong Kong Free Press, December 27, 2017
https://www.hongkongfp.com/2017/12/27/chinas-top-legislature-approves-joint-checkpoint-plan-says-complies-hong-kong-constitution/

Related:

全国人大常委会批准《内地与香港特别行政区关于在广深港高铁西九龙站设立口岸实施“一地两检”的合作安排》 (NPC Standing Committee approves joint checkpoint plan)
Xinhua News Agency, December 27, 2017
http://www.xinhuanet.com/gangao/2017-12/27/c_1122175282.htm

港团体游行抗议中共重判大陆维权人士吴淦 (Hong Kong groups march in protest against hefty sentencing of mainland rights defender Wu Gan)
Radio Free Asia, December 27, 2017
http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/gangtai/cp-12272017162608.html

Baptist University biology researcher claims his political leanings have led to talk of his termination
South China Morning Post, December 27, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/2125861/baptist-university-biology-researcher-claims-his-political

Commentary (评论)

A decade on, China’s Labor Contract Law has failed to deliver
China Labor Bulletin, December 28, 2017
http://www.clb.org.hk/content/decade-china%E2%80%99s-labour-contract-law-has-failed-deliver

Minitruth 2017: October-“A Taxi Driver” & Tiananmen echoes
China Digital Times, December 28, 2017
https://chinadigitaltimes.net/2017/12/minitruth-2017-october-taxi-driver-echoes-tiananmen/

“The Chinese Dream” and Xi Jinping's power politics in 2017
Deutsche Welle, December 27, 2017
http://www.dw.com/en/the-chinese-dream-and-xi-jinpings-power-politics-in-2017/a-41941966

Access to Justice (司法公正)

詹惠中（网名校长）因海祭刘晓波案昨遭警方抓捕 (Zhan Huizhong, another independent scholar who commemorated Liu Xiaobo, is arrested by CPC authorities)
Weiquanwang, December 27, 2017
http://wqw2010.blogspot.hk/2017/12/blog-post_655.html

For China, Christmas is the best time of year to put human-rights activists on trial
Quartz, December 27, 2017
https://qz.com/1166056/over-christmas-china-sentenced-activist-wu-gan-or-super-vulgar-butcher-to-eight-years-in-prison/

Related:
Wu Gan’s statement after being sentenced to eight years in prison for "subversion"
China Change, December 26, 2017
https://chinachange.org/2017/12/26/wu-gans-statement-after-being-sentenced-to-eight-years-in-prison-for-subversion/

China's Communist Party to discuss amending constitution, graft fight
Reuters, December 27, 2017
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-politics/chinas-communist-party-to-discuss-amending-constitution-graft-fight-idUSKBN1EL0B8

Access to Information (信息公开)

China accused of waging war on Christmas
中国官媒否认存在全国层面的圣诞节禁令
Financial Times, December 27, 2017
EN: https://www.ft.com/content/d2236004-ea18-11e7-bd17-521324c81e23
CH: http://www.ftchinese.com/story/001075650

毛誕日批毛「邪惡」 記者遭停職 (Journalist suspended for calling Mao Zedong “evil” on Mao’s birthday)
Mingpao, December 27, 2017
https://news.mingpao.com/pns/dailynews/web_tc/article/20171227/s00013/1514311124742

发改委：重大建设项目相关信息应在20个工作日内公开 (National Development and Reform Commission: Information related to major construction projects should be available to public within 20 working days)
People’s Daily, December 27, 2017
http://politics.people.com.cn/n1/2017/1227/c1001-29731706.html

Government Accountability (政府问责)

被问及六四天安门镇压死亡人数 中国外交部发言人有所回避 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson dodges questions regarding Tiananmen casualties)
Radio France Internationale, December 27, 2017
https://goo.gl/BvH3iR

ICTs and Human Rights (信息技术与人权)

Tencent’s WeChat messaging platform adopted by Beijing court for case filing
South China Morning Post, December 27, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/tech/china-tech/article/2125804/tencents-wechat-messaging-platform-adopted-beijing-court-case-filing

China snares innocent and guilty alike to build world’s biggest DNA database
The Wall Street Journal, December 26, 2017
https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-snares-innocent-and-guilty-alike-to-build-worlds-biggest-dna-database-1514310353

National Security & Counterterrorism (国家安全和反恐)

China, Pakistan, Afghanistan agree on terror cooperation
Channel NewsAsia, December 27, 2017
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/china--pakistan--afghanistan-agree-on-terror-cooperation-9811058

China to punish “Two-Faced” Uyghur officials in new reward scheme
Radio Free Asia, December 26, 2017
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/uyghur/rewards-12262017144824.html

Hong Kong (香港)

人大常委會指一地兩檢不影響香港行政區域範圍及自治權 (China NPC says co-location arrangement does not affect HKSAR autonomy)
Radio Television Hong Kong, December 27, 2017
http://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1372066-20171227.htm

Related:
譚惠珠：香港法庭不存在推翻人大常委會決定的可能 (HK deputy to NPC says it's impossible for Hong Kong Court to overrule NPC’s decision)
Radio Television Hong Kong, December 27, 2017
http://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1372040-20171227.htm

民陣元旦遊行仍未獲不反對通知書　區諾軒：奇怪 (Permission for January 1 rally not yet granted)
Mingpao, December 27, 2017
https://news.mingpao.com/ins/instantnews/web_tc/article/20171227/s00001/1514341093367

“Civic Square” to reopen to public in Hong Kong – but with restricted access for demonstrations
South China Morning Post, December 27, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2125809/civic-square-reopen-public-hong-kong-restricted-access

Winners and losers in another year of political upheaval for Hong Kong
South China Morning Post, December 27, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2125718/winners-and-losers-another-year-political-upheaval-hong-kong

Commentary (评论)

The last Jedi and the founding mythology of the Chinese Communist Party
The Diplomat, December 27, 2017
https://thediplomat.com/2017/12/the-last-jedi-and-the-founding-mythology-of-the-chinese-communist-party/

公共医疗保险为何会“撑不住了”？(Why will public medical insurance fall apart?)
Financial Times, December 27, 2017
https://www.ftchinese.com/story/001075644

China’s “new era” presages a golden age
中国“新时代”思想是一个转折点
Financial Times, December 27, 2017
EN: https://www.ft.com/content/bda486d6-df59-11e7-a8a4-0a1e63a52f9c
CH: http://www.ftchinese.com/story/001075646

Access to Justice (司法公正)

內地維權人士吳淦顛覆國家罪成有期徒刑8年 (Rights defender Wu Gan sentenced to 8 years’ imprisonment for “subversion")
Radio Television Hong Kong, December 26, 2017
http://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1371882-20171226.htm

Related:
Chinese human rights activist jailed for eight years for subversion
The Guardian, December 25, 2017
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/26/chinese-human-rights-lawyer-jailed-for-eight-years-for-subversion

維權律師謝陽顛覆國家罪成 免於刑事處罰 (Rights defense lawyer Xie Yang sentenced to “subversion,” exempt from criminal punishment after admitting guilt)
Radio Television Hong Kong, December 26, 2017
http://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1371894-20171226.htm

Related:
Chinese rights lawyer escapes jail term after admitting subversion
South China Morning Post, December 26, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2125664/chinese-rights-lawyer-escapes-jail-term-after-admitting

Liu Xiaobo’s widow allowed to spend Christmas Eve with brother, Hong Kong human rights group says
South China Morning Post, December 25, 2017
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2125630/liu-xiaobos-widow-enjoys-christmas-eve-brother-hong

Related:
Hongkongers send 3,000 Christmas cards to Liu Xia and China’s jailed activists
Hong Kong Free Press, December 23, 2017
https://www.hongkongfp.com/2017/12/23/hongkongers-send-3000-christmas-cards-liu-xia-chinas-jailed-activists/

失联艺术家胡嘉岷“被放”将重返法国 (Hu Jiamin, disappeared artist who had painted tribute to Liu Xiaobo, “released,” will return to France )
Radio France International, December 25, 2017
http://cn.rfi.fr/中国/20171225-失联艺术家胡嘉岷被放将重返法国