Beijing (AFP) – Terminally-ill Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo wants Chinese authorities to let him get treatment abroad, friends say, as officials said his cancer has spread throughout his body. Prominent Chinese dissident writer Liao Yiwu …
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Hong Kong’s allure fading in mainland China
Beijing (AFP) – When Naomi Wu was a teenager, she and her friends would ride the train from mainland China to Hong Kong several times a year to shop for clothes and designer handbags. But …
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China rejects US criticism over Nobel laureate’s treatment
Beijing (AFP) – Terminally-ill Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo wants Chinese authorities to let him get treatment abroad, friends say, as officials said his cancer has spread throughout his body. Prominent Chinese dissident writer Liao Yiwu …
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China’s treatment of sick activist raises fears for others
Beijing (AFP) – China’s treatment of cancer-stricken democracy activist Liu Xiaobo reflects Beijing’s hardening crackdown on political dissent and heightens concern over lesser-known campaigners still languishing in jail, supporters say. Liu, who was awarded the …
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China releases Nobel laureate Liu with terminal cancer
Beijing (AFP) – China’s jailed Nobel peace prize laureate Liu Xiaobo has been granted medical parole after being diagnosed with terminal liver cancer last month, his lawyer said Monday, worrying supporters who pleaded for his …
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Beijing shopkeepers protest evictions
Beijing (AFP) – Over 100 shopkeepers at a popular Beijing market held a rare street protest Friday against what they call unreasonable eviction as the Chinese capital seeks to curb population growth. The crowd gathered …
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Jailed Chinese lawyer force-fed medication, wife says
Beijing (AFP) – When human rights lawyer Li Heping returned to his home in Beijing after a two-year incarceration, his wife did not recognise the frail white-haired man standing in her hallway. “He is only …
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China scrambles to tame bike chaos
Beijing (AFP) – A booming rental bike business has flooded China’s streets with packs of cyclists, but their habit of going the wrong way and abandoning their rides anywhere is causing havoc. The authorities, scrambling …
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China says no mining planned in Antarctica but hints at “peaceful development”
Beijing (AFP) – China sought to dispel concerns about its ambitions in mineral-rich Antarctica on Monday, with an official saying Beijing has no plans to start mining in the vast continent. China’s expanding activities in …
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China tells the world bedtime stories in propaganda drive
Beijing (AFP) – A video of an American father telling his daughter bedtime stories about the Chinese president’s signature project. A music clip with children singing about sharing “the goodness.” A cartoon of a whisky …
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China lawyer’s wife seeks US asylum after brazen escape
Beijing (AFP) – Chen Guiqiu fled China on foot with her two daughters, only to end up in a Thai prison until US officials helped them sneak out dramatically through a back door. Now Chen …
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The Chinese human rights lawyers seen as enemies of the state
Beijing (AFP) – A leading Chinese human rights lawyer went on trial Monday for inciting subversion, in a case which sparked an international outcry after claims he was tortured. Xie Yang, who had worked on …
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Chinese court says prominent rights lawyer pleads guilty
Beijing (AFP) – A leading Chinese human rights lawyer whose case has drawn international scrutiny pleaded guilty Monday to charges of “inciting subversion of state power” in what critics called a “show trial.” Xie Yang, …
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UN slams Chinese rights lawyer’s detention
Beijing (AFP) – The United Nations’ human rights office condemned Friday the detention of a Chinese attorney while he was vacationing with his family, calling it part of an “ongoing crackdown” against lawyers. “We are …
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Chinese court sentences rights lawyer in secret trial
Beijing (AFP) – China sentenced a prominent human rights lawyer to a three-year suspended sentence Friday following a secret trial, raising concerns the country is moving to further reduce transparency in high-profile, politically sensitive cases. …
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Trial of China human rights lawyer delayed: supporters
Changsha (AFP) – A Chinese court indefinitely postponed the trial of a prominent human rights lawyer on Tuesday, his supporters said, in a case that has sparked international concern after allegations he was tortured. Xie …
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Unpredictable Donald Trump unsettles China as North Korea policy wobbles
Beijing (AFP) – From Twitter threats to Tomahawk missiles, US president Donald Trump’s unorthodox and seemingly impulsive approach to foreign policy has unsettled China, piling new pressure on its hands-off North Korea policy. As tensions …
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China to relocate millions of people away from disaster zones
Baicheng (IRIN) – How do you relocate a population bigger than Russia’s and Germany’s combined? Look to China over the next decade as it plans to resettle 250 million people in a bid to fight poverty, …
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China remains world’s biggest executioner: Amnesty
Beijing (AFP) – China executed more people last year than the rest of the world combined, Amnesty said Tuesday, defying a global decline with thousands of killings that have disproportionately targeted poor citizens. Even as …
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Beijing’s maze of ‘hutongs’: city’s last bastion of communal living
Beijing (AFP) – Gu Chen has slept and worked in the same one-room apartment in Beijing’s ancient “hutong” neighbourhood of Beixinqiao all his life. Most mornings, he rises from a twin bed that he shares …
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China has an irrational fear of a “black invasion” bringing drugs, crime, and interracial marriage
Beijing (Quartz) – Earlier this month in Beijing, amid the pomp of China’s annual rubber-stamp parliament meetings, a politician proudly shared with reporters his proposal on how to “solve the problem of the black population …
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Chinese police ‘admit torture’ of dead suspect
Beijing (AFP) – Police in central China’s Henan province have issued a rare statement admitting that some officers may have tortured a suspect who died under detention, local media reported Tuesday. “On March 12, 2017, …
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Choking with fury: China’s citizens are complaining more loudly about polluted air
Beijing (The Economist) – This time of year can be a tough one for factories in areas surrounding Beijing. To keep the capital’s sky clear of smog during the annual session of China’s parliament, which begins …
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Column: The Medical Blame Game
Herizons – For the past three years, sleeping soundly through the night, instead of waking up coughing, has been a rare treat. I’m living and working in Beijing, where dark clouds of smog deposit layers of soot …
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China’s New Multibillion-Dollar Target Market: LGBT Youth
Shanghai (Foreign Policy) – China’s Spring Festival, which celebrates the lunar New Year, is the ultimate test for fledgling romances. A partner’s invitation to meet family signals commitment; but for China’s LGBT population, the holiday …
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‘We the Workers’: New film depicts crackdown on China’s labour advocates
Hong Kong (AFP) – Film-maker Wen Hai had intended to portray the gritty lives of Chinese migrants toiling in factories in his documentary “We The Workers”, but wound up chronicling a gathering crackdown on courageous labour …
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180-degree turn? Trump, the US, Taiwan and China: a guide
Beijing (AFP) – US President Donald Trump endorsed the long-standing “One China” policy on Thursday during a phone call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, a move analysts interpreted as a change of course for the …
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“The good times are over”: Chinese fear Trump impact on economy
Beijing (dpa) – Many of his fellow citizens still admire Donald Trump, but Chinese exporter Cai Jipeng has been dreading inauguration day. Cai’s business, based in Qingdao, a port city of north-east China, specializes in …
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American business group warns against US trade conflict with China
Beijing (dpa) – The American Chamber of Commerce in China said Wednesday that Beijing will likely respond if US president-elect Donald Trump imposes restrictions on trade or investment between the two countries. “China is not without an arsenal …
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A doctor’s poem is going viral in China and raising awareness that smog (surprise!) is a cause of cancer
Beijing (Quartz) – As toxic clouds of smog continue to cover much of China, more and more Chinese are turning to vent their anger online at the airpocalypse—even turning to poetry. A poem written by …
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Hong Kong’s cultural influence on mainland China in decline
Beijing (dpa) – In Beijing’s main entertainment district, few people spending a recent afternoon shopping and snacking were able to name more than a few currently active Hong Kong actors or singers. Most could only …
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Beijing expresses “serious concern” about Trump’s “One-China” remarks
Beijing (dpa) – China on Monday expressed “serious concern” following US president-elect Donald Trump’s remarks that the US does not have to be bound by its long-standing policy of reserving formal diplomatic ties for Beijing. …
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Report: Secret detentions used to extract confessions in China
Beijing (dpa) – The Chinese government still uses a secretive detention system called “shuanggui” to extract confessions from Communist Party members suspected of corruption, according to a Human Rights Watch report released Tuesday. In recent …
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China’s ecommerce giants have figured out ingenious ways of reaching even rural shoppers
Beijing (Mashable) — When Cheng Yuan Yuan left her job as an accountant in the sprawling southern metropolis of Shenzhen to go home and start a family, the 27-year-old thought she was leaving better economic …
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Chinese citizens warn of China-style Cultural Revolution in US
Beijing (dpa) – Donald Trump’s stunning victory over Hillary Clinton, a veteran politician, is a sign that many underestimated the amount of anger there was directed towards the elite in the United States, China’s state media and citizens are …
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China imposes sweeping new restrictions on lawyers
Beijing (dpa) – Human rights organisations are alarmed at new directives for lawyers in China which they said will make them shy away from important cases. The right groups said that the new rules are …
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Documentary “Hooligan Sparrow” shows how dangerous it is to protest against rape in China
Beijing (Quartz) – The documentary film Hooligan Sparrow begins with Wang Nanfu, a fresh journalism school graduate, introducing herself while standing on a busy street. Seconds later, she is surrounded by a group of men. They …
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China laughs off US democracy
Beijing (dpa) – On an autumn evening in Beijing, people from the United States, Canada and China gathered at a pub in the city centre to watch the first presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. While nearly …
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Pokemon Go launch in China given hope with new venture
Beijing (dpa) – A new venture from Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba may smooth the path for the launch of Pokemon Go in the world’s most populous country, technology experts have told dpa. Nintendo’s smartphone “augmented reality” …
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Charity overhaul in China, but only with government approval
Beijing (IRIN) – The world’s strongest storm of the year slammed into China last week, just as the country was recovering from severe flooding that the government said left about 1,000 people dead. In many …
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Exclusive: G20 leaders to agree to join Paris climate deal as soon as possible
Hangzhou (dpa) – All members of the Group of 20 (G20) major economies are expected to join the first universal action plan to mitigate the impacts of climate change, according to a late draft of the G20 summit communique …
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Exclusive: China blocks major civil society groups from monitoring G20 summit
Hangzhou (dpa) – The host of this year’s G20 summit has “broken precedent” by denying leading civil society organizations the ability to monitor and comment on events inside the venue’s media centre, activists charge. China either ignored or refused …
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G20 host China faces tall order of keeping controversy off the agenda
Beijing (dpa) – This year’s G20 summit in China follows a summer of jolts to the market caused by pendular news events – not least of all Britain’s vote to leave the European Union and an attempted coup …
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Chinese sports regime under pressure to go easier on future Olympians
Beijing (dpa) – Winning her first Olympic gold medal was a huge relief to 15-year-old diver Ren Qian. That’s because she’s been training since age 3. Ren clinched the 10-metre platform competition on Thursday, becoming one …
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Pipe Dreams: Major Chinese cities can’t seem to figure out basic drainage and flood prevention
Beijing (Quartz) – As major Chinese cities were submerged this summer during some of the worst floods to hit China in history, the irony of the fact that the 600-year-old Forbidden City remained free of flooding thanks …
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The judicial system: Suppress and support
Beijing (The Economist)- A human rights lawyer and three activists have been found guilty of “subverting state power” in a series of trials in the northern city of Tianjin. With resonances of the show trials of …
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China sentences first activist connected to rights lawyer crackdown
Beijing (dpa) – A court in northern China’s city of Tianjin found a legal activist guilty of “subverting state power” on Tuesday, in the first known trial following the arrests of hundreds of human rights …
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Chinese families of MH370 victims protest decision to suspend search
Beijing (dpa) – Chinese families with loved ones who went missing aboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 protested in Beijing on Friday after authorities announced the search for the plane would be suspended. Transportation ministers for Malaysia, …
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‘Dozens’ dead in Hebei floods as protesters accuse government of failing to tell residents of dam opening
Beijing (HKFP) – Video clips and photos shared on Chinese social media sites on Saturday show police facing off with residents in China’s northern Hebei province amid protests over floods. Villagers in Xingtai, Hebei, claim they were …
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Why is China getting involved in Afghan peace talks?
Beijing (IRIN) – During German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s recent visit to China, the two countries agreed to jointly fund a disaster response centre in Afghanistan. It was just the latest sign of China’s increasingly prominent …
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Foreign investors “scared off” by Mongolian economic crisis
Ulan Bator, Mongolia (dpa) – Inside a cramped traditional tent dwelling called a ger, a formerly nomadic family sleeps and cooks around a coal stove in the polluted provincial capital of Bayankhongor. They have relied …
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Merkel meets human rights lawyers on visit to China
Beijing (dpa) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel met human rights lawyers, an artist, a writer and other civil society representatives in Beijing late Monday after holding government consultations focused on trade during her three-day visit to …
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When disaster strikes, should China do more?
Beijing (IRIN) – Sixty-two Chinese rescuers and six sniffer dogs were the first global team on the ground in Nepal the day after a massive earthquake devastated the country just over a year ago. The quick deployment …
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The smog economy: Bottled air takes off as a big business in China
Beijing (Mashable) — Moses Lam was an overworked mortgage broker when he started selling bags of air from Canada on eBay as a joke. Now his company, Vitality Air, is scrambling to keep up with …
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“I killed my mother”: China’s Cultural Revolution shame, 50 years on
Beijing (dpa) – Zhang Hongbing was 16 years old when he and his father sent his mother to the executioner. At that point, over a million people had already been killed and many millions more …
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Chongqing: China’s biggest experiment in economic reform
The rapid development and urbanization of China’s biggest city, Chongqing, shows how the country’s leaders are trying to revive slowing economic growth. Will the experiment work? Chongqing, China (dpa) – The presenter waved his hand over …
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In Focus special report: China’s five-year plan
China’s 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020) was finalised during the government’s annual ‘Two Sessions’ policy meetings in March. Focus asked a number of experts for their views on what it all means. I provide my views …
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For Chinese Victims of Sexual Assault, ‘Going Viral’ Is Best Revenge
Foreign Policy – A violent attack in the Chinese capital of Beijing on the evening of April 3 has set Chinese social media ablaze, calling attention to the indifference that female Chinese citizens encounter when trying …
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China’s quarterly growth falls to lowest rate since financial crisis
Beijing (dpa) – China’s economy grew by 6.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2016, according to official figures released Friday, marking a seven-year low in quarterly growth in the world’s second-largest economy. The figure matched …
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House churches: Underground, overground
The Economist – FOR the past couple of years, China’s tens of millions of Christians, most of whom are Protestants, have been watching events in the coastal province of Zhejiang with anxiety. The authorities there …
