The predominantly Muslim Uighur ethnic group are among the minorities targeted in what Beijing claims is a campaign to tackle unrest and separatism. The UN says a million Uighurs have been arbitrarily detained in extralegal “political reeducation camps,” whilst Human Rights Watch reports that surveillance and repression in Xinjiang has increased dramatically since 2016.
LATEST NEWS & VIEWS
UK to ban China imports linked to Uighur camps – report
Britain is set to announce plans outlawing the import of goods suspected of using forced labour in China’s Xinjiang province, media reported Monday, in a move which would further strain ties between London and Beijing. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is expected to reveal his plans, which are also set to include tougher laws on exporting […]
China can claim global leadership mantle but fails to win friends or admirers
To listen to Chinese President Xi Jinping, who delivered a New Year’s address to the nation last week, China has emerged triumphant from the severe challenges of 2020 while the rest of the world, especially the Western democratic world, has suffered dearly from the ravages of Covid-19. And there was certainly much for him to […]
COMMENTARY & ANALYSIS
How China seeks to redefine global norms and keep the West at bay
China was one of the major issues in the US presidential election. No matter what stance we take, we must acknowledge an objective reality: four decades of the US strategy of “peaceful evolution” and engagement with China has failed spectacularly. Drawing on the lessons of the Soviet Union, China has developed a series of ways […]
End of Hong Kong’s ‘one country, two systems’ poses fresh challenges for Joe Biden
By Niki JP Alsford Opposition is not welcome here. This was the clear message given to the people of Hong Kong following the expulsion of four MPs from the Hong Kong parliament on November 11 for their “unpatriotic” activities and “endangering national security”. The remaining 19 opposition MPs submitted their letters of resignation the following […]
FEATURES
Interview: Historian Jeffrey Wasserstrom says world must keep paying attention to Hong Kong despite pandemic distractions
When historian Jeffrey Wasserstrom was contemplating Hong Kong’s future as he wrote his book on last year’s protests, he never imagined that freedoms would come under attack so soon after Beijing’s national security law was passed. “I’d say this was the picture that I feared,” he told HKFP, “but it’s happened faster than anybody expected, […]
Exclusive: ‘I am a Hongkonger’ – Artist Ai Weiwei on why he supports the city’s ‘brave, clever, beautiful’ protest movement
Chinese contemporary artist Ai Weiwei made his name in visual arts, film and architecture, before his critical commentary against the Chinese government led to persecution and a trial on allegations of tax evasion. Ai moved to Berlin in 2015, and has become an outspoken advocate for migrants’ rights. During the height of the anti-extradition law […]
