China-Policies & politics

1. Chinese coronavirus critic Ren Zhiqiang under investigation, Communist Party disciplinary committee says

   Ren Zhiqiang, the former Chinese property tycoon and outspoken critic of the government’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak, is under investigation for alleged “serious violations of law and discipline”, the Communist Party’s disciplinary watchdog announced.In a short statement released on Tuesday, the Commission for Discipline Inspection in Beijing said that Ren – a member of China’s ruling Communist Party and a former top executive of state-controlled property developer Huayuan Real Estate…

2. Hackers target Chinese government agencies, diplomatic missions and WHO amid pandemic

   Chinese agencies and diplomatic missions have been targeted by hackers through their virtual private network (VPN) servers in a coordinated cyber espionage campaign, at a time when many governments and global organisations are more vulnerable than ever to security breaches due to remote working arrangements amid the pandemic, according to a report by a leading Chinese cybersecurity provider.Both domestic Chinese agencies and diplomatic missions in countries including Italy, the UK, North Korea…

3. Xinjiang’s new rules against domestic violence expand China’s ‘extremism’ front to the home

   China’s far western region of Xinjiang has added domestic violence to its legal code to combat “extremism” as authorities further tighten controls over the region.Under the new rules, domestic violence also covers the “exercise of extremist acts – both physical and psychological – that prevent other family members from engaging in normal production and way of life”.Even if the violation is considered minor, the rules empower police officers to reprimand violators, and provide shelter and…

4. Quarantine an excuse to extend detention of Chinese 709 lawyer Wang Quanzhang: wife

   Chinese human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang has been barred from uniting with his family and friends after being released from prison on Sunday, raising concerns of de facto house arrest after serving more than 4½ years in jail for state subversion.Wang was sent to his former residence in the eastern city of Jinan after he was released from prison in Linyi, Shandong province, in eastern China on Sunday.The 44-year-old has not been allowed to be reunited with his family at their home in the…

5. China needs more, not fewer, immigrants if it wants long-term growth and prosperity

   China’s latest draft law on granting permanent residency to foreigners has touched a nerve among the public. It has been met with overwhelming disapproval, fanning fears that a “lowered threshold” will lead to an influx of immigrants who will put a strain on resources.A closer look at the proposed regulation, however, finds the bar for obtaining a Chinese “green card” remains extremely high. For instance, a skilled applicant is required to hold a doctoral degree or a diploma from “an…

6. The faint hope of freedom for the last of China’s 709 lawyers behind bars

   Li Wenzu is nearing the end of a tumultuous five-year journey fighting for the rights of her lawyer husband Wang Quanzhang – but there is little left in her to look beyond the finishing line.“One thing I have learned over the years to avoid crushing disappointment is to live in the present moment rather than harbouring hope,” Li told the South China Morning Post.“There was no worst pain, only even worse pain, again and again.”Wang, a 44-year-old human rights lawyer, is due to be released from…

7. Coronavirus: China to stage day of mourning on Saturday for thousands killed by Covid-19

   China has declared Saturday a national day of mourning for those who died in the coronavirus pandemic.Chinese flags will be flown at half-mast across the country and at embassies overseas, while all public entertainment will be halted for the day, the State Council, China’s cabinet, said on Friday.At 10am, the public will be asked to observe three minutes of silence, during which sirens will blast out across the country and the owners of cars and boats should sound their vehicles’ horns, the…

8. EU leader Ursula von der Leyen risks Beijing’s ire by lauding Taiwan’s donation of 5.6 million masks for coronavirus battle

   The European Union’s top leader has praised Taiwan for donating millions of masks to help the bloc battle the coronavirus pandemic, in a highly unusual show of solidarity with the self-ruling island expected to provoke Beijing.“The European Union thanks Taiwan for its donation of 5.6 million masks to help fight the #coronavirus. We really appreciate this gesture of solidarity,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a Twitter post on Wednesday.“This global virus outbreak…

9. Coronavirus: Xi Jinping tells China to stay on guard as country seeks to restart economy

   Chinese President Xi Jinping has warned people to remain on guard against the spread of Covid-19 by silent carriers and from overseas as the country tries to get its economy going again.“[We] must specifically strengthen our work to manage asymptomatic cases and impose suitable precautionary measures on all areas of business recovery and social life,” he told the provincial party committee of Zhejiang, state news agency Xinhua reported.“[We] must see restricting imported cases as the most…

10. Former Xinjiang police chief arrested in bribery investigation, say Chinese prosecutors

    Two former officials from China’s restive Xinjiang region have been arrested on suspicion of taking bribes, the country’s top prosecution body has announced.Jureti Ibrahim, formerly deputy director of the police in Urumqi, the far-western region’s capital, was taken into custody following an investigation by the city’s supervisory committee, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate said on its website on Tuesday.Ibrahim, an ethnic Uygur and Communist Party member, was reported in local media in 2014…