rule of law

Authorities Continue to Detain Associates of Pu Zhiqiang as Crackdown Ahead of Tiananmen Anniversary Intensifies

As the crackdown against dissent ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre intensifies, authorities continue to detain individuals associated with Pu Zhiqiang, a lawyer who was arrested earlier this month after attending a small, private gathering of individuals commemorating the massacre.

Amnesty Report: China and North Korea Are The Worst Culprits For Torture in Asia-Pacific Region

A recent report published by Amnesty International names China and North Korea as the worst culprits for torture in the Asia-Pacific region. In preparation for the report, Amnesty recorded incidents of torture in 141 countries over the past five years and polled 20,000 people in 21 countries.

Petitioners File Lawsuit Against Government for Illegal Detention in 'Black Jail'

A group of petitioners who had been held in an illegal “black jail” filed suit, presumably under the Administrative Litigation Law, against the government officials who kidnapped them in Beijing. Provincial and local governments rely on these makeshift detention facilities, commonly referred to as black jails, to imprison individuals who travel to Beijing to petition central government authorities to investigate abuses of power perpetrated by local officials.

Criminal Detentions Rise Following Abolition of Re-education Through Labor

As the South China Morning Post points out, and as the Laogai Research Foundation predicted last year, Chinese authorities have increasingly relied on criminal detention and alternative forms of administrative detention to jail activists following the abolition of re-education-through-labor (RTL) in November 2013.

Beijing Court Sentences Four Activists Associated With the New Citizens Movement

A court in Beijing sentenced four activists on charges of “gathering a crowd to disturb public order” on account of their participation in the New Citizens Movement, a loose collection of activists and lawyers who seek to promote the rule of law and have called on government officials to publicly disclose their assets.

China's New National Secuirty Commission Strengthens Xi's Grip Over Domestic Security

China’s National Security Commission, the establishment of which was announced at the Third Plenum in November, met for the first time on Tuesday. As expected, President Xi’s comments about the substance of the meeting indicate that the commission will focus heavily on domestic security issues.

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