New York [US], September 18 : Human Rights in China (HRIC) has issued its latest weekly brief, warning of growing repression inside the country, tightening legal controls, and the spread of Beijing's surveillance model abroad.
The group's main concern is the detention of well-known rights lawyer Jiang Tianyong, who has long defended Tibetans, Falun Gong practitioners, and HIV/AIDS victims. Jiang was reportedly seized in Changsha on September 16 by unidentified men while meeting the family of a political prisoner. His current whereabouts remain unknown. HRIC expressed grave concern for his safety, noting Jiang's history of harassment, torture, and strict state surveillance.
The brief also referred to a massive leak of documents from Chinese surveillance firm Landasoft, revealing that US technology companies were not only aware of their partnerships with Chinese defence contractors but, in some cases, actively promoted their tools as instruments for policing. Additional leaked files showed China's surveillance and censorship systems have grown increasingly sophisticated and are being exported to countries such as Kazakhstan, Ethiopia, Pakistan, and Myanmar, extending Beijing's influence abroad.
Domestically, China's National People's Congress has opened public consultation on twelve draft bills, including cybersecurity, environmental codes, and revisions to the Language Law. While state media touts the reforms as promoting unity, critics argue they threaten minority languages and cultural diversity. In Hong Kong, lawmakers overwhelmingly rejected a bill granting limited rights to same-sex couples, though courts recently ruled in favour of a lesbian couple seeking recognition of both mothers on their child's birth certificate.
The flagged developments in digital rights and propaganda. Analysts warned that China's censorship architecture, described in a new study as the "Locknet", continues to adapt. Reports by Graphika revealed that Chinese state-linked networks are increasingly deploying AI tools to repackage propaganda for international audiences. Meanwhile, censorship directives targeted criticism of Beijing's military parade, and the regulator sanctioned Xiaohongshu for allegedly promoting "negative" content.
Beyond China's borders, there is growing repression of diaspora communities. Two men accused of smuggling US military technology to China fled house arrest in Serbia, while ex-journalists from Radio Free Asia spoke of the chilling impact of forced shutdowns.
The intensifying controls within Hong Kong and Macau, alongside Beijing's export of community surveillance methods to the Solomon Islands and reactions to protests in Nepal, reflect the Chinese state's determination to extend its authoritarian model both domestically and internationally.
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