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cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59399174

Archived

Here is the report: Propaganda Monitor - The China Edition (pdf)

The report published by the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) details how Beijing is investing heavily in expanding its state media presence abroad, partnering with trusted media outlets in the targeted countries and inviting journalists from around the world on all-expenses-paid trips to China to promote its narrative.

This system relies on a multitude of actors, from the Central Propaganda Department — which controls the content of state media, such as CGTN and Xinhua, which operate in 160 countries around the world — to diaspora media in the US, Australia and New Zealand.

China’s propaganda apparatus leverages propagandists beholden to Beijing's interests, such as Andy Boreham from the state-run outlet Shanghai Daily, and “trains” foreign journalists to parrot the regime's propaganda. Moreover, Beijing's crackdown on journalism — which has made China the world's leading jailer of news professionals, with 120 currently detained — increasingly extends to reporters abroad, fostering self-censorship on reporting critical of China.

China is trying to establish its own norms and its own model of journalism — one in which the media respond only to the regime and are considered a tool of propaganda and control, not an independent pillar of democracy," says Anne Bocandé and Aleksandra Bielakowska, RSF Editorial Director and RSF Asia-Pacific Advocacy Manager, respectively.

"What is even more threatening is that China works hand in hand with other authoritarian regimes, such as Putin’s Russia, to strengthen their grip on the global information space and transform journalism as we know it worldwide. We hope that this report will shed more light on these tactics and equip our democracies with a shield to protect our information space — before it is too late."

[...]

China's strategies to export its authoritarian media model in brief:

1 – Content-sharing deals: Content-sharing agreements between Chinese state media and foreign public broadcasters and local media allow Chinese propaganda to be republished as seemingly independent journalism, as seen in Germany.

2 – Preying on diaspora media: Diaspora media and influential figures that hold the attention of Chinese expats are recruited — or coerced — to amplify Chinese propaganda and deliberately omit content that does not align with the regime’s interests, as seen in the United States.

3 – Equipment in exchange for censorship: Funding and professional equipment is provided to local media in exchange for editorial alignment with the Chinese regime’s interests, including censored subjects, as seen in the Solomon Islands.

4 – Communicating in local languages: There has been an uptick in the foreign language services offered by Chinese state media outlets — such as CGTN, which broadcasts in 160 countries, including Türkiye, France and Afghanistan — to spread Beijing’s narratives and whitewash China’s human rights abuses.

5 – Pressuring foreign outlets via embassies: Chinese embassies and their diplomats have been attacking independent media outlets and doxxing journalists investigating Beijing’s influence, discrediting these reporters’ work in an attempt to intimidate them into silence, as seen in the Philippines and Denmark.

6 – Training programmes and media summits: Organising fully funded trips and “training” programmes, as well as media summits for journalists to undermine basic journalistic principles and promote Chinese propaganda and narratives, as seen in Argentina and Fiji.

7 – Transnational repression: China not only detains 120 journalists at home, but also targets independent and diaspora media worldwide, including US and UK-based Uyghur and Hong Kong journalists.

8 - Propagandists and influencers: State-linked Chinese institutions have increasingly organised sponsored trips for foreign YouTubers and TikTok creators, while state media organise programmes for influencers to spread its propaganda and reach broader and younger audiences, as seen in Germany, Nigeria and New Zealand.

9 – Investments and advertising: China invests heavily in media and social media advertising. In Taiwan, the China-based company Wubianjie has invested heavily in promoting disinformation content in Facebook lifestyle groups and Threads accounts, particularly during politically sensitive and fragile periods. In South Africa, a media in which two Chinese state-linked investors hold a 20% stake cancelled a journalist’s column after he wrote about the persecution of Uyghurs in China.

10 – Amplifying like-minded propaganda: Chinese state media outlets such as CGTN amplify content from Russian state media outlets such as Sputnik and RT, notably spreading their propaganda surrounding Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

[...]

China ranks 178th out of 180 countries and territories in the 2026 RSF World Press Freedom Index.

[...]

As an addition: You may be interested in Lingua Sinica, an interactive tool allowing users to gain as complete a picture as possible of Chinese-language media environments and actors across the world as well as points of engagement on media and information by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). In our system, both actors and points of engagement are referred to as “dispatches” — concise posts we use to monitor the landscape.

[...]

Archived

Here is the report: Propaganda Monitor - The China Edition (pdf)

The report published by the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) details how Beijing is investing heavily in expanding its state media presence abroad, partnering with trusted media outlets in the targeted countries and inviting journalists from around the world on all-expenses-paid trips to China to promote its narrative.

This system relies on a multitude of actors, from the Central Propaganda Department — which controls the content of state media, such as CGTN and Xinhua, which operate in 160 countries around the world — to diaspora media in the US, Australia and New Zealand.

China’s propaganda apparatus leverages propagandists beholden to Beijing's interests, such as Andy Boreham from the state-run outlet Shanghai Daily, and “trains” foreign journalists to parrot the regime's propaganda. Moreover, Beijing's crackdown on journalism — which has made China the world's leading jailer of news professionals, with 120 currently detained — increasingly extends to reporters abroad, fostering self-censorship on reporting critical of China.

China is trying to establish its own norms and its own model of journalism — one in which the media respond only to the regime and are considered a tool of propaganda and control, not an independent pillar of democracy," says Anne Bocandé and Aleksandra Bielakowska, RSF Editorial Director and RSF Asia-Pacific Advocacy Manager, respectively.

"What is even more threatening is that China works hand in hand with other authoritarian regimes, such as Putin’s Russia, to strengthen their grip on the global information space and transform journalism as we know it worldwide. We hope that this report will shed more light on these tactics and equip our democracies with a shield to protect our information space — before it is too late."

[...]

China's strategies to export its authoritarian media model in brief:

1 – Content-sharing deals: Content-sharing agreements between Chinese state media and foreign public broadcasters and local media allow Chinese propaganda to be republished as seemingly independent journalism, as seen in Germany.

2 – Preying on diaspora media: Diaspora media and influential figures that hold the attention of Chinese expats are recruited — or coerced — to amplify Chinese propaganda and deliberately omit content that does not align with the regime’s interests, as seen in the United States.

3 – Equipment in exchange for censorship: Funding and professional equipment is provided to local media in exchange for editorial alignment with the Chinese regime’s interests, including censored subjects, as seen in the Solomon Islands.

4 – Communicating in local languages: There has been an uptick in the foreign language services offered by Chinese state media outlets — such as CGTN, which broadcasts in 160 countries, including Türkiye, France and Afghanistan — to spread Beijing’s narratives and whitewash China’s human rights abuses.

5 – Pressuring foreign outlets via embassies: Chinese embassies and their diplomats have been attacking independent media outlets and doxxing journalists investigating Beijing’s influence, discrediting these reporters’ work in an attempt to intimidate them into silence, as seen in the Philippines and Denmark.

6 – Training programmes and media summits: Organising fully funded trips and “training” programmes, as well as media summits for journalists to undermine basic journalistic principles and promote Chinese propaganda and narratives, as seen in Argentina and Fiji.

7 – Transnational repression: China not only detains 120 journalists at home, but also targets independent and diaspora media worldwide, including US and UK-based Uyghur and Hong Kong journalists.

8 - Propagandists and influencers: State-linked Chinese institutions have increasingly organised sponsored trips for foreign YouTubers and TikTok creators, while state media organise programmes for influencers to spread its propaganda and reach broader and younger audiences, as seen in Germany, Nigeria and New Zealand.

9 – Investments and advertising: China invests heavily in media and social media advertising. In Taiwan, the China-based company Wubianjie has invested heavily in promoting disinformation content in Facebook lifestyle groups and Threads accounts, particularly during politically sensitive and fragile periods. In South Africa, a media in which two Chinese state-linked investors hold a 20% stake cancelled a journalist’s column after he wrote about the persecution of Uyghurs in China.

10 – Amplifying like-minded propaganda: Chinese state media outlets such as CGTN amplify content from Russian state media outlets such as Sputnik and RT, notably spreading their propaganda surrounding Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

[...]

China ranks 178th out of 180 countries and territories in the 2026 RSF World Press Freedom Index.

[...]

As an addition: You may be interested in Lingua Sinica, an interactive tool allowing users to gain as complete a picture as possible of Chinese-language media environments and actors across the world as well as points of engagement on media and information by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). In our system, both actors and points of engagement are referred to as “dispatches” — concise posts we use to monitor the landscape.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59370594

Archived

[...]

China's gender conflict has moved well beyond dinner-table arguments. Male content creators who openly criticise feminist ideas have built audiences on major Chinese platforms, while researchers say misogynistic online communities have continued to find space despite periods of censorship.

A CNA Insight documentary, published on 17 September 2026, put a face to the trend through David Wang, a content creator who has built a following by targeting what he calls 'extreme feminism'.

One broadcast summed up his position: 'Only unattractive women support extreme feminism.' Wang is part of China's growing 'manosphere', where male grievances and hostility towards women find an audience on platforms including Bilibili, Zhihu and Hupu.

[...]

Academic research published in Feminist Studies in 2025 found that 'misogyny in China has grown increasingly radicalised' but is 'rarely curtailed by state censorship and is often amplified by platform algorithms'.

The study examined misogynistic communities across Chinese digital platforms and argued that such misogyny can channel rising class discontent into hostility towards women.

[...]

The demographic figures highlighting the pressures facing Beijing are stark. China's National Bureau of Statistics reported that births fell to 7.92 million in 2025, down from 9.54 million in 2024. The country's population contracted for a fourth consecutive year, shrinking by 3.39 million to 1.40489 billion.

Marriage figures show a similar decline. China's Ministry of Civil Affairs recorded 6.106 million marriage registrations in 2024, down from 13.47 million in 2013, less than half the number recorded 11 years earlier.

The 2024 total was down 20.5 per cent from the previous year, according to official data. Demographer Yi Fuxian of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has warned of the implications of China's demographic decline for the country's future.

[...]

The United Nations Population Division estimates that China's total fertility rate is below 1.0 births per woman, compared with the roughly 2.1 children per woman generally associated with long-term population replacement in the absence of migration.

Beijing's efforts to regulate online gender discourse therefore sit alongside a much broader demographic challenge involving marriage, fertility, economic conditions and changing attitudes towards family life.

Against the backdrop of a widening gender divide and low marriage rates, the demographic shift could have consequences beyond China's borders.

A contracting and ageing population in the world's second-largest economy could affect labour supply, domestic demand and the country's economic outlook, with potential implications for businesses and economies that depend heavily on China.

[...]

A related report says that last Friday (18 Sep 2026), Sophia Huang Xueqin the imprisoned journalist who helped to ignite China’s MeToo movement, was released from Chinese prison, five years after her arrest. She will return to see a feminist movement that has dramatically changed in the years she has been detained.

Experts question, however, that Ms. Huang will be able to move freely as the Chinese internet has changed a lot since her arrest in 2021.

At the time of her conviction, Huang was also sentenced to four years “deprivation of political rights”. Human right groups say it could prevent her from continuing to work as a journalist or travelling abroad.

In a statement released on Saturday, activists pushing for Huang’s release said “though she is released from prison, none of us [her friends] were able to reach her or receive any information from her.

[...] Li Sipan, a Chinese investigative journalist and feminist scholar, says: “The Chinese Communist party regards all mobilisation of the public and movements demanding changes from the government as threats. The feminist movement clearly has these characteristics” {...]

Jasmine [a member of China's MeToo movement - says: “If you want to organise a public event, anything explicitly related to feminism or LGBT issues is basically not possible, at least in Beijing. If you advertise it that way, there’s a risk the event will be shut down [...]

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59370594

Archived

[...]

China's gender conflict has moved well beyond dinner-table arguments. Male content creators who openly criticise feminist ideas have built audiences on major Chinese platforms, while researchers say misogynistic online communities have continued to find space despite periods of censorship.

A CNA Insight documentary, published on 17 September 2026, put a face to the trend through David Wang, a content creator who has built a following by targeting what he calls 'extreme feminism'.

One broadcast summed up his position: 'Only unattractive women support extreme feminism.' Wang is part of China's growing 'manosphere', where male grievances and hostility towards women find an audience on platforms including Bilibili, Zhihu and Hupu.

[...]

Academic research published in Feminist Studies in 2025 found that 'misogyny in China has grown increasingly radicalised' but is 'rarely curtailed by state censorship and is often amplified by platform algorithms'.

The study examined misogynistic communities across Chinese digital platforms and argued that such misogyny can channel rising class discontent into hostility towards women.

[...]

The demographic figures highlighting the pressures facing Beijing are stark. China's National Bureau of Statistics reported that births fell to 7.92 million in 2025, down from 9.54 million in 2024. The country's population contracted for a fourth consecutive year, shrinking by 3.39 million to 1.40489 billion.

Marriage figures show a similar decline. China's Ministry of Civil Affairs recorded 6.106 million marriage registrations in 2024, down from 13.47 million in 2013, less than half the number recorded 11 years earlier.

The 2024 total was down 20.5 per cent from the previous year, according to official data. Demographer Yi Fuxian of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has warned of the implications of China's demographic decline for the country's future.

[...]

The United Nations Population Division estimates that China's total fertility rate is below 1.0 births per woman, compared with the roughly 2.1 children per woman generally associated with long-term population replacement in the absence of migration.

Beijing's efforts to regulate online gender discourse therefore sit alongside a much broader demographic challenge involving marriage, fertility, economic conditions and changing attitudes towards family life.

Against the backdrop of a widening gender divide and low marriage rates, the demographic shift could have consequences beyond China's borders.

A contracting and ageing population in the world's second-largest economy could affect labour supply, domestic demand and the country's economic outlook, with potential implications for businesses and economies that depend heavily on China.

[...]

A related report says that last Friday (18 Sep 2026), Sophia Huang Xueqin the imprisoned journalist who helped to ignite China’s MeToo movement, was released from Chinese prison, five years after her arrest. She will return to see a feminist movement that has dramatically changed in the years she has been detained.

Experts question, however, that Ms. Huang will be able to move freely as the Chinese internet has changed a lot since her arrest in 2021.

At the time of her conviction, Huang was also sentenced to four years “deprivation of political rights”. Human right groups say it could prevent her from continuing to work as a journalist or travelling abroad.

In a statement released on Saturday, activists pushing for Huang’s release said “though she is released from prison, none of us [her friends] were able to reach her or receive any information from her.

[...] Li Sipan, a Chinese investigative journalist and feminist scholar, says: “The Chinese Communist party regards all mobilisation of the public and movements demanding changes from the government as threats. The feminist movement clearly has these characteristics” {...]

Jasmine [a member of China's MeToo movement - says: “If you want to organise a public event, anything explicitly related to feminism or LGBT issues is basically not possible, at least in Beijing. If you advertise it that way, there’s a risk the event will be shut down [...]

[...]

Archived

[...]

China's gender conflict has moved well beyond dinner-table arguments. Male content creators who openly criticise feminist ideas have built audiences on major Chinese platforms, while researchers say misogynistic online communities have continued to find space despite periods of censorship.

A CNA Insight documentary, published on 17 September 2026, put a face to the trend through David Wang, a content creator who has built a following by targeting what he calls 'extreme feminism'.

One broadcast summed up his position: 'Only unattractive women support extreme feminism.' Wang is part of China's growing 'manosphere', where male grievances and hostility towards women find an audience on platforms including Bilibili, Zhihu and Hupu.

[...]

Academic research published in Feminist Studies in 2025 found that 'misogyny in China has grown increasingly radicalised' but is 'rarely curtailed by state censorship and is often amplified by platform algorithms'.

The study examined misogynistic communities across Chinese digital platforms and argued that such misogyny can channel rising class discontent into hostility towards women.

[...]

The demographic figures highlighting the pressures facing Beijing are stark. China's National Bureau of Statistics reported that births fell to 7.92 million in 2025, down from 9.54 million in 2024. The country's population contracted for a fourth consecutive year, shrinking by 3.39 million to 1.40489 billion.

Marriage figures show a similar decline. China's Ministry of Civil Affairs recorded 6.106 million marriage registrations in 2024, down from 13.47 million in 2013, less than half the number recorded 11 years earlier.

The 2024 total was down 20.5 per cent from the previous year, according to official data. Demographer Yi Fuxian of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has warned of the implications of China's demographic decline for the country's future.

[...]

The United Nations Population Division estimates that China's total fertility rate is below 1.0 births per woman, compared with the roughly 2.1 children per woman generally associated with long-term population replacement in the absence of migration.

Beijing's efforts to regulate online gender discourse therefore sit alongside a much broader demographic challenge involving marriage, fertility, economic conditions and changing attitudes towards family life.

Against the backdrop of a widening gender divide and low marriage rates, the demographic shift could have consequences beyond China's borders.

A contracting and ageing population in the world's second-largest economy could affect labour supply, domestic demand and the country's economic outlook, with potential implications for businesses and economies that depend heavily on China.

[...]

A related report says that last Friday (18 Sep 2026), Sophia Huang Xueqin the imprisoned journalist who helped to ignite China’s MeToo movement, was released from Chinese prison, five years after her arrest. She will return to see a feminist movement that has dramatically changed in the years she has been detained.

Experts question, however, that Ms. Huang will be able to move freely as the Chinese internet has changed a lot since her arrest in 2021.

At the time of her conviction, Huang was also sentenced to four years “deprivation of political rights”. Human right groups say it could prevent her from continuing to work as a journalist or travelling abroad.

In a statement released on Saturday, activists pushing for Huang’s release said “though she is released from prison, none of us [her friends] were able to reach her or receive any information from her.

[...] Li Sipan, a Chinese investigative journalist and feminist scholar, says: “The Chinese Communist party regards all mobilisation of the public and movements demanding changes from the government as threats. The feminist movement clearly has these characteristics” {...]

Jasmine [a member of China's MeToo movement - says: “If you want to organise a public event, anything explicitly related to feminism or LGBT issues is basically not possible, at least in Beijing. If you advertise it that way, there’s a risk the event will be shut down [...]

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59231713

China is seeking to weaken Taiwan by influencing extremists to enter its democratic system and exploit political divisions, National Security Council (NSC) adviser Alex Huang (黃重諺) said yesterday, warning that the election of just one or two such politicians could make it harder for society to reach consensus.

Archived

“The goal is to weaken Taiwan. China does not need to attack you, it just needs to keep you arguing among yourselves,” Huang said in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times, the Taipei Times’ sister paper.

Chinese election interference overseas is nothing new, with past incidents including attempts to influence the latest US presidential vote, efforts to turn Chinese-Canadian communities against certain politicians in Canada and attempts to fund pro-China candidates in Australia, Huang said.

[...]

Asked about who are pro-China candidates in Taiwan, Huang said that in a democracy, people should be allowed to run as long as they meet legal requirements.

In Taiwan, candidates must be Taiwanese citizens and give up permanent residency or citizenship in other countries, Huang said, adding that the Central Election Commission and other authorities conduct rigorous checks for Chinese citizenship.

It is certain that China would seek to use such people to enter Taiwan’s political system, he said, adding that Beijing was trying to undermine democracy through its processes.

All China needs is one or two radical political figures to deepen political polarization, making it harder for society to reach consensus, he said.

Once elected, these people could become a source of risk by obstructing important legislations, Huang said.

[...]

Political infighting could prevent the government from obtaining essential uncrewed aerial vehicles and even lead to the leaking of sensitive information to undermine opponents, he said.

Taiwan is like a “real-life encyclopedia” of Chinese election interference, Huang said, adding that Beijing is constantly developing new tactics using artificial intelligence (AI).

These include generating tens of thousands of “live accounts” capable of real-time interaction as well as AI-generated videos targeting President William Lai (賴清德), former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen (沈伯洋) of the Democratic Progressive Party, he said.

A political party during its chairperson election last year also detected signs of interference, with such operations exploiting gaps in Taiwan’s laws and using content that is difficult to verify to confuse the public, Huang said.

The government is exchanging information with international partners to bolster Taiwan’s information and democratic resilience, and is urging the public to remain alert to suspicious content and avoid sharing it, he added.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59231713

China is seeking to weaken Taiwan by influencing extremists to enter its democratic system and exploit political divisions, National Security Council (NSC) adviser Alex Huang (黃重諺) said yesterday, warning that the election of just one or two such politicians could make it harder for society to reach consensus.

Archived

“The goal is to weaken Taiwan. China does not need to attack you, it just needs to keep you arguing among yourselves,” Huang said in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times, the Taipei Times’ sister paper.

Chinese election interference overseas is nothing new, with past incidents including attempts to influence the latest US presidential vote, efforts to turn Chinese-Canadian communities against certain politicians in Canada and attempts to fund pro-China candidates in Australia, Huang said.

[...]

Asked about who are pro-China candidates in Taiwan, Huang said that in a democracy, people should be allowed to run as long as they meet legal requirements.

In Taiwan, candidates must be Taiwanese citizens and give up permanent residency or citizenship in other countries, Huang said, adding that the Central Election Commission and other authorities conduct rigorous checks for Chinese citizenship.

It is certain that China would seek to use such people to enter Taiwan’s political system, he said, adding that Beijing was trying to undermine democracy through its processes.

All China needs is one or two radical political figures to deepen political polarization, making it harder for society to reach consensus, he said.

Once elected, these people could become a source of risk by obstructing important legislations, Huang said.

[...]

Political infighting could prevent the government from obtaining essential uncrewed aerial vehicles and even lead to the leaking of sensitive information to undermine opponents, he said.

Taiwan is like a “real-life encyclopedia” of Chinese election interference, Huang said, adding that Beijing is constantly developing new tactics using artificial intelligence (AI).

These include generating tens of thousands of “live accounts” capable of real-time interaction as well as AI-generated videos targeting President William Lai (賴清德), former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen (沈伯洋) of the Democratic Progressive Party, he said.

A political party during its chairperson election last year also detected signs of interference, with such operations exploiting gaps in Taiwan’s laws and using content that is difficult to verify to confuse the public, Huang said.

The government is exchanging information with international partners to bolster Taiwan’s information and democratic resilience, and is urging the public to remain alert to suspicious content and avoid sharing it, he added.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59231713

China is seeking to weaken Taiwan by influencing extremists to enter its democratic system and exploit political divisions, National Security Council (NSC) adviser Alex Huang (黃重諺) said yesterday, warning that the election of just one or two such politicians could make it harder for society to reach consensus.

Archived

“The goal is to weaken Taiwan. China does not need to attack you, it just needs to keep you arguing among yourselves,” Huang said in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times, the Taipei Times’ sister paper.

Chinese election interference overseas is nothing new, with past incidents including attempts to influence the latest US presidential vote, efforts to turn Chinese-Canadian communities against certain politicians in Canada and attempts to fund pro-China candidates in Australia, Huang said.

[...]

Asked about who are pro-China candidates in Taiwan, Huang said that in a democracy, people should be allowed to run as long as they meet legal requirements.

In Taiwan, candidates must be Taiwanese citizens and give up permanent residency or citizenship in other countries, Huang said, adding that the Central Election Commission and other authorities conduct rigorous checks for Chinese citizenship.

It is certain that China would seek to use such people to enter Taiwan’s political system, he said, adding that Beijing was trying to undermine democracy through its processes.

All China needs is one or two radical political figures to deepen political polarization, making it harder for society to reach consensus, he said.

Once elected, these people could become a source of risk by obstructing important legislations, Huang said.

[...]

Political infighting could prevent the government from obtaining essential uncrewed aerial vehicles and even lead to the leaking of sensitive information to undermine opponents, he said.

Taiwan is like a “real-life encyclopedia” of Chinese election interference, Huang said, adding that Beijing is constantly developing new tactics using artificial intelligence (AI).

These include generating tens of thousands of “live accounts” capable of real-time interaction as well as AI-generated videos targeting President William Lai (賴清德), former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Taipei mayoral candidate Puma Shen (沈伯洋) of the Democratic Progressive Party, he said.

A political party during its chairperson election last year also detected signs of interference, with such operations exploiting gaps in Taiwan’s laws and using content that is difficult to verify to confuse the public, Huang said.

The government is exchanging information with international partners to bolster Taiwan’s information and democratic resilience, and is urging the public to remain alert to suspicious content and avoid sharing it, he added.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59216546

Archived

Here is the original report: The DPRK’s Use of Overseas Labour to Violate and Evade UN Sanctions (pdf)

A new report has found that North Korean overseas workers raised between $US450 million ($AU633 million) and $US800 million last year for the authoritarian state's nuclear weapons program.

The Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team report — co-signed by a range of Western governments and US allies — details "systemic evasion of UN sanctions by the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] and other countries through a global network of unlawful overseas labour".

It says the overseas labourers - who work under exploitative labour conditions and whose wages are confiscated - were working primarily in China and Russia and numbered anywhere between 35,000 and 101,000 workers.

[...]

China has always denied hosting illegal workers from North Korea — and pushed out at least 10,000 workers between 2023 and 2025 — but human rights groups and investigative reporters have documented how thousands can still be found working in Chinese factories, plants and fishing fleets.

The MSMT report estimates that China still hosts between 20,000 and 70,000 North Korean labourers.

[...]

The reports key findings:

• Generating Illicit Revenue: Despite the strict 2019 repatriation deadline, the DPRK continues to operate an unlawful overseas labour program that generated between $450 million and $800 million in 2025 alone. The DPRK government actively deploys an estimated 35,600 to 101,280 North Korean labourers across at least 17 countries, funnelling earnings into the government’s strategic priorities, including its unlawful nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
• Most Located in China: Most North Korean labourers are deployed in China, with an estimated 20,000 to 70,000 labourers currently operating there. Despite a temporary repatriation of 10,000-20,000 workers between 2023 and 2025, approximately 10,000 new North Korean labourers arrived in China between January 2025 and January 2026. The number of North Korean labourers dispatched to China is expected to grow.
• Russia a Growing Hub: North Korean labourers are increasingly deployed to work in Russia, including an estimated 15,000 to 30,000 as of the end of 2025. North Korean labourers are manufacturing military drones for Russia on Russian soil, such as in drone factories located in Alabuga, Tatarstan. The Russian government has created a student visa scheme to camouflage North Korean labourers in Russia as students. Each North Korean labourer in Russia generates an average estimated $7,500 in wages annually. Estimates indicate that monthly wages earned by North Korean labourers in Russia may be up to five times as high compared to monthly wages in China, depending on the industry.
• Wage Confiscation and Exploitative Working Conditions: The DPRK government confiscates 80-90% of wages earned by North Korean labourers. In some cases, the confiscated amount exceeds their actual earnings, leaving North Korean overseas labourers indebted to the DPRK government. North Korean labourers endure long work hours and exploitative conditions. DPRK authorities also exercise extreme control over labourers’ movement and interactions with outsiders in order to prevent defections, while labourers who do defect risk reprisals against family members remaining in North Korea.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59216599

Archived

• Southwest China is one of the areas with the highest long-term cropland exposure to extreme precipitation

• Extreme precipitation intensity has fluctuated but generally increased in the Huang–Huai–Hai Plain and Northeast China Plain since 2000.

• Areas where primary industry accounts for 30–40 per cent of the local economy showed the lowest levels of extreme precipitation exposure.

• The relationship between rural population and rainfall exposure is complex, with extreme precipitation intensity peaking at some moderate population levels.

• Areas with high exposure to extreme rainfall but poor transport accessibility face particularly serious risks and may become "vulnerability-traps."

[...]

Climate change is increasing the likelihood and intensity of extreme rainfall, putting China’s agricultural land at growing risk of flooding, disruption and damage, according to new research led by Dr Haoyu Hu from The University of Manchester.

[...]

Its findings come as China has experienced a series of severe flooding and extreme rainfall events this year. In July alone, more than 16 million people were affected by natural disasters across the country, with flooding and geological disasters among the main causes. Earlier this month, Typhoon Saudel brought torrential rainfall and flooding to several southern and eastern provinces, with more than 400mm of rain recorded in 24 hours in parts of Fujian.

Scientists have also found evidence that human-induced climate change has already intensified extreme precipitation across China, while research published this year found climate-related changes are increasing the risk of extreme rainfall events in northern China.

[...]

Archived

• Southwest China is one of the areas with the highest long-term cropland exposure to extreme precipitation

• Extreme precipitation intensity has fluctuated but generally increased in the Huang–Huai–Hai Plain and Northeast China Plain since 2000.

• Areas where primary industry accounts for 30–40 per cent of the local economy showed the lowest levels of extreme precipitation exposure.

• The relationship between rural population and rainfall exposure is complex, with extreme precipitation intensity peaking at some moderate population levels.

• Areas with high exposure to extreme rainfall but poor transport accessibility face particularly serious risks and may become "vulnerability-traps."

[...]

Climate change is increasing the likelihood and intensity of extreme rainfall, putting China’s agricultural land at growing risk of flooding, disruption and damage, according to new research led by Dr Haoyu Hu from The University of Manchester.

[...]

Its findings come as China has experienced a series of severe flooding and extreme rainfall events this year. In July alone, more than 16 million people were affected by natural disasters across the country, with flooding and geological disasters among the main causes. Earlier this month, Typhoon Saudel brought torrential rainfall and flooding to several southern and eastern provinces, with more than 400mm of rain recorded in 24 hours in parts of Fujian.

Scientists have also found evidence that human-induced climate change has already intensified extreme precipitation across China, while research published this year found climate-related changes are increasing the risk of extreme rainfall events in northern China.

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cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/59174859

Archived

Here is the full report: "Swept Under the Rug”: Systemic Failures to End Torture in the People’s Republic of China (pdf)

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"In cases involving human rights defenders, it is normal for Chinese authorities to employ torture to extract confessions, fabricate evidence, violate legal procedures, manufacture wrongful convictions, and subject individuals to criminal persecution." - Family member of currently imprisoned rights activist, April 20261

Beatings, electric shocks, solitary confinement: although the Chinese government signed the United Nations Convention against Torture forty years ago, and adopted some domestic prohibitions against these abuses, periodic reviews by international bodies and documentation from independent civil society demonstrate that torture by those authorities persists. Prisoners of conscience are at especially grave risk.

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“The Chinese government’s ongoing reliance on torture isn’t a function of gaps in law or process—it’s a political choice,” said Sophie Richardson, Co-Executive Director of CHRD. “When every safeguard against torture is ignored—year after year, nationwide—impunity for police, courts, and officials is all but guaranteed.”

One in five of the cases CHRD examined included allegations of beatings by authorities. Others reported being subjected to electric shocks and solitary confinement. 35 percent described deprivation of adequate medical care—the most common form of torture—and 16 died in detention as an apparent result. More than half of prisoners of conscience alleging torture had been imprisoned for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” a charge United Nations human rights experts have called vague and imprecise; the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has called for it to be repealed.

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Chinese authorities torture and ill-treat prisoners of conscience with near-total impunity, the Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders said today in a new report. Drawing on 209 cases of alleged torture between 2016 and 2025 across the country, and interviews with 25 human rights defenders (HRDs), family members, and lawyers, the 53-page report, “Swept Under the Rug”: Systemic Failures to End Torture in the People’s Republic of China, finds that authorities persist in their use of torture, typically to extract confessions, and fail to investigate allegations of ill-treatment.

CHRD found reference to courts conducting investigations into torture allegations in only two of the 209 cases, those of rights lawyer Ding Jiaxi and journalist Huang Xueqin. Those courts subsequently claimed they found no evidence of torture. In the case of HRD Ji Xiaolong, the court agreed to exclude his confession on the grounds it was obtained through ill-treatment—the only such exclusion CHRD found among the 209 cases—but convicted him anyway, stating that his lack of a confession made him a “recidivist” deserving harsher punishment.

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Despite having ratified the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in 1988, Chinese authorities have failed to engage reviews with the goal of eradicating torture. At China’s last review, in 2015, the Committee against Torture (CAT) concluded that these abuses remain “deeply entrenched.” The Chinese government delayed submitting its most recent periodic report for five years and as a result is significantly overdue for review by the committee, one of the few remaining avenues of redress for torture survivors. Chinese authorities are increasingly combative in rejecting international scrutiny, telling the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in 2021 that “the risk of being ‘subjected to torture’… does not exist” in China.

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“Chinese authorities have had four decades to make good on their promises to end torture,” Richardson said. “Must prisoners of conscience pay with their health—and, in some cases, their lives—for Beijing’s intransigence?”

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