By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch Managing Editor

BEIJING, China – As Hong Kong’s youth take to the stress to defy Beijing’s attempts to reign in the former British Colony the Chinese government has been actively attempting to silence the demonstrator’s online social media presence. In the wake of Hong Kong’s Umbrella revolution the People’s Republic of China has ramped up censorship of social media and news websites inside of the China preventing real-time coverage of the events unfolding on the streets of Hong Kong. Like many modern democratic movements online social media has played an important role in the Hong Kong demonstrations as young people take to the streets armed with umbrellas to protect themselves from teargas and smart-phones to share their stories with the world. However, the majority of people living in mainland china will not have access to the posts of their countrymen.

Chinese state-run news outlets not covered pro-democracy demonstration except to call the demonstrators extremists. A story from the state-run news outlet Xinhua featured the Hong Kong chief executive CY Leung denounced the demonstrations as “unlawful.” The Chinese government has been actively working to ensure that the protests are not only kept in the dark by state-run media but by social media platforms as well.

The Chinese government has been using its online censorship program to scrub Chinese social media of pro-democracy posts from Hong Kong, especially on Weibo, china’s version of Twitter and one of the largest social media platforms in the world. The government, which has extensive control over Weibo posts, has removed posts containing key-words indicating a relationship to the Hong Kong demonstrations including pro-democracy phrases.

Photos of the protests and clashes between police and demonstrators have flooded the internet over the past two days. The flood of posts has come in at a faster rate than the Chinese can apparently handle and in response popular photo sharing websites like Instagram have been blocked in the country. “In the past two days, we can see a lot of people holding phones and taking pictures of different (Hong Kong protest) scenes on Instagram, Facebook and sharing it around,” King-wa Fu, an assistant professor at the University of Hong Kong, said. China observers  have noted that while the app can’t be accessed in China for most citizens, the country’s First Lady Peng Liyuan’s official Instagram account posted a picture of her and her husband, China’s President Xi Jinping, on Monday.

Twenty five years ago Chinese youths took to the streets in Beijing to demand a movement towards democratization. Much like today the Chinese government actively worked to keep the majority of the Chinese populous in the dark by stomping stories of the Tiananmen Square protests and the government massacre that silenced them. It remains unclear what the future will bring for the Umbrella Revolution and the people of china but what is clear is that the proliferation of social media and internet access around china and the world has made it nearly impossible for the Chinese government to stop the signals coming out of Hong Kong and to keep its people in the dark.

For more information please see:

The Economist – HK Backspace, Backspace – 4 October 2014

CNN International – China’s Internet Firewall Censors Hong Kong Protest News – 30 September 2014

The New York Times – Chinese Web Censors Struggle with Hong Kong – 30 September 2014

Foreign Policy – In China, the Most Censored Day of the Year – 29 September 2014

By Hojin Choi

Impunity Watch Reporter

HONG KONG, China – The democracy movement in Hong Kong has become a massive civil obedience display as tens of thousands of citizens gathered and rallied in the streets. The Hong Kong police used violent tactics, but the protesters refused to disperse.

Over the weekend, a significant number of protesters clashed with police forces, and the city spiraled into chaos. The protesters occupied central financial streets in Hong Kong as part of a planned action called “Occupy Central.” College students boycotted their classes as the number of demonstrators continued to grow. The protest was non-violent as they were merely “sitting.”

However, as the protesters refused to disperse, police engaged them using tear gas and pepper spray, and the protesters resisted with umbrellas and masks.

As time passed, the protesters became more outrageous. On Monday, the overnight clashes between the protesters and police seemed to escalate the tensions. The New York Times reported that Hong Kong police not only failed to disperse the protesters but also “motivated more people to join on Monday.”

A 30-year-old bank worker joined the protest during her lunch hour and said “what [police were] doing was not appropriate, especially the tear gas. The students were completely peaceful.”

Another protester, a mother of two, joined the protest for one hour to show her support because the protesters “are fighting for our future, for my children’s future.” She said she decided to participate after seeing tear gas fired at the protesters. To her, they were “so young.”

The protesters want political independence from the mainland of China. Hong Kong was supposed to have its own electoral systems that are independent and separate from the mainland starting in 2017. However, as Beijing had decided that it would allow only pro-Beijing candidates and exclude pro-democratic candidates for the election in 2017, citizens and activists in Hong Kong announced a large-scale civil protest.

“One country, two systems” was the promise made by the Chinese government when the U.K. returned Hong Kong to China after a 150-year colonial period. However, the recent political attitude of Beijing has scared Hong Kong citizens. Under one of the most advanced financial businesses in the world, Hong Kong has a high average income level per person ($53,203), which is close to the U.S. and more than four times higher than China ($11,904). They have persistent worries about different political and market systems between China and Hong Kong. Recent economic slow down contributed to that worry, and Beijing’s decision regarding the election was the final straw..

Beijing seems to be taking extraordinary measures to prevent reports from spreading outside, and the demonstrators called for others’ attention through foreign news media outlets.

According to Sinoshpere, a Chinese blog run by the New York Times, a directive order from the Central Propaganda Department in Beijing guided websites to delete any mention of the issue in Hong Kong. Only short articles produced by state news agencies were permitted in the mainland of China. The government also blocked popular social platform Instagram in fear of spreading pictures of the protest. The word “Occupy Central” and other related words were banned in Chinese SNSs, smartphone applications, and so on. Allegedly, some Chinese news organizations did deliver the news about Hong Kong, but under strict censorship or supervision.

On the other side, some people in Hong Kong expressed a different opinion about the student-led protest. A woman said in an interview with the ABC News that “those of us who came to the city 60 or 70 years ago had nothing and we worked and suffered so much to make Hong Kong the rich city it is today. And now the protesters have made our society unstable. For me, being able to eat and sleep is already a luxury.” She added, “I don’t need democracy. What does it mean?”

For more information please see:

USA Today – Hong Kong democracy protesters defy calls to disperse – 29 September 2014

The Boston Globe – What’s happening in Hong Kong? – 29 September 2014

Sinosphere (The New York Times) – Beijing Blocks Reports on Hong Kong Democracy Movement – 29 September 2014

The New York Times – Hong Kong Protesters Defy Officials’ Call to Disperse – 29 September 2014

The Washington Post – Hong Kong police try and fail to clear protesters with tear gas – 29 September 2014

By Hojin Choi

Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

XINJIANG, China – China sentenced a Uighur scholar, Ilham Tohti, often referred to as “Uighur Nelson Mandela,” to life in prison for “separatism.” Nelson Mandela is the former president of South Africa who fought for democracy and against racial discrimination in the country. Tohti is an Economics professor at Minzu University, in Beijing. He was convicted after a two-day trial in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang.

The New York Times described him as “the most visible symbol of peaceful resistance by ethnic Uighurs to Chinese policies.” Tohti has been known for his works on human rights issues in Uighur. He has done extensive research on relations between Uighur and Han, the majority ethnic group in China. The Xinjiang region is where Uighur people have claimed democratic independence, but in return the Chinese government has insisted that so-called Uighur separatists and extremists have been committing continuous terror attacks in China. The ongoing dispute and the oppressive policies put in place by the Chinese government have brought international attention.

However, the Chinese government seems to have a different opinion about the professor. Tohti was charged with organizing and leading a separatist group. The prosecution argued that he had “internationalized” the Uighur’s independence issues by posting relevant foreign articles and holding interviews with foreign news agencies.

In a statement from the Xinjiang police, he was accused of colluding with foreign forces and spreading separatist ideas. It also argued that Tohti had taught his students about “violent Uighur resistance” and encouraged them to overthrow the Chinese government. During his trial, the prosecution offered evidence such as his class materials and the website he had operated. The officials used the materials to demonstrate his viewpoints on Uighur identity and China’s ethnic policies. They also argued that the alleged separatist group run by Tohti included several of his students. Reportedly, seven students were also detained for issues related to Tohti’s case and they will be tried soon.

According to his lawyer, Tohti “showed great spirit in court.” The lawyer added that “he gave an eloquent defense to every accusation. He maintained his innocence from the beginning to the end. He gave a brilliant 90-minute defense speech at the end of the trial.” The lawyer also said that he now worries about Tohti’s family, as they will face financial difficulties, living without the head of the family. Tohti has two sons, 5 and 8, and the court ordered confiscation of all his assets. Tohti was first arrested in January, and he had been detained until the trial without the rights to see his family for eight months.

The majority of international organizations and foreign governments condemned the Chinese government for the trial. The White House requested his release and said that he is a “respected professor who has long championed efforts to bridge differences between Uighurs and Han Chinese.” Tohti’s harsh sentence was considered “retribution for Professor Tohti’s efforts” to promote the human rights of the Uighur people.

A spokesperson for the U.S. embassy in Beijing asked the Chinese government to begin “differentiating between peaceful dissent and violent extremism.” International human rights group Amnesty International released a statement criticizing the purpose of the trial and its political background. “Tohti worked to peacefully build bridges between ethnic communities and for that he has been punished through politically motivated charges,” it said.

For more information please see:

The New York Times – China Sentences Uighur Scholar to Life – 23 September 2014

The New York Times – The Price of China’s Uighur Repression – 25 September 2014

CNN – China sentences prominent Uyghur scholar to life in prison for ‘separatism’ – 24 September 2014

CTV News – The case of scholar Ilham Tohti, the ‘Uighur Nelson Mandela’ – 25 September 2014

The Diplomat – Ilham Tohti and Islamic State: How China Defines Terrorism – 26 September 2014

By Hojin Choi

Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – China refuted the U.S. hacking charges alleged in a Senate report. The report said the Chinese government backed hackers who intruded into computer systems of U.S.-based private companies. The companies included U.S. airlines, technology companies, and some contractors for the U.S. military.

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said during a daily briefing that the report was groundless and urged that the U.S. must stop “irresponsible assaults and accusations.” Lei went on to blame the U.S. for cyber-attacks on other countries. He said the U.S. government should “stop large scale and systematic cyber-attacks against other countries and do more to uphold peace and security of the cyberspace.”

Lei also pointed out that “[t]he Chinese law bans all the activities that sabotage internet security, including hacker attacks, and resolutely combats relevant criminal activities.”

The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee made public of its report on May 17. The report was produced after a year long probe. The report says that hackers linked to China invaded the U.S. Transportation Command (Transcom) at least 20 times in one year. Transcom is a private company that moves troops and military goods across the globe.

The report emphasized the cyber weakness of private military contractors. The military itself has strong cyber security, but private companies do not. Cyber security expert Dmitri Alperovitch commented that “the military uses secret or top-secret networks that are not on the Internet, but private companies do not.” He added that China has recently showed a strong interest in the logistical patterns of the U.S. military.

The report also voiced concern about a lack of information sharing among U.S. government entities. According to the report, there had been about 50 intrusions or other cyber events into Transcom’s system, and at least 20 of them were successful. However, Transcom was aware of only 2. The committee’s top Republican, Senator Jim Inhofe, called for a “central clearinghouse” to help the contractors report suspicious cyber activities to the government and military.

“These peacetime intrusions into the networks of key defense contractors are more evidence of China’s aggressive actions in cyberspace,” said Senator Carl Levin, the chairperson of the committee. In May, the U.S. accused five Chinese military officials of hacking nuclear, metal, and solar companies. According to Community Health Systems, one of the largest U.S. hospital groups, Chinese hackers attacked and stole personal data of some 4.5 million patients just last month.

For more information, please see:

Reuters – Chinese hacked U.S. military contractors: Senate panel – 18 September 2014

The Wall Street Journal – Chinese Hacked U.S. Military Contractors, Senate Panel Says – 18 September 2014

PCWorld – China says US hacking accusations are ‘totally groundless’ – 18 September 2014

Global Post – China refutes U.S. hacking charges – 18 September 2014

By Hojin Choi

Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

KABUL, Afghanistan – Afghanistan’s Election Commission finally announced Ashraf Ghani as the president-elect. The announcement was made Sunday after Ghani and the runner up, Abdullah Abdullah, signed a power-sharing deal. Ghani’s presidential inauguration will be held on September 29.

The Commission Chief, Ahmad Yousuf Nuristani, stated that “[t]he Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan declared Dr. Asraf Ghani . . . as the president of Afghanistan.” This announcement will end the political chaos following the presidential runoff on June 14. While experiencing nationwide terrorists’ attacks on the day of election, Candidate Abdullah insisted election fraud and vote rigging, and his supporters denied the election result. At the time, millions of ballots were suspected of fraud, and Abdullah’s supporters warned to establish “parallel governments.”

The Election Commission went on to review polling stations and ballot papers under a U.N. audit, but the result was unsuccessful.

“Although the audit was comprehensive . . . [we] could not detect or throw out fraud completely,” said Commission Chief Nuristani. The commission withheld the final election numbers. Nuristani said the commission will announce it later, but did not specify when. He did not take further questions from reporters.

The details of the power-sharing deal were not disclosed to the public. Reportedly, Abdullah will be in a position named “Chief Executive” that is similar to prime minister. They will also share powers over controlling the nation’s institutes and government agencies, including the military forces. The incumbent president, Karzai, made clear that the former government and administration will not be responsible for the deal and that Ghani and Abdullah will have to work on fulfilling the commitment.

The public reaction varied. The Afghan public seems happy for the end of months of political unrest, but some worried with the possible effects of the deal. Afghan resident Sharifullah told Voice of America that he was disappointed because the hardship people suffered through to vote while under the violence of terrorists was wasted. He added the political deal would harm the principle of democracy in Afghanistan.

The U.N. and the U.S. both welcomed the agreement and described it as an important step toward achieving social stability in Afghanistan. TIME reported that the deal is a “victory for U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry,” as he is the one who first got the candidates to agree in principle to the power-sharing arrangement when he visited Afghanistan in July. TIME also said he revisited to seal the deal in August. John Kerry stated that Ghani and Abdullah have “put the people of Afghanistan first, and they have ensured that the first peaceful democratic transition in the history of their country begins with national unity.”

For more information, please see:

TIME – Afghanistan Finally Has a New President – 21 September 2014

BBC – Afghan presidential contenders sign unity deal – 21 September 2014

Voice of America – Ashraf Ghani Named President-elect in Afghanistan – 21 September 2014