https://www.scmp.com/rss/331012/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/series/3130244/chinas-climate-change-journey?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/series/3130244/chinas-climate-change-journey?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Apr 2021 05:12:24 +0000 The rise of China has been one of the defining stories of the 21st century, and the country has officially become one of the few countries where domestic changes affect the rest of the world. If China stumbles, the whole world will feel a bruise. Which is why this year’s all-important political meeting, called Lianghui or “two sessions,” which wrapped up last week, was aimed at making sure China doesn’t trip on its own shoelaces. “Whether that be dual circulation economic strategy, innovation,... https://www.scmp.com/politics/china-trying-make-policy-moves-wont-shake-world/article/3125682?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/china-trying-make-policy-moves-wont-shake-world/article/3125682?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Mar 2021 12:36:18 +0000 China’s political elite wrapped up their annual parliamentary session on Thursday.  In the centenary year of China’s Communist Party, the leadership sent a clear message that internal stability is paramount, particularly in Hong Kong.  At the end of the National People’s Congress (NPC) session, the national legislature approved the biggest shake-up to Hong Kong’s electoral system, which officials said was to prevent subversion under the city’s national security law.  The nation’s 14th five-year... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3124740/two-sessions-2021-live-updates?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3124740/two-sessions-2021-live-updates?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Mar 2021 07:31:13 +0000 https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/series/3124217/how-chinas-legal-system-has-changed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/series/3124217/how-chinas-legal-system-has-changed?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Mar 2021 06:52:18 +0000 The most important event on China’s political calendar gets under way on Friday morning in a year like no other. In 2021, the country will mark a series of milestones, from the centenary of the Communist Party to the 50th anniversary of the People’s Republic’s return to the United Nations. But eyes will also be on the future, as President Xi Jinping offers his vision of the next three decades, starting with the next five-year plan. Follow our live coverage of the opening of the National People’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3123639/live-chinas-two-sessions-2021?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3123639/live-chinas-two-sessions-2021?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Mar 2021 00:33:58 +0000 https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/series/3122749/two-sessions-2021-whats-agenda?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/series/3122749/two-sessions-2021-whats-agenda?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Feb 2021 05:45:45 +0000 A high-ranking Chinese official has been fired after humiliating a subordinate by slapping him across the face in public. Zhang Zhanwei, the Communist Party chief of Jiyuan city in China’s central Henan province, was sacked on Thursday after the victim’s wife filed a complaint. She said the public shaming caused her husband to have a heart attack, according to the state-owned Xinhua news agency. The complaint letter did not specify why the official had been fired. The incident happened in... https://www.scmp.com/politics/communist-party-official-fired-after-slapping-staff-public/article/3119105?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/communist-party-official-fired-after-slapping-staff-public/article/3119105?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Jan 2021 10:31:03 +0000 On paper, China should loom large in New Zealand’s parliamentary elections later this month. Like its fellow Five Eyes intelligence partner Australia, claims of Chinese interference in politics shook the nation, and it has defied Beijing with its stances on Hong Kong, the Uygurs and the South China Sea.  And like its neighbor across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand relies on China more than any other country for its trade, sending it almost one-third of its exports. But in an election that is widely... https://www.scmp.com/politics/how-new-zealand-managed-not-anger-china/article/3104174?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/how-new-zealand-managed-not-anger-china/article/3104174?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2020 08:47:38 +0000 The Taiwanese authorities have threatened to fine two singers for taking part in a mainland Chinese state media show. Ouyang Nana, a Taiwanese cellist and singer, will join singers from Hong Kong in a performance that will be broadcast on CCTV on Wednesday, ahead of the October 1 anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The gala will also feature Angela Chang, another Taiwanese singer, in a chorus celebrating the contributions of those who helped fight Covid-19. The... https://www.scmp.com/politics/two-taiwanese-musicians-may-get-fined-performing-china/article/3103623?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/two-taiwanese-musicians-may-get-fined-performing-china/article/3103623?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Sep 2020 10:23:34 +0000 Political books about Hong Kong’s democratic movement, gossip about Chinese leaders, and rumors about politics on the Chinese mainland were once readily available at newsstands and convenience stores across the city. But many books considered to be "sensitive" have disappeared from the shelves after Beijing imposed a national security law for Hong Kong in July 2020. The change is a worry for many in Hong Kong, including an independent bookstore owner who fears the new law could eventually have a... https://www.scmp.com/politics/independent-bookstores-struggle-under-national-security-law-hong-kong/article/3099524?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/independent-bookstores-struggle-under-national-security-law-hong-kong/article/3099524?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 31 Aug 2020 12:42:38 +0000 China’s annual parliamentary session wrapped up with the passage of a controversial resolution to craft a national security law for Hong Kong, and a pledge to boost the economy which has been hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. The National People’s Congress – which is usually held in March but was delayed because of the pandemic – concluded with an endorsement by lawmakers of Premier Li Keqiang’s government work report which, for the first time, did not set a GDP growth target. The congress wrapped... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3086446/chinas-premier-li-keqiang-speaks-two-sessions-closes-amid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3086446/chinas-premier-li-keqiang-speaks-two-sessions-closes-amid?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 May 2020 07:46:18 +0000 China’s diplomats are fighting an uphill battle to fend off intensifying criticism from Beijing’s critics of the country’s initial mishandling of the coronavirus pandemic. In recent weeks, some of the country’s most seasoned ambassadors have found themselves engaged in a war of words with their host countries.  But rather than adopting the traditional approach of managing tensions through diplomatic protocols, many of them have risen to the call of Chinese President Xi Jinping and displayed... https://www.scmp.com/politics/chinas-wolf-warrior-diplomacy-may-be-backfiring/article/3081878?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/chinas-wolf-warrior-diplomacy-may-be-backfiring/article/3081878?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2020 11:25:44 +0000 In the days before Taiwan voters go to the polls on January 11, 2020, to select their next president, the South China Morning Post interviewed people on the self-ruled island to learn more about what they hope for and expect from their next political leaders. https://www.scmp.com/politics/taiwan-presidential-election-2020-what-are-taiwanese-hoping/article/3045500?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/taiwan-presidential-election-2020-what-are-taiwanese-hoping/article/3045500?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Jan 2020 10:04:04 +0000 Are we finally seeing Pax Sinica 2.0, or is China engaging in a self-fulfilling prophecy that will lead to its doom (again)? Back in 2013, I wrote that China proffered a valid voice that would help maintain and shape the international order in its current form.  My 2015 book China, State Sovereignty and International Legal Order argued that China’s assertions and exercise of sovereignty should not be taken automatically as signs of aggression, or acts beyond the remit of international law, that... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/can-china-learn-lessons-failed-dynasty/article/3044084?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/can-china-learn-lessons-failed-dynasty/article/3044084?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Dec 2019 09:50:35 +0000 A six-year-old British girl from south London in the UK found a Christmas card with a message allegedly from foreign prisoners in China. The sender of the message claimed that prisoners were being forced to work against their will in the Shanghai Qingpu prison. The holiday card, which is among those sold to raise money for charity, was bought from British supermarket chain Tesco. The retailer said it has halted production at a Chinese factory after the discovery and launched an investigation... https://www.scmp.com/society/uk-girl-finds-note-alleged-chinese-prisoner-inside-charity-christmas-card/article/3043391?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/society/uk-girl-finds-note-alleged-chinese-prisoner-inside-charity-christmas-card/article/3043391?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Dec 2019 10:45:54 +0000 As Beijing steps up its defense of its mass internment measures targeting Muslims in China’s far west, one key target of its messaging campaign remains decidedly unconvinced: the US Congress. On Monday, representatives of the regional government in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region said that all “trainees” in what China calls vocational training centers have “graduated” and found stable employment. Foreign governments and international human rights watchdogs remain skeptical of China’s... https://www.scmp.com/politics/china-struggling-convince-us-lawmakers-its-policy-towards-uyghers-xinjiang-justified/article/3041753?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/china-struggling-convince-us-lawmakers-its-policy-towards-uyghers-xinjiang-justified/article/3041753?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Dec 2019 10:15:50 +0000 China’s Xinjiang autonomous region has attracted international attention for all the wrong reasons – police crackdowns and reports that local ethnic Uygur people are being held in internment camps.  What hasn’t gained much attention is the difficulty Beijing has drafting staff to execute its policies in the far northwest area. The measures targeting Muslim ethnic minorities in Xinjiang have triggered “widespread discontent among Han Chinese officials and citizens,” a source close to the central... https://www.scmp.com/politics/beijing-struggling-recruit-and-retain-han-chinese-execute-controversial-xinjiang-policies/article/3040741?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/beijing-struggling-recruit-and-retain-han-chinese-execute-controversial-xinjiang-policies/article/3040741?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Dec 2019 10:39:55 +0000 Months of anti-government protests in Hong Kong have made headlines around the world. While images and stories have struck a chord with people overseas, some have been inspired to fly thousands of miles to Hong Kong to take part in demonstrations.  The South China Morning Post met two Americans who said they felt compelled to come to the city to participate in the movement as US lawmakers considered – and later passed – legislation aimed at ensuring the “sufficient autonomy” of Hong Kong from... https://www.scmp.com/china/foreign-protesters-hong-kong-protests/article/3038868?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/china/foreign-protesters-hong-kong-protests/article/3038868?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Nov 2019 10:04:09 +0000 Simon Cheng, a former trade officer at the British consulate in Hong Kong, said that he was tortured during his 15-day detention in Shenzhen, China. According to Cheng, he was interrogated for days, shackled, blindfolded, beaten and locked up alone. He said he was pressed for information about the pro-democracy protests and whether the UK has a hand in the Hong Kong’s civil unrest. https://www.scmp.com/china/ex-uk-consulate-worker-simon-cheng-tortured-china/article/3038707?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/china/ex-uk-consulate-worker-simon-cheng-tortured-china/article/3038707?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Nov 2019 10:39:08 +0000 The US Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that could put diplomatic and economic pressure on the Hong Kong and Beijing governments over what American lawmakers said were human rights abuses.  While not yet law, the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act could alter the relationships between Washington, Beijing and Hong Kong. What does the act do? The bill’s sponsor, Florida Republican Marco Rubio, said it would hold accountable officials for Hong Kong’s “eroding autonomy and human rights... https://www.scmp.com/politics/hong-kong-human-rights-and-democracy-act-passed-senate-likely-land-trumps-desk/article/3038613?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/hong-kong-human-rights-and-democracy-act-passed-senate-likely-land-trumps-desk/article/3038613?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Nov 2019 10:36:50 +0000 Maya Boehm, an American exchange student at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), has her bags packed to fly home at a moment’s notice.  On Tuesday, St Edward’s University in Austin, Texas, told the 20-year-old that she and her classmates had been summoned home to “ensure the continued safety and security of our students” after chaotic clashes the previous night between anti-government protesters and police on the campus. The religious studies major has not been given an exact timetable... https://www.scmp.com/politics/hong-kong-international-students-torn-between-staying-or-leaving/article/3037691?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/politics/hong-kong-international-students-torn-between-staying-or-leaving/article/3037691?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Nov 2019 11:05:33 +0000