HRIC Weekly Brief
December 2, 2025
Top News 头条
The Tai Po tragedy of November 26, 2025, one of the deadliest fires in Hong Kong in decades, has claimed at least 156 lives to date. However, instead of responding to demands for government accountability, Hong Kong authorities have suppressed peaceful criticism and grassroots initiatives, cracked down on calls for accountability and arrested individuals under the pretext of national security. Miles Kwan Ching-fung, a university student who started an online petition calling for an independent investigation, was reportedly detained and arrested on suspicion of “seditious intention.” Subsequently, national security police took away two people, including the former district councilor Kenneth Cheung Kam-hung, on suspicion of “inciting hatred against the government.” Hong Kong Security Bureau chief, Chris Tang Ping-Keung, has accused people of spreading misinformation and characterized such acts as “destabilizing Hong Kong” while the Office for Safeguarding National Security, has warned “anti-China disruptors” that they will face the “full force” of the security law for seeking to “incite resentment” against the government.
This tragedy came almost exactly three years after at least ten Urumqi residents died in a fire they were unable to escape due to “Zero COVID” lockdowns. These two tragedies, separated by three years, are eerily similar in their disregard for people’s safety, unwillingness to accept responsibility, and obstruction of public accountability. HRIC and other groups gathered in the Bay Area to commemorate those lost and remember the White Paper Movement, while other diaspora groups held events and protests around the world. In China, many were detained leading up to the anniversary, as participants still face repression for their involvement in the movement years later.
HRIC has issued a survey calling on young people to share their perspectives on the White Paper Movement—if you were in primary or secondary school in 2022, please consider filling it out here.
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Thank you for reading! On to the brief:
Law & Policy 法律与政策
NPC Calendar: December 2025: The 14th National People’s Congress Standing Committee is expected to convene for its nineteenth session in late December. The session is expected to review several bills, including the draft Law on National Development Plans.
Quicktake: Large Online Platform Rules: New draft provisions propose special Personal Information Protection requirements for Large Online Platforms (LOPs) established or operating in China, which increases security requirements and responsibility for LOPs, treating protection of personal information as equivalent to a national security threat.
Cyber Security & Digital Rights 网络安全与数字权利
CrowdStrike Research: Security Flaws in DeepSeek-Generated Code Linked to Political Triggers: New research finds that DeepSeek produces more insecure code when prompts mention subjects considered sensitive to the Chinese Communist Party, including geopolitical triggers like Tibet or Uyghurs. DeepSeek may also refuse, saying “I’m sorry, but I can’t assist with that request.”
Words of the Week: WeChat Account “New New New Silence” and China’s Online “Reincarnation Party”: Prolific WeChat account Silent Observer’s latest revival confirms its informal membership of Chinese social media’s “Reincarnation Party,” a collective name for those posting under new social media accounts after their prior accounts have been banned by platform censors.
CDT’s “404 Deleted Content Archive” Summary for October 2025, Part Two: Topics targeted for deletion in October included: official opacity in the wake of two lethal accidents; crop failures due to heavy autumn rains in Henan; and the impending closure (later cancelled) of You Xing Bookstore in Chengdu, Sichuan.
Diaspora Community & Transnational Repression 海外社群和跨国镇压
Journalist Yücel Tanay Sentenced to Nearly Two Years in Prison Due to Complaint by Pro-China Elements: Yücel Tanay, a Turkish journalist and Uyghur rights advocate, has been sentenced to 20 months in prison by a Turkish court for “insult” due to a complaint filed against an article he wrote criticizing pro-China Uyghurs.
Tibet activist at UN Forum exposes China’s colonial boarding schools, urges immediate shutdown: Dr Tenzin Dorjee, Senior Researcher and Strategist at Tibet Action Institute, spoke at the United Nations’ 18th Forum on Minority Issues. He asserted that the Tibetans are not a minority, they have merely been “minoritized.”
Related: China Attempts to Silence Tibetan Representative at UN Minority Forum. Dr Tenzin Dorjee was repeatedly interrupted by the Chinese representatives. The Chinese delegation interrupted twice, requesting that the Chair immediately halt Dr Dorjee’s statement.
India protests China’s ‘arbitrary detention’ of citizen at Shanghai airport: Pem Wang Thongdok, an Indian citizen, was stopped by Chinese authorities during a layover in Shanghai and held at the airport for 18 hours while en route to Japan on November 21. She was told her passport was invalid because her birthplace, the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, is considered by the Chinese government to be Chinese territory.
Interview | Gilbert, a Hong Kong resident whose political asylum was hastily rejected due to tightened refugee policies, suffers from fear and insomnia: Hong Kong organizations in the U.K. have noted an unusually expedited, even hasty, processing of political asylum applications by the Home Office, leaving some applicants without time to prepare documents or seek legal representation.
Human Rights Defenders & Civil Society 人权捍卫者与公民社会
Trial Transcript of General Xu Qinxian, Former Commander in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, Who Refused to Comply with Martial Law Order During 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests: On November 25, a 6-hour-long video that had never been publicly disclosed before—the complete trial process of Major General Xu Qinxian in a military court—was released online for the first time. Xu Qinxian, then commander of the 38th Army, was removed from his position for refusing to lead the 38th Army into Beijing to enforce martial law and opposing the use of force to suppress students, and was subsequently sentenced to five years in prison. Zhou Fengsuo, executive director of Human Rights in China, pointed out that this not only reflects General Xu Qianxian’s moral courage but also, for the first time, uses firsthand video footage to confirm the existence of anti-martial law sentiments within the military, corroborating the historical fact that a large number of Beijing soldiers did not support the use of force to clear Tiananmen Square that year, and revealing the truth that has been deliberately concealed in the official narrative: even within the military, orders to massacre students had faced significant resistance.
HRIC on Twitter/X: Independent writer, journalist, producer Du Bin has been detained at the Shunyi Detention Center in Beijing for over a month. He was accused of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” for documenting China’s grassroots society and vulnerable groups.
HRIC on Twitter/X: Jiang Zuguo, who has been unlawfully detained in a Beijing detention center since December 2021 for scattering materials to report issues, is in critical condition from suffering a stroke and has been prevented from receiving treatment.
Protests erupt in China’s Guizhou province over cremation mandate: Protests in the town of Shidong started over the weekend in response to a directive from local authorities that people should be cremated rather than buried after their death. This is the latest in a string of rural demonstrations that have seen incidents of unrest increase substantially compared with last year.
UA CHN 21/2025: A group of UN Special Rapporteurs issued a letter to the Chinese government to express their urgent concerns over the arbitrary extension of the prison sentence of Tibetan human rights defender A-Nya Sengdra.
Tibetan political prisoner Dorje Tashi was attacked again in prison, with prison authorities tacitly condoning and refusing family visits: Prominent Tibetan entrepreneur and political prisoner Dorje Tashi has been violently attacked again in prison. His lawyer had a brief conversation with him on October 30, the first time in six years, through the prison’s internal communication system.
Teacher Li (@whyyoutouzhele) on Twitter/X: A fireworks shop owner, Peng Haiyong, detonated his own store and then drank pesticide in his car to commit suicide. His suicide note stated that local government personnel, the street office secretary, and others had repeatedly demanded fireworks and gifts under various pretexts, taken goods without paying, and even demanded money.
Hong Kong to ban two organizations for alleged subversive activities: The Hong Kong Secretary for Security said the two organizations, the Hong Kong Parliament and the Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union, aim to subvert state power by promoting “self-determination” for the territory and drafting a “Hong Kong Constitution.”
29 arrested over alleged attempts to sabotage ‘patriots only’ legislative polls, Hong Kong security chief says: Most cases were alleged criminal damage to posters promoting the legislative polls, as well as alleged vandalism of election posters and other promotional materials.
Hong Kong police arrest 2 over ‘seditious’ posts shared on pancake shop’s social media account: A 32-year-old man and a 27-year-old woman were apprehended under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, also known as “Article 23,” and were also arrested on suspicion of “assisting offenders” and “possession of dangerous drugs.”
‘Patriotic organisation’ demands halt to merch sale for axed LGBTQ play, files nat. security reports: A letter by the organization stated: “May we ask whether your company intends to continue opposing government actions and spreading anti-government sentiment? We request that you immediately cease the production and sale of merchandise related to We Are Gay and stop promoting ‘soft resistance.’”
Hong Kong authorities banned sale of sign language T-shirt at Pride event, LGBTQ group says: Allegedly, the T-shirt design resembled a hand gesture for “five demands, not one less,” a popular slogan during the 2019 protests and unrest, referring to protesters’ calls for the government to scrap a controversial extradition bill.
China’s Reach & Internal Control 中国: 内控与外扩
RFA and VOA forced to withdraw, China expands Tibetan-language broadcasting to fill the information vacuum and strengthen official narrative: State media outlet China National Radio has since rapidly expanded its Tibetan and Uyghur broadcasts to strengthen its information dominance in Xinjiang and Tibet, filling existing information gaps with official Chinese narratives and thus exerting a deeper influence on listeners’ opinions and perceptions.
How UFLPA Risks from Xinjiang Flow into Major Automakers’ Car Seats: Red-flag textiles could be flowing through Boqi, a China-based automobile interior furnishings company, into the cars of its global customers, potentially violating the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
Chinese Authorities Burn Religious Prayer Flags Under Pretext of Fire Hazard Concerns: The Chinese government continues to tighten restrictions on traditional Tibetan religious practices, and customs and officials of the environmental and fire safety departments in Chik Dril County, Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, alleged that Mani prayer flags pose a heightened risk of fire damage in the dry winter season.
China warns foreign interference in Taiwan will be ‘crushed’: China has warned it will “crush” any foreign attempts to interfere on behalf of Taiwan, after Japan’s announcement of the planned deployment of missiles on a nearby Japanese island.
Related: China’s pressure on Japan is a familiar tactic that could last for some time.
International Responses 国际反应
Missouri seeks federal help in pressing China for $25 billion in COVID damages: The U.S. state of Missouri is asking the U.S. State Department to formally notify China that the state intends to pursue assets with full or partial Chinese government ownership to satisfy the $25 billion court judgment related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
US lawmakers urge tougher stance on Tibet, float deadline for recognising Tibet’s independence: U.S. lawmakers held a congressional hearing on Friday titled “China’s War on Religion: The Threat to Religious Freedom and Why it Matters to the United States.”
Global religious freedom body reaffirms Tibetan right to choose their next Dalai Lama: The fifth anniversary conference of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance, held over November 12-13 in the Czech Republic, concluded with a declaration that included a reaffirmation of the Tibetan Buddhist community’s right to select the successor of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama without state interference.
Kazakhstan Arrests Activists Who Documented East Turkistan Camps: Kazakhstan has detained 16 members of the Atajurt Kazakh Human Rights organization following a protest at the Dulata border crossing. The organization has collected over 10,000 video testimonies from survivors and relatives of detainees in Xinjiang’s concentration camps and was the first group to expose the Chinese Communist Party’s human rights abuses in the region, facing years of harassment, fines, and detentions for their documentation efforts.