Freedom of Expression
This CECC hearing will examine Chinese authorities’ treatment of democracy, human rights, and anticorruption advocates in 1989 and 2015, and ask if China under Xi Jinping has made progress toward respecting the universal freedoms of speech, assembly, and association—the very principles which animated the 1989 Tiananmen protests 26 years ago. It will also explore the continuing efforts of individuals in Tiananmen and subsequent generations to further these ideals and to secure those universal freedoms.
On July 8, 2014, China’s State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) publicly released Measures on Managing Information Obtained by Press Personnel Through Professional Conduct (Measures).[1] The Measures, dated June 30, 2014, provide new rules for journalists on sharing information both online and with foreign media. News organizations are also required to strengthen the supervision of information sharing by their employees. Key provisions are outlined below.
Restrictions on Sharing Information
News organizations shall:
Congressional-Executive Commission on China | www.cecc.gov
October 1, 2014
(Washington DC)—The Chairman and Cochairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) condemn the September 23 conviction and life imprisonment of Uyghur scholar and rights advocate Ilham Tohti and call for his unconditional release.
Congressional-Executive Commission on China | www.cecc.gov
July 21, 2014
(Washington DC)—Given the 15th anniversary of the crackdown on the Falun Gong in China, the Chairman and Cochairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) today urged the Chinese government to end its campaign of suppression against Falun Gong practitioners.
In 1989 citizens from all walks of life participated in demonstrations in Beijing's Tiananmen Square and throughout China calling for political reform, respect for universal freedoms of speech, assembly, and association, and an end to government corruption. The government's violent suppression of the protests in June of that year had far-reaching ramifications for both the development of human rights and the rule of law in China and U.S.-China relations. In the years since, Chinese authorities have censored public discussions of Tiananmen and prevented a public accounting of what happened. At the same time, Chinese citizens continue to advocate for human rights, democracy, and an end to corruption.
Chinese officials have cracked down on independent rights advocacy, detaining large numbers of individuals for peacefully advocating on issues ranging from combating official corruption and protecting the rights of ethnic minorities to ensuring educational equality for migrant children and seeking greater freedom of the press. Those detained include Ilham Tohti, a scholar and an advocate for the Uyghur ethnic minority, who sought to build bridges between Uyghurs and the majority Han population. They also include individuals from the New Citizens’ Movement, who have called for social justice, rule of law, and citizen rights.
Artist and Poet Liu Xia Reportedly Hospitalized, Then Discharged
Congressional-Executive Commission on China
www.cecc.gov
CECC Contact: 202–226–3766
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
WASHINGTON, D.C. – CECC Chairman Senator Sherrod Brown and Cochairman Representative Christopher Smith today urged the Chinese government to end the unlawful home confinement of Liu Xia, the wife of imprisoned 2010 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, and to respect her internationally-recognized right to freedom of movement.