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Sensitive Words: Xi to Ascend His Throne (Updated)
Sensitive Words highlights keywords that are blocked from Sina Weibo search results. CDT independently tests the keywords before posting them, but some searches later become accessible again. We...
View ArticleFrom “Collective Autocracy” to “One-Man Rule”
Following news of proposed amendments to China’s national Constitution including removal of the two-term limit for the head of state, thereby opening the door for Xi Jinping to hold the title of...
View ArticleTranslation: “If I Don’t Speak, I’ll Spend My Life in Shame”
On February 25, state media announced proposed amendments to the national Constitution, among them a change to section 3 of article 79 that would eradicate term limits for the president and...
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Lawyers Warned Against Speaking Out on Amendments
After news came last weekend of a proposed constitutional amendment that could allow Xi Jinping to retain the state presidency for life, authorities have made significant effort to stifle critical...
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Phrase of the Week: Steamed Bun Betrays Constitution
The Word of the Week comes from the Grass-Mud Horse Lexicon, a glossary of terms created by Chinese netizens and encountered in online political discussions. These are the words of China’s online...
View ArticleTerm Limit Abolition Sees Support & Dissent
At the ongoing annual “Two Sessions” meetings of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and National People’s Congress, the most widely anticipated move will come next Sunday when the...
View ArticleNPC Votes to Extend Xi’s Rule Indefinitely
On Sunday, China’s parliament overwhelmingly approved a series of constitutional amendments that, among other changes, abolish the current two five-year term limits for the presidency and...
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What’s in an Eye-roll?
When Liang Xiangyi’s vigorous eye-roll at a fellow reporter’s rambling, obsequious, and apparently scripted question was captured in a live broadcast from a press conference at this month’s Two...
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Word of the Week: To Drive Backwards
The Word of the Week comes from the Grass-Mud Horse Lexicon, a glossary of terms created by Chinese netizens and encountered in online political discussions. These are the words of China’s online...
View ArticleOnline Reactions to Cuba’s Constitutional Reforms
On July 15, socialist country Cuba announced revisions to its Soviet-era constitution. Its chief reforms include officially recognizing private property and creating a prime minister position that...
View ArticleTranslation: Zhang Qianfan on Academic Censorship
Xi Jinping has long put focus on ideological work in China’s universities and colleges, calling for them to be communist “strongholds that adhere to Party leadership,” and tightening oversight on the...
View ArticleTsinghua University Removes Xi Critic Xu Zhangrun
At The Financial Times, Christian Shepherd reports the removal from teaching duties of Tsinghua law professor Xu Zhangrun in apparent retaliation for his vocal criticism of Xi Jinping’s leadership....
View ArticleScholars React to Xi Critic’s Tsinghua Suspension
On Monday, law professor Xu Zhangrun was suspended from teaching and other roles at Tsinghua University in apparent response to a series of politically critical essays. In the most prominent piece, Xu...
View ArticleLiberal Beijing-based Institute Announces Closure
This week, the Beijing-based Unirule Institute of Economics announced that it would close after years of official pressure including the deletion of social media accounts and an eviction last summer...
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Hong Kong Autonomy Further Eroded Under Cover of Pandemic
On Monday, the Hong Kong government announced a 14-day extension on disease control restrictions including a ban on public gatherings of more than four people. The extension is backed by medical...
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