China
The Chinese government is the world’s leading jailer of writers and public intellectuals. Writers, journalists, bloggers, and creative artists face censorship, harassment, imprisonment, and enforced disappearance because of their writing or creative expression.
The extensive crackdown on freedom of expression includes the crushing of civil and political rights in Hong Kong and attempts to erase the culture and language of Mongolians, Uyghurs, Tibetans, and other ethnic minorities living in China and its autonomous regions, elevating to potential crimes against humanity in Xinjiang.
What You Need to Know
More than 100 writers are currently behind bars on politicized charges in China. The majority were jailed for online expression that was critical of official policies or expressed pro-democracy viewpoints.
China’s technological and legal infrastructure enables the government to censor, monitor, and control all digital information that flows within, and into and out of the country, especially in autonomous regions.
The Chinese government has expanded its censorship apparatus overseas to try and limit expression about China beyond its borders, engaging in transnational repression against exiles and the diaspora.
News
Individual Cases
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Status: Under Threat
Wangchuk, an online commentator, has publicly advocated for Tibetan language rights, drawing persecution from the state. In 2016, he was secretly detained and held incommunicado for two months. Sentenced to five years in prison for “inciting separatism,” he was conditionally…
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Status: Deceased
Leading dissident writer Zhang spent two years in a labor camp in the late ’90s. He was imprisoned again in September 2006 for his critical writings and was denied medical treatment until his release in June 2010. Zhang, a regular…
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Status: Imprisoned
Mamut, a prominent Uyghur poet and journalist who had worked with Uyghur-run cultural publications for over four decades, disappeared in 2017 after visiting his exiled son in the United States. Authorities told Mamut’s son that he had been taken to…
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Status: Imprisoned
Poet Zhang was taken into police custody in May 2020 and charged with “inciting subversion of state power” a month later; authorities cited a video where he called for Xi Jinping to step down. In July 2022, after nine months…
Reports & Research
Addressing Beijing’s assault on free expression and defending human rights standards globally is a key priority.
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“Save Our Mother Tongue”
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Writing on the Wall
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Made in Hollywood, Censored by Beijing
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Forbidden Feeds
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Splintered Speech
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Darkened Screen
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Censorship and Conscience
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Threatened Harbor
PEN America Experts
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Erika Nguyen
Erika Nguyen is a senior manager in the PEN/Barbey Freedom…