China

While Xi Jinping visits Washington (where the issue of human rights remains taboo), Chinese authorities informed the family of Shi Tingfu that he had died in prison from a “heart attack”.  The long-time activist had been detained in 2024 for reporting on protests by a group of farmers. For the CHRD, the denial of medical care constitutes a form of torture in China today.

With the Bothekoshi Valley impassable, the only open trade route with China now runs through the Korala Pass at an altitude of 4,650 metres. Beijing is pushing for major infrastructure projects there as well. Until now, Kathmandu has preserved the environment and identity of the plateau, a region some identify with the mythical Shangri-La.

In 2026 – for the first time – the United States did not admit a single asylum seeker from countries at risk of persecution. From Iran to Myanmar to China, violence against Christians continues: according to Open Doors, 4,849 have been killed, whilst more than 224,000 have been forced to flee their homes.

Qin Weizhong, 55, had led the metropolis, a symbol of China's tech race, since 2021. His surprise departure comes just weeks before the APEC summit in Shenzhen. The expulsion of two high-ranking military officials from the Party has also been confirmed. The Central Committee is set to meet on 26–29 October to discuss strict self-governance.

The American bishop, a pioneer of television preaching who is to be beatified on 24 September, visited China in 1948, where he also met Chiang Kai-shek. He often cited ‘young Li’ as a model of devotion to the Eucharist. Through the magazine *Worldmission*, he recounted the communist persecutions but, even more so, the great faith of Chinese Catholics.

More than the deposits themselves, the expertise acquired in mining institutes has ensured China's control over a large share of global production, a disadvantage the West will need years to overcome. To counter the lucrative wages offered by US companies, Beijing is pre-emptively withholding passports from qualified personnel.

In the Chinese education system, having an independent mind is a disqualifying factor from the outset and is subject to criticism from teachers and parents. It is no coincidence that the teaching method is mnemonic. And – as an AsiaNews source explains in this account – this is the broader context in which the growing bans on minors entering churches must also be understood.

Introduced to the commercial market in 2018, ‘cloning’ represents the most extreme form of humanisation in the country’s pet economy. By 2025, spending on dogs and cats had reached 312.6 billion yuan, whilst Chinese companies are increasingly focusing on developing their own brands and conquering foreign markets.

The summit that yesterday in New Delhi brought together 11 countries that are in open conflict with one another on many issues. The final declaration is a 140-point document that makes no mention of Ukraine or Washington, nor does it propose a common currency. Beneath the surface, the divisions between India and China remain irreconcilable.

"4 Rivers 6 Ranges" hits theatres today. The work of a director born to Tibetan exiles in Darjeeling, the film relates the story of the Dalai Lama’s flight to India in the 1950s, seeking to link the theme of the diaspora to the evolution of India's policies. Chinese state television has accused the film of being separatist propaganda.

Lawyer Chow Hang-tung and trade unionist Lee Chueuk-yan received the harshest sentences. Five years and two months for former MP Albert Ho. They were charged with “incitement to subversion” for calling for a democratic system. All books and documents relating to the 4 June 1989 massacre in Beijing were also seized.

A flight attendant of Chinese descent, she was the first to raise the alarm from the first aeroplane to hit the Twin Towers. Today, the leisure centre where she used to play as a child bears her name, and a foundation set up by her family supports children and the elderly. Her memory is intertwined with that of San Francisco’s Chinese-American community.