China courts embrace social media

| Oct 1, 2013

China courts embrace social media

China’s notoriously opaque courts have suddenly embraced social media to provide a window into their proceedings, to boost a skeptical public’s confidence in the country’s Communist Party-controlled legal system. Nearly 1,000 Chinese courts have set up microblog accounts. One in central China released a ...

Parts of fallen star's legacy may yet survive

Sep 23, 2013

Parts of fallen star's legacy may yet survive

Ousted Chinese politician Bo Xilai’s prospects of an eventual comeback evaporated Sunday after he was sentenced to life in prison and permanently deprived of all political rights, but aspects of his legacy may live on, experts said. The charismatic former Politburo member surprised many ...

| Sep 23, 2013

Bo trial shows obedience, not corruption, is party's goal

The conviction of disgraced top politician Bo Xilai was less about eradicating ubiquitous corruption in China and more about warning Communist Party cadres to stay loyal to the new leadership or suffer the consequences, observers say. President Xi Jinping, who took office earlier this ...

Aging activist inspires younger generation with doggedness

Sep 17, 2013

Aging activist inspires younger generation with doggedness

When Chinese police beat elderly former professor Sun Wenguang so badly they broke four ribs, it was just part of the price he has paid for a lifetime defying authority. The white-haired, soft-spoken Sun first went to prison nearly 50 years ago and is ...

Activist Chinese billionaire detained

| Sep 16, 2013

Activist Chinese billionaire detained

Last month, Chinese police invited Wang Gongquan in for a “cup of tea,” often a prelude to detention. He had launched a public petition calling for the release of arrested dissident Xu Zhiyong, and the authorities were not amused. But Wang effectively told the ...

China rail scandal nets new suspect

Sep 9, 2013

China rail scandal nets new suspect

A businesswoman linked to China’s disgraced Railway Minister Liu Zhijun faces charges of illegal business activities worth 180 billion yuan ($29 billion), state-run media said Monday, indicating far vaster industry corruption than previously revealed. Ding Shumiao will face trial in Beijing for bribery and ...

Aug 28, 2013

Chinese general's son on trial for gang rape

The son of a Chinese general went on trial Wednesday over his involvement in an alleged gang rape, state media said, in a case that sparked public outrage. Li Tianyi is among five men who allegedly gang-raped a woman in a Beijing hotel in ...

Aug 27, 2013

Briton arrested after admitting illegally gathering private data about Chinese

China’s Public Security Ministry said the British founder of a consultancy serving multinational companies confessed to illegally obtaining and selling private data on Chinese citizens. Peter Humphrey, founder of ChinaWhys, and his wife, Yingzeng Yu, a U.S. citizen, have “expressed extreme regret for their ...

Bo tears into witness in new twist during graft trial

Aug 24, 2013

Bo tears into witness in new twist during graft trial

Fallen Chinese politician Bo Xilai launched a scathing attack Saturday on a key witness in his corruption trial, saying even the stupidest official knows not to discuss bribery where he can be overheard. During the trial, Bo admitted “some responsibility” for 5 million yuan ...

Aug 20, 2013

Official who cast doubt on murder quits

A Chinese forensic expert who questioned the murder conviction of top politician Bo Xilai’s wife has resigned one of her positions, state media said Monday, just as Bo’s trial date was announced. Wang Xuemei — who openly doubted the ruling communist authorities’ account of ...