William Yang Profile picture
Oct 2, 2020 8 tweets 3 min read Read on X
5 weeks after their initial detention, the case of the 12 #HK people detained in Shenzhen is becoming a clear example of how #China's criminal justice system operates. What the families are going through is the reality facing millions Chinese families.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep…
The family of Chinese dissidents often have to wait for months to years until some information about their family members begins to emerge. Lawyers hired by their families are often harassed or sometimes even debarred for taking on the case. In the end, they have no choice ...
... but to let a government-appointed attorney to take over the case. Some recent examples include Chen Mei and Cai Wei from the #Terminus2049 case. (@tansunit).
The biggest difference in the case of the 12 #HongKong people is that they are used to a judicial system that operates by the law but now, they are tried in a system where the real rule of law is vague and murky.
Lots of things will happen during the lengthy extrajudicial detention period, where defendants could be detained at a designated location by himself/herself for up to six months and during that time, the police can interrogate them whenever they want.
Forced confession on television is a known tactic that the Chinese judicial system uses to justify a court ruling. The process leading to a trial can be lengthy, as in the case of Chinese human rights lawyer @yuwensheng, it took him 1000 days to finally be handed a sentence.
Some high-profile trials will never be public and family members will never be informed about the time of the trial. Yu's wife @xuyan709 only learned about the result of the trial after it was conducted secretly. She never received any official documents that explained ...
... her husband's jail sentence. That's how the Chinese legal system works, which is the complete opposite of what #HongKong's legal system normally is.

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More from @WilliamYang120

Dec 24, 2025
The Chinese military has simulated battles near Mexico and Cuba during a wargaming exercise – a rare insight revealed in a report on state television.

amp.scmp.com/news/china/mil…
Cuba, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, along with the Sea of Okhotsk and Taiwan, were among the locations of conflict scenarios visible on screens in a CCTV report on Friday showing People’s Liberation Army wargaming exercises.
Despite closer economic ties with countries in the region, China has a minimal military presence in Latin America. But the fact that the PLA is modelling potential conflicts there suggests a shift in the Chinese military’s global ambitions.
Read 8 tweets
Jun 24, 2025
China will stage a military parade to commemorate the end of World War II – only the second time the event has been held – as conflicts rage around the world, including the latest between Iran and Israel.

amp.scmp.com/news/china/mil…
It will take place in Tiananmen Square in Beijing on September 3, a decade after the People’s Liberation Army first held a Victory Day parade.
The parade will be part of a ceremony for the 80th anniversary of the day that China marks its triumph over the Japanese invasion and the global victory against fascism, Hu Heping, deputy head of the Communist Party’s publicity department, told reporters on Tuesday.
Read 7 tweets
Apr 15, 2025
Washington is exploring a new weapon in President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war: throwing Chinese companies off American stock exchanges.

politico.com/news/2025/04/1…
As the White House doubles down on massive tariffs on China in its bid to reorder global trade, administration officials and the president’s supporters are leaning further into the prospect of delisting the nearly 300 Chinese companies that trade on U.S. exchanges.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said “everything’s on the table,” when asked about it last week. Kevin O’Leary of “Shark Tank” and a vocal Trump ally argued that it would help pressure China “to come to the table” on negotiations.
Read 19 tweets
Mar 16, 2025
I, along with more than 1000 colleagues at @VOANews, were forced to put on leave indefinitely yesterday. While we have been bracing for this to happen, the suddenness of this development was still shocking to all of us.
The development puts the future of this 83-year-old institution in serious doubt, and it also seriously hurts U.S. soft-power and influence worldwide. This is a development that will be welcomed by countries such as China and Russia.
While there are certainly areas that require serious reform at VOA and all the media agencies affiliated with USAGM, the way that "reform" had been carried out is simply dismantling an entire ecosystem that serves important purposes of providing uncensored information ...
Read 10 tweets
Feb 22, 2025
A day after China warned its three military ships would be live weapons testing between New Zealand and Australia, the Cook Islands has today released a controversial agreement indicating #Beijing has secured a maritime presence there.

1news.co.nz/2025/02/22/chi…
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Deepening Blue Economy Cooperation shows a raft of partnerships including building ports and ships, many of which will be problematic from New Zealand's security perspective.
The MoU, signed in Harbin, northern China on February 14, lays out investment cooperation in port wharves, shipbuilding and ship repair, ocean transportation, and deep-sea fishing bases.
Read 8 tweets
Jan 11, 2025
Chinese hackers breached the US government office that reviews foreign investments for national security risks, three US officials familiar with the matter told CNN.

amp.cnn.com/cnn/2025/01/10…
The theft, which has not previously been reported, underscores Beijing’s keen interest in spying on a US government office that has broad powers to block Chinese investment in the US as tensions between the world’s two superpowers remain high.
The breach was part of a broader incursion by the hackers into the Treasury Department’s unclassified system.
Read 6 tweets

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