Interview: Josh Chin on China’s Surveillance State

by Oliver Young | Sep 23, 2022

The CCP has become synonymous with surveillance. On an increasingly authoritarian trajectory, Xi Jinping has bet his and the Party’s longevity on its ability to not only neutralize challenges to authority but also anticipate them before they arise. Enormous investments in China’s surveillance apparatus over the past few decades, particularly during Xi’s tenure, have given the state an unprecedented level of access to the personal lives of its citizens, thereby unlocking new opportunities for social governance and control. These experiments in state control extend from Beijing to the...

If they sell to you, it’s 'technological imperialism.' If they don’t sell to you, it’s 'technological hegemony.' If they give it away, you suspect they have 'ulterior motives.' If they don’t give it away, it’s a 'technological stranglehold.'”

— Netizen comment under the People's Daily hashtag #U.S.RestrictionsOnSemiconductor
ChipExportsAreTechnologicalHegemony (#美国限制芯片出口是科技霸权主义#)

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Interview: Josh Chin on China’s Surveillance State

Sep 23, 2022

The CCP has become synonymous with surveillance. On an increasingly authoritarian trajectory, Xi Jinping has bet his and the Party’s longevity on its ability to not only neutralize challenges to authority but also anticipate them before they arise. Enormous investments in China’s surveillance apparatus over the past few decades, particularly during Xi’s tenure, have given the state an unprecedented level of access to the personal lives of its citizens, thereby unlocking new opportunities for social governance and control. These experiments in state control extend from Beijing to the...

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Interview: Josh Chin on China’s Surveillance State

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The CCP has become synonymous with surveillance. On an increasingly authoritarian trajectory, Xi Jinping has bet his and the Party’s longevity on its ability to not only neutralize challenges to authority but also anticipate them before they arise. Enormous investments in China’s surveillance apparatus over the past few decades, particularly during Xi’s tenure, have given the state an unprecedented level of access to the personal lives of its citizens, thereby unlocking new opportunities for social governance and control. These experiments in state control extend from Beijing to the...

More Stories

Interview: Josh Chin on China’s Surveillance State

Sep 23, 2022

The CCP has become synonymous with surveillance. On an increasingly authoritarian trajectory, Xi Jinping has bet his and the Party’s longevity on its ability to not only neutralize challenges to authority but also anticipate them before they arise. Enormous investments in China’s surveillance apparatus over the past few decades, particularly during Xi’s tenure, have given the state an unprecedented level of access to the personal lives of its citizens, thereby unlocking new opportunities for social governance and control. These experiments in state control extend from Beijing to the...

More Stories

Hong Kong Police Use Colonial-era Sedition Law to Arrest Man Mourning Colonial Era

Sep 20, 2022

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, Hongkongers have used the subsequent period of mourning to air their emotions in rare public gatherings of political solidarity. The citizens of this former British colony expressed a mix of nostalgia for the past, dissatisfaction with the current leadership, and anger about the steady dismantling of civil rights since the city was returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997. While Hong Kong authorities initially showed restraint towards those gathered, on Monday night outside of the British consulate, police arrested one man for sedition...

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Human Rights

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Interview: Josh Chin on China’s Surveillance State

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The CCP has become synonymous with surveillance. On an increasingly authoritarian trajectory, Xi Jinping has bet his and the Party’s longevity on its ability to not only neutralize challenges to authority but also anticipate them before they arise. Enormous investments in China’s surveillance apparatus over the past few decades, particularly during Xi’s tenure, have given the state an unprecedented level of access to the personal lives of its citizens, thereby unlocking new opportunities for social governance and control. These experiments in state control extend from Beijing to the...

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Hong Kong Police Use Colonial-era Sedition Law to Arrest Man Mourning Colonial Era

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Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, Hongkongers have used the subsequent period of mourning to air their emotions in rare public gatherings of political solidarity. The citizens of this former British colony expressed a mix of nostalgia for the past, dissatisfaction with the current leadership, and anger about the steady dismantling of civil rights since the city was returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997. While Hong Kong authorities initially showed restraint towards those gathered, on Monday night outside of the British consulate, police arrested one man for sedition...

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