Alina Wang
A native of New York, Alina has a Bachelors degree in Corporate Communications from Baruch College and writes about human rights, politics, tech, and society.
Jailed Hong Kong Democracy Activist: Opposing the Communist Party Is Not ‘Anti-China’
Sentenced to 15 months in prison for organizing an “unauthorized” vigil to commemorate the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, Hong Kong activist Chow Hang-tung is now undergoing a separate trial for her role...
China Braces for Bad Harvests as Drought Scours 10 Million Acres of Farmland
Farmers across China are facing reduced harvests due to this year’s scorching heat waves and droughts that have destroyed or damaged 66 million mu (about 10 million acres) of farmland throughout the country. China is...
Chinese Authorities Lock Down 21 Million Residents in Chengdu as ‘Zero-COVID’ Measures Continue
China’s megalopolis of Chengdu, located in the southwestern province of Sichuan, has been placed under lockdown after a new cluster of COVID-19 infections was detected. Authorities announced on Sept. 1 that the city’s 21.2 million...
Taiwan Fires Shots at Mainland Chinese Drones, Warns of Counter-Attack if Territory Violated
Taiwanese forces fired several rounds of warning shots at three drones from Communist China seen flying over its border’s outposts. The incident occurred off the mainland Chinese coastline over the Kinmen island group on Aug....
Chinese Research Group Calls On Beijing to Ease ‘Zero-COVID’ Policies, Citing Worsening Economic Outlook
In a notable move by a Chinese think tank, Anbound Research Center called on the country’s central government to loosen “zero-COVID” restrictions — citing an imminent “economic stall,” should the heavy-handed measures continue. The since-deleted...
Media Tycoon Jimmy Lai to Plead Not Guilty Under Hong Kong National Security Law Despite Threat of Life Imprisonment
The founder of Hong Kong’s now-disbanded media outlet Apple Daily, Jimmy Lai, will be standing trial without a jury after deciding to plead not guilty to national security charges. On Aug. 22, prosecutors said during...
How Chinese Police Persecute Dissidents Under the Guise of ‘Good Health’: NGO Report
According to a report by nongovernmental human rights group Safeguard Defenders, authorities in China have been locking up activists and members of disenfranchised groups in psychiatric facilities as a way to silence them. The report,...
Giant Panda Qin Qin Gives Birth to Twins Amid Continuing Efforts to Save the Species
On Aug. 23, twin pandas were born at a breeding center in southwestern China — welcome news for the rare and much-loved bamboo-eating bear after climate change and loss of habitat had threatened the species’...
Battered by Intense Heat and Drought, China’s Sichuan Province Warns of ‘Particularly Severe’ Electricity Cuts
Since mid-June, large parts of China have been experiencing extreme weather in the form of unprecedented heat waves and droughts. The scorching temperatures have swept through over 85 cities across the country — affecting more...
Chinese ‘White Glove’ Financier Xiao Jianhua Sentenced to 13 Years in Prison for Fraud, Fined $8 Billion
Five years after being nabbed in a Hong Kong hotel, Chinese-Canadian financier Xiao Jianhua has been officially sentenced to 13 years in prison, and ordered to pay a $8.1 billion fine for his role in...
Residents in China’s Guangxi Province Take to the Streets to Protest Draconian ‘Zero-COVID’ Policies
Authorities in a coastal city of southern China’s Guangxi Province have apparently relented in the face of a mass protest orchestrated by residents disgruntled over a month of strict “zero-COVID” restrictions. On Aug. 15, the...
Hundreds of China’s High-Speed Trains Delayed, Sparking Heated Online Discussion
On the evening of Aug. 12, Chinese passengers from different lines posted that the high-speed rail trains they usually commute in were either delayed or completely stopped. According to mainland Chinese media reports, railway stations...