CYIL vol. 13 (2022)

MAX HILAIRE CYIL 13 ȍ2022Ȏ whom dear to challenge the authority of the CCP risks imprisonment, usually for corruption or politically motivated crimes. The same for those who accuse the regime of corruption or nepotism. China has the highest number of lawyers in jail for speaking out against the regime or for suing the state on behalf of victims of government land grabs or marketing tainted baby formula which led to the death of scores of children. 118 The independence of the Chinese judiciary has been equally compromised. Individuals arrested, sometimes falsely, are forced to sign confessions of admissibility. Anyone charged with a crime in China is presumed guilty and is always convicted. China’s human rights policy has come under intense international scrutiny as the regime cracks down on dissent and tries to silence its opponents. China has used its economic might and its huge domestic market to force foreign corporations wishing to do business in the country to accept its restricted human rights policy. China forced Yahoo to reveal the names of Chinese human rights activists, who were later convicted and given long prison sentences for sending out human rights information via its server. 119 Yahoo later apologized and paid compensation to the victims’ families after it was criticized by the US Congress for its action. China has also forced Google and Apple to accept its regime of content restriction and censorship if they want to operate in the huge and growing Chinese market. China has not allowed Facebook to operate on its territory. China’s great firewall blocks certain words, and news items on its websites, and prevents Chinese internet users from accessing certain information. China is using access to its huge consumer market as leverage to force foreign companies to conform to its repressive domestic policies. 120 Similarly, China has used its financial resources as a strategy against developing countries that receive financial assistance or loans from it. In exchange for financial assistance or loans, China expects recipient countries to vote with it to block any public criticism of its human rights policy. It has corrupted many developing countries that are desperate for financial assistance, which China pretends it is providing on very generous terms. China’s loans and financial assistance to developing countries are cloaked in secrecy and do not allow for outside scrutiny. These loans give China tremendous influence over these countries’ internal affairs. China’s influence is likely to grow as the ratio of debt to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of these countries continues to exceed their capacity to pay. 121 Sri Lanka’s inability to repay its debt to China led to Chinese control of the country’s major port. Seychelles has also ceded some of its territories to China in exchange for the unpaid debt owed to China. China has threatened to seize control of Uganda’s airport for its failure to service its debt owed to China. China has invested heavily in Latin America, Central Asia, and parts of Europe, which leaves many of these countries vulnerable to Chinese ownership of their resources or infrastructure. Chinese investment in U.S. Treasury bonds, which is critical for the US to balance its deficit, 118 Chinese Lawyer Who Exposed Baby Milk Scandal Jailed for Subversion , at https://www.the guardian.com/ world/2016/aug/04/Chinese-lawyer-who-exposed-baby-milk-scandal-jailed-for-subversion; QUANZHANG, W. China Sentences Human Rights Lawyer to Four Years in Prison, at https://www.the guardian.com/world/2019/ jan/28/wang-quanzhang-china-sentences-human-rights-lawyer-to-four-years-in-prison/. 119 KHAN, J. Yahoo Helped Chinese Prosecute Journalist, at https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/08/business/world business/yahoo-helped-chinese-to-prosecute-journalist.html. 120 SCHUMAN, M. To China, All’s Fair in Love and Trade Wars , at https://www.theatlantic.com/international/ archive/2019/05/china-has-more-leverage-thank-you-think-trade-war/589726/. 121 TAN, W. About Half of China’s Loans to Developing Counties are ‘Hidden,’ Study Finds, at https://www.cnbc. com/2019/07/12/china-lending-to-oher-countris-jumps-causing-hidden-debt.hml.

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