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Mexico City - Sometime in the near future.In a successful coup d'état against the current administration, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is ousted from power, with the aid of the Mexican Police, Armed Forces and disillusioned Mexican citizens. Taking the necessary precautions to ensure that the coup is contained to government installations and does not devolve into another Mexican Revolution. With Obrador and his government brought to their knees, I relish the moment and proclaim that the days of the Federal Constitutional Republic which has brought nothing but poverty, corruption and chaos to the Mexican people are well and truly over. Announcing the rise of a temporary coalition government. One that will serve the state and its people, for the sole benefit of the people.As the leader of the successful coup, with my influence and support from the police, military and general population, I am placed in control of the new government with full Presidential powers, effectively becoming the 59th President of the United Mexican States. Upon being sworn into office, I immediately begin creating my new Presidential Cabinet and establish a National Socialist/Fascist government of my own. Appointing only the best politicians and supporters to prominent positions in the government by merit, or force the incumbent to pledge their allegiance to me.Following the creation of my new political cabinet, I order the Mexican Armed Forces to rally all available forces at Campo Marte and prepare for all-out offensive operations, against the infamous Mexican Drug Cartels. Simultaneously, I call for a special session of Congress in the Mexican Senate, where I set plans to pass my own Enabling Act. Stating that in order for the government to carry out the necessary procedures against the threat of cartel violence across the nation, the Senate will have to support the act. Giving my administration the power needed over the legislation which will have sole rights to make constitutional changes whenever necessary.And having certain civil rights such as freedom of speech, press and association temporarily suspended until further notice. Privacy rights in relation to telephones, internet and postal communication, are revoked and the government assumes the right to intervene in any situation to restore order. The rights to use military force, passes from the Congress of the Union, to the President. Taking any refusal as a statement of opposition that will be subdued as soon as possible.Although many view my proposition as a sign of power hunger, with no alternative and the promise of peace, the Mexican Senate is forced to pass La Ley de habilitación de México. Now with the support of the government secured and the military mobilized, we prepare to do what no President has successfully done before, go on the offensive.Using the full military strength of the nation against the savage drug cartels, we launch offensive operations on locations where cartel activity is most prevalent, while ensuring that the offensive is contained as much as possible. Clearing the areas and liberating the citizens that had lived in fear for so long. Pushing the cartels out of populated areas into isolated locations, and unleashing hails of rocket, artillery and armor upon them. Utilizing any/all means possible to stay one step ahead of our enemies; from the use of tactical drones, to civilian aid, to spy rings operating within the cartels. Any/all cartel members and sympathizers that are captured are placed in prison or are executed on the spot depending on the severity of their crimes, captured cartel leaders are extracted of all useful information through interrogation and are then executed and discarded. Eventually several groups discover our spies within their ranks leading to their deaths. At the same time, this leads to the leaders becoming more and more paranoid, believing that even their most trusted colleagues could potentially be informers leading to infighting between cartel factions. With their leaders busy killing each other and the factions in disarray, this in turn allows Mexican forces to mop up enemy resistance and liberate cartel controlled regions much more efficiently, despite great destruction of property and high casualties.After months of heavy fighting, the drug cartels are either eliminated or forced to flee. With the capture of many drug lords, the government is able to acquire access to their vast amounts of wealth, which is immediately seized in order to fund public works programs, the economy and other government projects. Meanwhile, vast amounts of captured drugs are destroyed, while captured weapons are taken apart for thorough examination. Following their capture, all former cartel members including an extradited Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, are stripped of all their assets and are later tried for crimes against the state, and executed. With the Drug War in Mexico officially over, we are then faced with the monumental task of rebuilding the lands devastated by our nationwide offensive. This is now the time to rebuild Mexico bigger, better, and stronger than ever before. From here, my focus after assuring that Mexico truly becomes sovereign is the economy.Implementing a system I refer to as “industrial democracy”, in which ownership of large businesses and companies are redistributed to the employees, making out of every worker a stakeholder and partial owner that can elect or be elected to a board of directors who will supervise the industry. Believing this will solve and bridge the divide between enterprising Capitalists and unionizing Socialists, to create a better of both sides. Stating that the added responsibility and also capability will serve as incentive for workers to want to work harder and make what is now their financial asset prosper. Also ordering for absentee shareholding to be penalized, having these shares seized back but paid off at a reduction.Another policy I advocate for is one in which political candidacy and government should be revolutionized; instead of people of a certain neighborhood voting from someone of their neighborhood, people from the industrial, medical or military field etc, elect representatives from their respective profession. A representative from industry, medicine, military and so on, to create an election for specialists in the nations fields of employment to serve as the new representative government.I also move to abolish income tax while raising luxury taxes and reform El Banco de México (Central Bank) to end exploitation and redistribute money back to the hands of the common citizen. All fields of business soon find themselves in a prosperous position since specialists from each from of employment now help determine the policies and contributing their voice to understanding of how every piece of the Mexican machine operates. Systematically achieving self-sufficiency by eliminating lagging facilities or practices, and implementing improvements that lead to more jobs and quality products.At first, my abolition of income tax deals a blow to the national budget, however my ideals that primarily the Mexican people require the money to purchase basic goods, further bolster this by cutting taxes on goods such as gasoline and food to cheap prices. This is further cushioned by the Mexican people utilizing the extra currency they now possess, to purchase luxury goods whose tax rates have been increased substantially.Within months, I implement policies to ease cultural tensions between native Mexicans and immigrants/minorities living within the nation. If tensions became high, repatriation and education programs are enacted to return immigrants to their countries of origin with compensation and new skill sets. Those who choose to remain are required to learn the Spanish language (if not from Latin America) and adopt Mexican culture or be settled in specially constructed ghettos or be otherwise ostracized from Mexican society.With the economy recovering at an exponential rate, I spend my first months in office consolidating power; using intimidation, eliminating all opposing political parties, banning trade unions and creating my own Secret State Police (Gestapo). Any assassination attempts or threats against me, the government or the nation a whole, are used to my advantage granting me even greater emergency powers and using them to transform Mexico into a totalitarian state, proclaiming the establishment of a new Hispanic Reich. Simultaneously, I send Diplomats to many foreign countries such as the Vatican, the United States and throughout Europe in order to ensure the recognition of the new government as well as maintaining diplomatic and economic ties intact. Passing my government off as Right-Wing Populist while keeping my National Socialist/Fascist ideals to myself, revealing them when the time is most appropriate. I also begin sending economic and financial support to other Nationalist movements around the world, such as the French Rassemblement National, the Alternative für Deutschland, and the Greek Χρυσή Αυγή (Golden Dawn) among others, allowing them to speak at much larger venues, and advising them on what major platforms they should follow in order to draw ever greater numbers of supporters to their cause.Meanwhile in Mexico, life for the average citizen is considerably better than before, the Mexican people are united and the many tensions between wealthy and poor are essentially eliminated. For the younger citizens, a youth wing of my political party is created, referred to as the “Jóvenes Coronianos”. In order for them to gain greater appreciation for their country, youth hostels are built all across the nation, enabling the youth to hike from one beautiful town to another seeing their fatherland with every effort being made to strengthen their minds and bodies. My industrial democracy system oversees great public works projects across the nation, creating new employment opportunities for the mass millions; building new bridges, dams, and roads where there are none. All while ensuring that these projects do not unnecessarily destroy the Mexican landscape or wildlife habitats and forests. Concerning the countries use of electric power, in order to transform Mexico into a greener country, the government also builds fields of solar panels, wind turbines, and utilizing techniques from Sweden, collect and burn garbage to provide heat and free electricity to millions of households across Mexico.To help the workers get cheap transportation, car manufacturers such as Volkswagen, Mitsubishi and General Motors are nationalized and instructed to produce cheap and efficient automobiles for the general public by any means possible. Also for the common people, villages of single-family homes are erected everywhere, eliminating apartments. The monthly payments are so low, that almost anyone can afford his own house.In a matter of months with very few exceptions, there are no homeless, or beggars as the government distributes food, water and other resources wherever required, lowering prices of food and setting a daily calorie intake of 2,300 calories. Crime is almost non-existent because habitual criminals are in prison or concentration camps. All this is reported in the newspapers and is known by everybody. Any social and political taboos are eliminated, and like any totalitarian government, no negative comments about the government or its leaders are permitted. Simultaneously, the Mexican music and film industries are thoroughly cleansed of any/all forms of decadence and depravity.Concerning the use and selling of firearms to the general public, unlike the old government which often confiscated the weapons of the Mexican people, new gun control laws are introduced. Inspired by the Firearms legislation of Switzerland, sales of semi-automatic (not full automatic) weapons and sidearms are permitted after passing extensive background and health checks, and purchase of special state issued licenses. For further safety, compulsory military service applies to all male Mexican citizens, with women serving voluntarily all of which pledging loyalty to the nation and its leader to always be ready to fight and if necessary die for the Hispanic Reich. With a rule of one gun per citizen, gun clubs are also opened all over the country for the use of firearms for sport.With the economy on the road to recovery, my next objective is to build up the Mexican Armed Forces. Seeing its current state, I realize that it is time for an upgrade, reorganization and a massive increase in the military budget. I launch a massive armaments program and reinstate conscription, enlisting aid from the United States and the Russian Federation to send military advisors to Mexico in order to oversee the creation and training of a new modern military, purchasing military grade weapons and equipment. As well as turning to the Republic of Chile for inspiration on new uniforms and military doctrine. Building large powerful aircraft carriers as well as air forces, naval fleets, tank and artillery divisions and equipping the new military with the latest gear and weaponry. Gradually transforming the Armed Forces of Mexico into a significantly powerful fighting force.Mexican Armed Forces at this point, are similar to these soldiers. Begin from 1:33 onwards to view training.With the nation continuing to grow, I pay a visit to the White House in Washington D.C. meeting with President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, where we discuss plans for greater economic ties; trading imported goods and raw materials in exchange for technological and military advancements. As well as improving relations between our countries signing a Treaty of Friendship, setting plans for greater military cooperation and if possible, discussing the possibility of a revision of the Treaty of Tlatelolco. Thereby granting Mexico the ability to produce weapons grade Uranium in order to develop nuclear weapons. Later taking a tour through several U.S. states attracting massive crowds of American citizens and at times, the public response is one of scorn and admiration. Taking time to visit Texas, and like any dutiful son, visit my parents. When they ask me what I do now, I respond: “Do you remember learning about Emperor Agustín de Iturbide?” they nod their heads, “Well, I’ve become a sort of Emperor.”Soon leaving Texas and continuing my tour across America. While most from the Conservative and Republican Parties view me as a hero and the leader Mexico needed, others particularly from the Liberal and Democratic Parties view me as an abuser of power and a murderer due to my bloody offensive against the former cartels. But for the most part, support is high throughout my state visit earning a great deal of respect and perhaps jealousy from President Trump.Following my visit to the U.S. I travel to South America and make a state visit to the Federative Republic of Brazil, where I meet with President Jair Bolsonaro where we discuss the possibility of forming an economic and military alliance. Both being anti-Establishment and pro-Nationalist, it is imperative that we nationalists unite in order for our respective nations to survive. President Bolsonaro agrees and signs a defense pact with Mexico, with similar meetings being arranged with other national leaders:· Argentine Republic – Mauricio Macri· Republic of Austria – Sebastian Kurz· Czech Republic - Miloš Zeman· Hungary – Viktor Orbán· Italian Republic – Matteo Salvini· Republic of Poland – Andrzej Duda· State of Japan – Shinzo Abe· Republic of Korea – Moon Jae-in· Republic of China (Taiwan) – Tsai Ing-wen· Republic of the Philippines – Rodrigo Duterte· Republic of India – Narendra ModiThe message is clear: to unite in defiance of the status quo, for the preservation of the sovereignty of our nations and the end of the United Nations Globalist agenda. Forming a highly formidable anti-Establishment bloc, while continuing to aid Nationalist leaders still striving to attain power in their countries.Within a year, the nation under my leadership as Führer of Mexico is at a similar state as the United States in terms of technology, science, standard of living etc. In its first year, my industrial democracy transforms the United Mexican States from a backwater 3rd World Country to a well-respected world power. With our nation prosperous, I seek to unite all of mainland Central America into a Greater Hispanic Reich. Sending letters to the leaders of the Central American countries from Guatemala to Panama, calling for a peaceful unification, reminiscent of the former Viceroyalty of New Spain and later the First Mexican Empire. Promising that all nations that accept will be allowed to retain their traditions and cultures and that their nations will equally share our prosperity in exchange that their citizens obey any/all Mexican laws. Due to desperation and seeking prosperity, several nations such as Guatemala, El Salvador, and Panama accept, while the remaining countries are either hesitant or decline. In spite of this, I continue to persist leading to sour relations between our countries. The three nations that accept are annexed peacefully into the Hispanic Reich to the Panama-Colombia border. In order to keep relations intact, I continue allowing the United States to use the Panama Canal as they please and order for American assets in the region to remain untouched.Eventually, worsening relations with Honduras, Costa Rica and Nicaragua become too much to bear. As the three nations begin mobilizing their militaries, I order the Mexican military to invade and annex the remaining Central American states putting an end to hostilities between our countries. Taken by surprise and completely overpowered, the small nations stand no chance against our new and improved war machine. Immediately following this campaign, the Caribbean states of Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti and the surrounding nations become fearful of being the next target and issue Declarations of War against Mexico.I immediately respond by ordering my forces in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea to invade and occupy all nations in the area with the exception of U.S. territory. Jamaica, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic are simultaneously invaded, all falling within days. Days later, Mexican Special Landing Forces invade the Greater and Lesser Antilles islands, all falling in quick succession. The Landing Forces are instructed to capture the islands to use their naval ports as bases for our submarines and warships to be able to enter the Atlantic. Engineers are also sent in to begin construction on fortified positions (if there already are, reinforce them) to establish a formidable defensive perimeter. The island of Cuba is now surrounded, I offer the Cuban government a chance to surrender and end hostilities, but President Raul Castro refuses and vows to fight until the end. The United States takes notice of our activities and to our surprise, express their support of our campaign against Cuba as they tend to view the Communist government as a thorn in their side and still harbor resentment. Operation Cuba Libre (the invasion of Cuba) is swift and brutal, our Mexican blitzkrieg quickly smashes through Cuban defenses and advances deep into Cuban territory. The going is made much easier due to the aid of anti-communist guerrillas operating throughout the island. Within two weeks, Havana is seized with major government and military leaders including Raul Castro himself either being captured or committing suicide.Once the Cuba and the Caribbean are secured, I divert a small portion of my armies to South America in particular Colombia for being the birthplace of the cartels and Venezuela in order to gain access to unlimited supplies of oil and topple their corrupt Socialist governments. Like with Cuba, the U.S. declares its support of our invasions and liberation of the people from their oppressive regimes, providing us with intelligence reports on the landscape and locations of government and military assets. Within a month, Bogota and Caracas are captured and both governments are ousted and replaced with coalition governments sympathetic to our cause.Upon my return to Mexico City, I am greeted with a Hero’s welcome. Having achieved so much for the nation, building it from the ground up bigger, better, and stronger than ever before and uniting the people behind a common cause. Support for me and my government is at an all-time high, but even with all the things I have achieved up to this point, I feel as if my duty as Head of State and Government of the Greater Hispanic Reich and my service to the international community are incomplete. I feel as though there is far more to be done, there are still many more people across the world that are in desperate need of aid and I believe we are among the only ones who can do anything. I instruct the Mexican government and our Nationalist bloc to make any/all necessary preparations to provide help to the peoples in any way, and always be ready for potential conflicts and whatever else the world can throw at us…

President Xi Jinping, born in 1953, has indicated his intent to rule indefinitely after China’s legislature amended the constitution in March 2018 to scrap term limits for the presidency. This move was also emblematic of the increasing repression under Xi’s rule.The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) also strengthened its power over the government bureaucracy in a major overhaul of central government structure in March. The party oversees a powerful new government body, the National Supervisory Commission, which is empowered to detain incommunicado anyone exercising public authority for up to six months without fair trial procedures in a system called “liuzhi.”In October, Meng Hongwei, then-president of Interpol, the international police organization, and China’s vice minister for Public Security, disappeared upon return to China and was assumed to be held in “liuzhi.” The CCP also subsumed state bodies in charge of religious, ethnic, and overseas Chinese affairs under a party agency, the United Front Work Department.Authorities dramatically stepped up repression and systematic abuses against the 13 million Turkic Muslims, including Uyghurs and ethnic Kazakhs, in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region. Authorities have carried out mass arbitrary detention, torture, and mistreatment of some of them in various detention facilities, and increasingly imposed pervasive controls on daily life. New regulations in Tibet now criminalize even traditional forms of social action, including community mediation by religious figures. In Hong Kong, a region promised “a high degree of autonomy” under the Sino-British Joint Declaration, the Chinese and Hong Kong governments hastened their efforts in 2018 to undermine people’s rights to free speech and political participation.Human rights defenders continue to endure arbitrary detention, imprisonment, and enforced disappearance. The government maintains tight control over the internet, mass media, and academia. Authorities stepped up their persecution of religious communities, including prohibitions on Islam in Xinjiang, suppression of Christians in Henan province, and increasing scrutiny of Hui Muslims in Ningxia.Authorities increasingly deploy mass surveillance systems to tighten control over society. In 2018, the government continued to collect, on a mass scale, biometrics including DNA and voice samples; use such biometrics for automated surveillance purposes; develop a nationwide reward and punishment system known as the “social credit system”; and develop and apply “big data” policing programs aimed at preventing dissent. All of these systems are being deployed without effective privacy protections in law or in practice, and often people are unaware that their data is being gathered, or how it is used or stored.In 2018, animated by the global #MeToo movement, a number of Chinese women stepped forward exposing people who they said had sexually harassed them. Government censorship dampened subsequent public outrage.In one of its only human rights concessions all year, Chinese authorities allowed Liu Xia, an artist and the widow of 2010 Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo, to leave for Germany in July after eight years of legally baseless house arrest. However, the decision of authorities to bar her family members from also leaving reflects Beijing’s campaign to punish dissent and restrict expression globally.China’s growing global power makes it an exporter of human rights violations, including at the United Nations, where in 2018 it sought to block participation of its critics. China again ranked among countries singled out for reprisals against human rights defenders, and in March successfully advanced a Human Rights Council (HRC) resolution on a retrograde approach that it calls “win-win” or “mutually beneficial” cooperation. In this view, states do not pursue accountability for serious human rights violations but engage merely in “dialogue”; moreover, there is no role for independent civil society, only governments, and a narrow role for the UN itself.Few governments spoke forcefully against these developments, even in the face of Chinese government harassment of people in their own countries or pressure on foreign companies to publicly support Chinese government positions.Human Rights DefendersThe case of human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang is emblematic of authorities’ ruthlessness toward human rights defenders and those activists’ fortitude. Beijing police detained Wang amid a national crackdown on human rights lawyers and activists in August 2015; while detained he was reportedly tortured with electric shocks and forced to take medications. In July, Wang was finally allowed to meet his lawyer for the first time. Charged with “subversion of state power,” he could face life imprisonment if convicted. During Wang’s detention, Li Wenzu, his wife, along with families of other lawyers and activists detained during the crackdown, have campaigned relentlessly for his release despite having to endure incessant intimidation and harassment.Authorities continued politically motivated prosecutions and disbarments of human rights lawyers. In January, police detained lawyer Yu Wensheng, charging him with “inciting subversion of state power” and “obstructing public duties.” Judicial authorities revoked or suspended the licenses of over a dozen human rights lawyers, and even some who retain licenses have been unable to find work due to police pressure on employers.In 2018, the courts handed down lengthy prison terms to a number of prominent human rights activists after protracted and sham prosecutions. In July, a Wuhan court sentenced veteran democracy activist Qin Yongmin to 13 years in prison for “subversion of state power.” Qin, 64, has previously spent a total of 22 years in prison or in “Re-education Through Labor.”Also in July, a Chongqing court sentenced political cartoonist Jiang Yefei to six-and-a-half years in prison for “subversion of state power” and “illegally crossing a national border.” In 2015, Thai authorities forcibly repatriated Jiang and human rights activist Dong Guangping to China even after the pair had been granted UNHCR refugee status. Dong, who was tried alongside Jiang, was given a three-and-a-half-year sentence for inciting subversion and illegal border crossing.Other defenders continue to face long detentions without trials or verdicts. Liu Feiyue, founder of the human rights news website Civil Rights and Livelihood Watch, was detained in November 2016 and charged with “inciting subversion of state power.” He was tried in August 2018 but had not yet been sentenced at time of writing. Veteran activist and founder of the human rights website “64,” Tianwang Huang Qi, has been detained since November 2016 but not yet tried. Huang suffers from several health conditions for which he has not received adequate treatment, including possible imminent kidney failure and lung inflammation.More human rights defenders were detained in 2018. In July, authorities detained Dong Yaoqiong after she poured ink over a poster of President Xi in Shanghai. Police later held her in a psychiatric hospital and prevented her father from seeing her. In August, Guangxi police detained activist and a leader in the Tiananmen Square protests Zhou Yongjun for possessing materials related to Falun Gong, a banned religious group in China. Also in August, Shenzhen police detained dozens of labor and student activists after they gathered to show support to factory workers at the welding machinery company Jasic International, who were fired for trying to form a union. Some were later released but 14 remained in custody or under house arrest at time of writing.Authorities also tried to silence Chinese human rights defenders abroad by harassing and detaining their families in China. In January 2018, Guangzhou authorities forcibly disappeared Li Huaiping, wife of Chen Xiaoping, a US-based journalist for the Chinese-language Mirror Media Group. The disappearance came shortly after Chen interviewed Guo Wengui, a Chinese billionaire fugitive who exposed corruption among China’s ruling elite. Authorities continually harassed the China-based family members of Canadian human rights activist Anastasia Lin, banning them from travel abroad and threatening to persecute them “like in the Cultural Revolution.”In 2018, authorities continue to subject various activists and lawyers to travel bans, surveillance, detention, and torture and ill-treatment for their efforts to engage with the UN. Using human rights treaties for advocacy was cited in the criminal indictment against activist Qin Yongmin, who was sentenced to 13 years in prison.Freedom of ExpressionChinese authorities continue to harass and detain journalists who cover human rights issues, as well as their interviewees. In May, Beijing police physically assaulted and briefly detained a cameraperson for the Hong Kong broadcaster Now TV reporting on a human rights lawyer’s court hearing. In July, Hunan police detained independent blogger Chen Jieren after he wrote articles alleging corruption by provincial party officials; state media repeatedly attacked Chen as an “internet pest” who had “polluted the online space.” In August, Shandong police broke into the home of retired professor Sun Wenguang as he was giving a live interview with the US broadcaster Voice of America (VOA). Sun was subsequently put under house arrest. Police later also briefly detained VOA journalists who attempted to interview Sun again.Authorities expanded their internet censorship regime to suppress politically sensitive information and “vulgar” content. In January 2018, social media platform Weibo suspended several of its most popular programs after authorities ordered it to clean up “wrong-oriented” and “vulgar” information. In April, regulators shut down Neihan Duanzi, a parody and meme app with over 38 million monthly users.In January 2018, Chinese authorities forcibly disappeared Swedish citizen and bookseller Gui Mihai while he was traveling with Swedish diplomats. Gui, a publisher of books about China’s political intrigues, had been imprisoned for two years from 2015 to 2017 after being abducted from Thailand.In August, media reports revealed that Google, which suspended its search service in China in 2010 citing censorship concerns, had been developing a censored search engine app for the Chinese market. The app would reportedly comply with China’s expansive censorship requirements by automatically identifying and filtering sites blocked by the Great Firewall, China’s internet filtering system.The government also tightened its ideological grip over universities. A number of professors, including foreigners, were punished for making comments critical of the government. In July, the University of Nottingham Ningbo China removed Stephen Morgan from its management board after he wrote an online essay critical of the Chinese Communist Party. In August, Guizhou University dismissed economics professor Yang Shaozheng, alleging him of “disseminating politically incorrect views.” Peking University did not renew the contract of American professor Christopher Balding, who had previously launched a campaign calling on Cambridge University Press to resist the Chinese government’s pressure to censor academic articles.The Chinese government also pressured foreign companies to adhere to disputed terms and policies. In January, US-based Marriott International apologized for listing Taiwan and Tibet as separate countries on its website after authorities shut down the website and app in China for a week. In March, Marriott fired an employee for “liking” a pro-Tibet tweet. After Chinese authorities threatened to ban them from operating in China, dozens of international airlines made changes on their websites to refer to Taiwan as part of China.Freedom of ReligionThe government restricts religious practice to five officially recognized religions in officially approved premises. Authorities retain control over religious bodies’ personnel appointments, publications, finances, and seminary applications. The government classifies many religious groups outside its control as “evil cults,” and subjects members to police harassment, torture, arbitrary detention, and imprisonment.In February, revised Regulations on Religious Affairs came into effect. Designed to “curb extremism” and “resist infiltration,” they ban unauthorized teaching about religion and going abroad to take part in training or meetings.In March, a Yunnan court sentenced Christian pastor John Sanqiang Cao to seven years in prison for “organizing others to illegally cross the border” between China and Myanmar. Cao had been involved in educational projects for impoverished minority groups in Myanmar.A crackdown on Christian churches intensified in Henan province during the year, as authorities demolished dozens of church buildings or the crosses atop of them, prevented believers from gathering in house churches, and confiscated bibles and other religious materials.In September, the Vatican and Beijing reached a historic deal, ending a decades-long standoff over authority to appoint bishops in China. China’s estimated 12 million Roman Catholics are divided between an underground community that pledges allegiance to the Pope and a government-run association where bishops are state appointed. Under the accord, Beijing will propose names for future bishops and the Pope will have veto power over the appointments.In August, in the heavily-Hui Muslim Ningxia region, thousands of Huis gathered to protest the demolition of the Grand Mosque in the town of Weizhou. Ningxia authorities have reportedly also moved Islamic icons and Arabic signs from streets across the region.Hong KongBeijing’s assault on Hong Kong’s freedoms, particularly the rights to free expression, association and political participation, worsened considerably in 2018.The Hong Kong government has continued to disqualify pro-democracy figures from running for seats on Hong Kong’s Legislative Council (LegCo). In January and October, the Hong Kong Electoral Affairs Commission disqualified Demosisto Party candidate Agnes Chow and Labor Party candidate Lau Siu-lai, respectively, stating that their promotion of “self-determination” for Hong Kong is “inconsistent” with the Basic Law.The Hong Kong and Chinese governments have harassed people for peaceful pro-independence speech. In March, they denounced pro-democracy scholar Benny Tai, equating his hypothetical discussion of Hong Kong independence with “a threat to national security.” In August, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials had requested that the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents Club cancel a talk by Andy Chan, a pro-independence activist. After the club refused, Hong Kong authorities rejected without explanation its vice-president’s application to renew his work visa.In August, Demosisto reported that police had briefly detained and interrogated two members in the mainland in March and August. In September, a pro-independence group, Studentlocalism, said police in the mainland had harassed relatives of two members for their political activities in Hong Kong.In September, new regulations went into effect allowing mainland law to prevail in Hong Kong’s West Kowloon railway terminus and all operating trains going between Hong Kong and mainland China—a significant step in China’s erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy.In an unprecedented move, the Hong Kong government in September banned a political party—the pro-independence Hong Kong National Party. Authorities stated that the party “poses a real threat to national security,” against which they had to take “preventive measures.”XinjiangChinese authorities are hostile to many expressions of Uyghur identity, and have in recent years justified sweeping repression as a necessary response to threats of terrorism.The Chinese government began waging a “Strike Hard Campaign against Violent Extremism” in Xinjiang in 2014. But the level of repression increased dramatically after Communist Party Secretary Chen Quanguo was transferred from the Tibet Autonomous Region to assume leadership of Xinjiang in late 2016.Since then, authorities have stepped up mass arbitrary detention, including in pretrial detention centers and prisons, both of which are formal facilities, and in “political education” camps, which have no basis under Chinese law. Credible estimates indicate that 1 million people are being indefinitely held in the camps, where Turkic Muslims are being forced to learn Mandarin Chinese, praise the government and party, and abandon many aspects of their distinct identity. Those who resist or are deemed to have failed to “learn” are punished.Outside these detention facilities, authorities subject Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang to extraordinary restrictions on personal life. Authorities have recalled passports throughout the region, and to travel from one town or another, people have to apply for permission and go through checkpoints. They are subjected to persistent political indoctrination, including compulsory flag-raising ceremonies and political or denunciation meetings. With unprecedented levels of control over religious practices, authorities have effectively outlawed the practice of Islam in the region.They have also subjected people in Xinjiang to pervasive surveillance. Authorities employ high-tech mass surveillance systems that make use of QR codes, biometrics, artificial intelligence, phone spyware, and big data. And they have mobilized over a million officials to monitor people, including through intrusive programs in which officials regularly stay in people’s homes.The campaign has divided families, with some family members in Xinjiang and others abroad caught unexpectedly by the tightening of passport controls and border crossings. Children have at times been trapped in one country without their parents. The government has barred Turkic Muslims from contacting people abroad, and has pressured some Uyghurs and ethnic Kazakhs living outside the country to return to China, while requiring others to provide detailed personal information about their lives abroad.The collective punishment of families was particularly striking in the case of five US-based Radio Free Asia Uyghur Service journalists. Media reports in February said their relatives in Xinjiang have been detained in retaliation for their journalism about the region.In November, China underwent scrutiny of its human rights record through the Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR). More than a dozen mostly Western countries challenged China’s widespread detention of Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang, with some echoing the high commissioner’s call to allow UN experts access to the “political education” camps. No member country of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation explicitly addressed the issue, although Turkey expressed concern at the “confinement of individuals without legal grounds” without making specific reference to Xinjiang.TibetAuthorities in Tibetan areas continue to severely restrict religious freedom, speech, movement, and assembly, and fail to redress popular concerns about mining and land grabs by local officials, which often involve intimidation and arbitrary violence by security forces. Authorities intensified surveillance of online and phone communications.There were clear findings by UN human rights experts that the charges were baseless. Nonetheless, courts sentenced former political prisoner Tsegon Gyal in January to three years in prison and language activist Tashi Wangchuk in May to five years.Several hundred Tibetans traveling on Chinese passports to India for a January 2018 teaching by the Dalai Lama were forced to return early when officials in Tibetan areas threatened retaliation against those traveling abroad and their family members back home.Intensified political education has been reported in monasteries and schools, and for the public at large. Tibetan authorities have used a nationwide anti-crime campaign to encourage people to denounce members of their communities on the slightest suspicion of sympathy for the exiled Dalai Lama or opposition to the government.Several more cases were reported in 2018 of land grabs by local officials for construction projects, both in the Tibet Autonomous Region and other Tibetan areas. In Driru county, 30 villagers were detained in May for allegedly sharing with international media information about the arrest of a village leader who had led popular opposition to a mining project on a sacred mountain.Tibetans continue to self-immolate to protest Chinese policies; four more such protests took place between November 2017 and time of writing.Women’s and Girls’ RightsIn 2018, the #MeToo movement gained momentum in China as a slew of prominent academics, journalists, and activists were accused on social media of sexual misconduct. After a prominent state media TV host and a senior Buddhist monk at a government-controlled temple were accused of sexual harassment, censors deleted social media posts about those cases. In June, China University of Petroleum authorities held Ren Liping, a student who had accused an ex-boyfriend of raping her on campus, for six days in a hotel room after she protested against the university and police for mishandling her allegations.While women in China may be more willing to speak out against sexual harassment, seeking legal redress is still very difficult. Chinese law prohibits sexual harassment, but its failure to define the term makes meaningful legal action nearly impossible.Women continue to face widespread discrimination in the job market. In the 2018 national civil service job list, 19 percent specified a requirement or preference for men, up from 13 percent from the previous year. Technology giants including Alibaba and Tencent pledged to ensure gender equality in their recruitment.As China faces an unprecedented sex ratio imbalance and aging population, authorities promoted traditional roles for women, encouraging them to marry early and have children. The “bride shortage” in China has triggered trafficking of women from a number of neighboring countries, an abuse largely ignored by the Chinese government. Although the “one-child policy” has been relaxed to a “two-child policy,” women and girls continue to face violations of their reproductive rights.The Chinese government remains hostile to women’s rights activism. In March, social media platforms Weibo and WeChat permanently suspended the accounts of Feminist Voices, a social media publication run by outspoken feminists.Sexual Orientation and Gender IdentityWhile China decriminalized homosexuality in 1997, it lacks laws protecting people from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, and same-sex partnership is not legal.In March, the Beijing International Film Festival pulled an award-winning film featuring a homosexual relationship, “Call Me By Your Name,” after it failed to pass government approval. In April, Chinese social media platform Weibo announced that posts related to gay culture would be taken down, as part of a “cleanup” effort. The move prompted widespread protest: many people posted messages with the hashtag “I am gay” and rainbow emoticons. Weibo subsequently dropped the restriction.In Hong Kong, the territory’s highest court in July ruled that the government’s denial of a visa and associated benefits to the same-sex spouse of a legal resident amounted to discrimination. Around the same time, Hong Kong authorities decided to move a selection of 10 children’s books with LGBT themes to the “closed stacks” in public libraries.A gay teacher in September filed a suit against his former school, alleging that he was fired because he posted information on social media about a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT)-themed event that he had attended.Refugees and Asylum SeekersChina continued to arrest and forcibly return hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of North Koreans, who Human Rights Watch considers refugees sur place, to North Korean state security services, who has long tortured, sexually abused, and imprisoned them. Beijing refused to consider fleeing North Koreans as refugees and would not grant UNHCR access to them or areas on the North Korea-China border, further violating its obligations as a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention.Key International ActorsWhile some governments and parliaments publicly expressed concerns about Beijing’s human rights violations, and continued to try to observe trials and meet with human rights defenders in China, few took forceful action to end abuses or press for accountability.In March, China proposed a resolution at the Human Rights Council, focusing on its vision for “win-win cooperation” while omitting any role for independent civil society, any mention of accountability, and other core parts of the council’s mandate. The resolution was adopted by a comfortable margin with the US as the only no vote. Throughout the year, members of the US Congress and the administration called for sanctions and export controls.In July, Germany secured the release of Liu Xia. In September, Malaysia’s new premier, Anwar Ibrahim, publicly called for talks with China about violations in Xinjiang. Sweden did not secure the release of bookseller Gui Minhai; Australia adopted new laws to counter Chinese political interference at home, but took few meaningful steps to challenge the root cause of political repression in China. The European Parliament and the European Union’s External Action Service repeatedly called for release of jailed and disappeared human rights lawyers, dissenters, and activists and expressed concerns about the situation in Xinjiang, but their efforts were partly frustrated by the EU leaders’ failure to echo these concerns and calls publicly at a summit in July.UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited China in April and September without publicly expressing his concern about these issues. However, new UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, the Committee to Eliminate Racial Discrimination, and the assistant secretary-general for human rights expressed concern particularly about Xinjiang and abuses of human rights defenders.China continues to use its permanent seat on the UN Security Council to block important discussions of human rights issues. In March 2018, China and Russia successfully mobilized other council members to prevent then-High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein from addressing the council on Syria. In October 2018, it circulated a letter expressing its opposition to the "internationalization" of efforts to address the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar and its opposition has stymied stronger Security Council action to react to the crisis.Foreign PolicyThroughout the year China pressed ahead with its “One Belt, One Road” initiative despite the lack of safeguards or respect for human rights in many participating countries. Some governments, including Myanmar and Malaysia, backed away from previously agreed bilateral investment arrangements, citing unsustainable debt and concerns about sovereignty.China also pressed other governments, including Egypt, Kazakhstan, and Malaysia, to forcibly return asylum seekers to China.Major Chinese technology companies, including Huawei, iFlytek, and ZTE, all of which enjoy close relations with the government and contribute to the police’s mass surveillance efforts, tried to expand abroad in 2018. Some were rebuffed by Australia, Canada, and the US due to security concerns.