February 13-19
China
China’s broadcast regulator, the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA), banned BBC World News from broadcasting in China. Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK), the publicly funded broadcaster in Hong Kong, announced the next day that it was suspending the relay of BBC news programming, following Beijing's decision. Rejecting BBC’s application to air for another year, NRTA said an investigation found BBC World News’ China-related reports had “seriously violated” regulations, including a requirement that news should be “truthful and fair,” had harmed China's interests, and undermined national unity. China’s move has triggered condemnation from the U.K. and U.S. as “an unacceptable curtailing of media freedom.”
China’s State Council released a Regulation on Preventing and Punishing Illegal Fund-Raising to curb illegal, unlicensed, and unauthorized fund-raising activities, covering a wide range of online and offline activities. A professor at South-Central University of Economics and Law, Qiao Xinsheng, has this commentary on the regulation. (in Chinese)
China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) released its 26th batch of guiding cases, consisting of five decisions in intellectual property crimes cases. (in Chinese, check here for a summary English translation) Earlier last week, the SPP also released its 14th batch of “typical cases,” which focused on crimes involving Covid-19 vaccines. As of February 10, 2021, procuratorates across China had arrested 70 persons on suspicion of committing crimes related to Covid-19 vaccines. (in Chinese)
The research team of China’s Southeast University published a bibliography of criminal law studies in the fourth quarter of last year. The report reviewed published literature in 14 major categories, including big data and artificial intelligence, internet crime, the death penalty, analysis of judgments, and judicial interpretations.
The requirement in China’s new Civil Code that couples seeking divorce by mutual consent must undergo a 30-day “cooling off period” resulted in a stampede to start the clock ticking as soon as the New Year holiday ended on January 4. February 4 was the first day that local civil affairs bureaus could process divorces under the new code, and Chinese news media reported that all available appointments for review of divorce applications on February 4 across the city of Guangzhou were filled. Many applicants were probably trying to complete the process ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, which began February 11. Appointments for divorce application review can be made online, leading to questions about whether scalpers might be snapping up some appointments. Responding to the heavy demand for appointments, Guangzhou Municipality announced a penalty for frequent no-shows. Although the cooling-off period does not apply if a spouse claims domestic violence, a lawyer says the law will disadvantage women, particularly those without an independent source of income.
China’s National Health Commission signaled that it may further loosen its birth control policies in order to increase the population, especially in less populous areas. In response to a call from a legislator for more attention to the population decline in northeastern China’s rustbelt cities, the Commission laid out plans for pilot projects to experiment with removing mandatory birth control. (in Chinese).
Hong Kong
Two Hong Kong pro-democracy activists, Au Nok-hin and Leung Yiu-chung, pleaded guilty to charges related to an illegal assembly during mass protests against the government in August 2019. Seven other defendants, including media tycoon Jimmy Lai, pleaded not guilty. Earlier this week, the government brought additional charges against Lai of “aiding criminals” and “colluding with foreign forces.” Lai is suspected of aiding Andy Li Yu-hin's attempted flight from Hong Kong to Taiwan.
Hong Kong’s Joint Financial Intelligence Unit, the money laundering watchdog, has proposed to impose stricter money laundering checks on officials from the mainland. Currently only “politically exposed persons” outside of the People’s Republic of China are subject to such checks. The move is said to be in line with President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption drive, and the changes will make it harder for any individual connected to the Chinese Communist Party to move money into or around Hong Kong without strict scrutiny.
The Hong Kong Bar Association has urged the government to state clearly that a proposed amendment to immigration procedures would not give officials the power to stop residents from entering or leaving the city. The amendment would allow immigration authorities to request airlines to bar individuals from boarding a flight. The bar association had earlier expressed concern over the “apparently unfettered power” the amendment would give to the immigration director to stop any individual from boarding a flight out of Hong Kong, but the Security Bureau criticized the association as misinterpreting the proposal. The bar association responded by urging the bureau to state that that the new power would not affect the right of Hong Kong residents to enter and remain. Immigrant rights advocates have also objected to the proposed amendment, saying it will make an already harsh asylum system even less hospitable toward people fleeing persecution in their home countries.
Hong Kong’s Security Bureau began a month-long consultation on an amendment to the Firearms and Ammunition Regulations by specifying that essential component parts of firearms also count as arms. According to the bureau, it seeks to plug a legal loophole exploited by smugglers, who ship components separately into the city before assembling them into functional weapons.
Japan
The Osaka District Court has ordered a prefectural government to pay 330,000 yen ($2,840) in damages to a former public high school student, saying the school caused emotional damage when it punished her for having light-colored hair. The school bars students from coloring or bleaching their hair. The plaintiff told school authorities that her hair is naturally brown, but they rejected her explanation and sometimes barred her from classes and a school trip. The former student told the court that the school’s demands she dye her hair black violated her constitutional right to self-determination. The court rejected that argument, and said the school’s regulations were legal.
Japan’s parliament aroused controversy in early February when it voted to impose fines on people and businesses that do not comply with COVID-19 control measures, and allow the government to take virus-control measures without declaring a state of emergency. Concerns are being expressed now about how the new provisions will be implemented. The Mainichi newspaper published an editorial urging caution and attention to individual circumstances when implementing the new legislation. The mayor of the city of Akashi said he would not be enforcing the new fines, saying they would lead to discrimination and discourage people from reporting COVID cases.
The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for the extradition of an American father and son accused of helping smuggle former Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn out of Japan in December 2019. The court denied without comment their emergency application for a stay pending appeal. The men are believed to have helped Ghosn escape by hiding him in a box that was flown out of Tokyo on a private jet. Ghosn had been living under court supervision while facing charges of financial crimes. The father and son have already unsuccessfully asked the U.S. secretary of state to halt their extradition.
The government has approved a bill to revise the immigration law in response to criticism that foreign nationals facing deportation orders are detained for lengthy periods. If passed, the bill will allow asylum-seekers to be released and will give protection to those who don't qualify for refugee status under the country's strict standards. The new bill sets up a mechanism called “supervisory measures,” under which detainees can be released if they pay a deposit of up to ¥3 million and if individuals designated by the immigration authorities monitor and report on their situation.
Koreas
South Korea’s Ministry of Justice is considering introducing a “foreign child birth registration system” to provide legal status to newborns, regardless of their parents’ social and legal status. According to the Ministry of Justice, an estimated 20,000 foreign children living in Korea have no registered status. Under current law, foreign parents are unable to register births if they are not legally resident in Korea, making the babies susceptible to child abuse and other human rights violations. Children’s right advocates welcome the move.
South Korea’s central bank, the Bank of Korea, published a report calling for new laws to allow the central bank to issue digital currency (CBDC). Currently, the bank has authority to issue only paper money and coins. Last year, the bank began a 22-month pilot program in issuing CBDC and set up a digital innovation division to support research on the subject.
Taiwan
Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan is considering three draft measures to enshrine animal rights in the Constitution. Lawmakers across party lines support a move in this direction, but the drafts are quite different. One lawmaker urged his colleagues to clarify whether the goal is animal protection or animal rights.
Minister without Portfolio Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) has been appointed as the Executive Yuan’s new spokesman by the premier of Taiwan’s Executive Yuan. His predecessor, Ting Yi-ming, resigned in November 2020 over a beef-noodle controversy. It is hoped that Lo, a renowned lawyer, will improve communication between the government and the public. Lo will continue to serve concurrently as minister without portfolio in charge of overseeing interior affairs, the judiciary, national defense, diplomacy and social security issues. He has held that post since September 2017.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterated that Taiwan claims sovereignty over the Diaoyutai Islands and urged Japan and China to resolve disputes peacefully amid heightened tensions in the area this week.
A chemical engineering professor at the National Taiwan University was fined for leading research programs sponsored by China’s National Natural Science Foundation without approval from Taiwan’s Ministry of Education. The ministry said he violated the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, which prohibits academics employed by Taiwanese public universities from accepting positions at Chinese universities or participating in Chinese research programs without approval.
Vietnam
Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade released a draft decree on January 4 that would amend and supplement the existing rules governing e-commerce platforms. Baker McKenzie has analyzed the draft decree here.
Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security recently released for public consultation a long-awaited draft Decree on Personal Data Protection. (in Vietnamese) The draft proposes regulation of specific rights of data subjects and touches upon issues including cross-border transfer of data and processing of sensitive personal data. The draft is analyzed here and here.