March 23-29
China
Authorities released five Chinese employees of the American due diligence firm the Mintz Group from detention, two years after Beijing police raided the firm’s offices. The employees reportedly were accused of engaging in activities outside the formal scope of the company’s business license, but were not put on trial. The detentions were part of a wave of investigations targeting the China operations of US consultancies and due diligence firms, including Bain & Co and expert network group Capvision.
The Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) released ten co-called typical cases involving protecting the public interest in China’s rural areas. These cases include protecting farm lands and food security, improving villagers’ living conditions, and protecting personal information of the elderly. The SPP said prosecutors’ offices nationwide filed 29,706 administrative cases and 1,491 civil cases related to the public interest in rural areas in 2024.
The Cyberspace Administration of China publicized the second draft of proposed amendments to the Cybersecurity Law (网络安全法) . The new draft proposes to increase punishment for violators. Public comments may be submitted until April 27, 2025.
The Supreme People’s Court issued a Notice on Civil Procedures in Foreign State Sovereign Immunity Cases (关于涉外国国家豁民事案件相关程序事项的通知). The notice lists 31 intermediate courts with jurisdiction over such cases, and spells out procedures such as service of process. China approved a Foreign State Immunity Law (外国国家豁免法) in 2023.
The National Health Commission and the State Administration for Market Regulation jointly issued 50 food safety national standards and nine revised standards dealing with labeling prepacked food, listing possible allergy triggers, best-before date, and others. The new standards ban misleading labels such as “zero additives“ and “no additives.”
The Taiwan Affairs Office said the Shanghai First Intermediate People’s Court convicted Taiwan-based publisher Li Yanhe (李延賀) of inciting secession and sentenced him to three years in prison. Li, also known by his pen name Fucha (富察), is editor-in-chief of Taiwan-based Gusa Press (八旗文化). He was born in mainland China but became a Taiwan citizen after years of residence. Gusa Press has published books that are critical of China’s government.
Hong Kong
Police Commissioner Raymond Siu said that 1,359 child sexual abuse cases were reported in the city in the past two years, and warned that some children are being groomed online. A police survey of 2,000 secondary school students last year found that more than 60% of those interviewed had experienced various forms of online grooming, including receiving explicit messages and being asked for nude photos.
A panel of three Court of Appeal justices upheld the acquittal of Democratic Party chairman Lo Kin-Hei in connection with a 2019 protest. Lo had been accused of taking part in an unlawful assembly. He was among 135 people arrested outside the Chinachem Golden Plaza in Tsim Sha Tsui on November 18, 2019. The appeal panel ruled that the prosecution failed to prove Lo had the necessary intent to support criminal charges against him.
The commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption urged the public not to incite blank or invalid votes ahead of Legislative Council elections in December. The upcoming poll will be the second legislative election since the city reduced the number of directly elected seats and introduced other changes to shut out pro-democracy parties. Encouraging blank or invalid votes or non-voting was criminalized.
Japan
The parliament approved legislation that bars candidates from using inappropriate self-promotion tactics, such as putting images of products or scantily clad women on election posters. The revised public offices election law says campaign posters may not contain content that harms the reputation or dignity of other individuals or political parties. The new rules will take effect one month after promulgation, probably in time for the Tokyo metropolitan assembly vote in June and House of Councillors race this summer.
The Osaka High Court became the fifth high court in Japan to rule that the country's same-sex marriage ban is unconstitutional. However, it upheld a lower court decision not to award damages to the plaintiffs, three same-sex couples. The court said civil law provisions that do not allow same-sex marriage violate the constitutional right to equality. The privileges that result from matrimony, including inheritance rights, tax benefits, and joint custody of children, are granted only to heterosexual couples.
The Tokyo District Court stripped the Unification Church of its status as a religious corporation with tax advantages, although it will still be allowed to operate. The church, which is the first religious organization in Japan to be dissolved for civil law violations, said it will appeal. The court said it swindled at least 20.4 billion yen ($135.4 million) in donations from more than 1,500 people.
Koreas
After more than a month of deliberation, the South Korean Constitutional Court has still not announced when it will issue a decision in the impeachment trial of President Yoon Suk Yeol. The clock is ticking: two of the current eight justices will end their terms on April 18. Article 23 of the Constitutional Court Act requires a minimum of seven justices to deliberate cases; six justices must approve impeachment decisions.
The Seoul High Court reversed a lower court’s ruling to find the main opposition leader, Lee Jae-myung, not guilty of violating the election law. A lower court had sentenced Lee to a one-year prison term with a suspension of two years, a penalty that if, if upheld, would have jeopardized his bid to run in the next presidential election. South Korea will hold a snap election within 60 days if the Constitutional Court votes to impeach President Yoon.
South Korea’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission admitted for the first time that its adoption agencies committed widespread malpractices when sending children for adoption abroad, chiefly during the 1950s through 1980s. The government agency recommended that the state apologize for violating the rights of South Korean adoptees. Among other things, adoption agencies falsified documents to present babies as orphans when they had known parents.
Taiwan
The Executive Yuan approved a proposal to establish a Personal Data Protection Commission, an independent agency tasked with improving personal data protection in Taiwan. The proposal still needs legislative approval. In 2022, the Constitutional Court gave the Executive Yuan a three-year grace period to set up an independent supervisory agency to improve protection of personal data and privacy. The deadline is August 12, 2025.
The Taipei District Court extended the detention of former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and three co-defendants who are accused of bribery and embezzlement in the Core Pacific City corruption case. The court cited flight risk and the potential to tamper with witnesses and destroy evidence. The four suspects are to be held incommunicado for another two months.