May 25-31
China
The Supreme People’s Court marked the fifth anniversary of the Civil Code by releasing a series of typical cases highlighting the code’s role in protecting civil rights and addressing key public concerns. The cases cover issues such as elevator installation in old neighborhoods, charging station access, elderly care services, workplace sexual harassment, online defamation in fan culture, and protection of elderly workers’ rights.
The general offices of the Communist Party Central Committee and State Council jointly released a policy document, Opinion on Improving the Modern Enterprise System with Chinese Characteristics (《关于完善中国特色现代企业制度的意见》). Official media said the document is intended to make Chinese companies more dynamic, resilient, and competitive by reinforcing party leadership, scientific management, and incentives to innovate.
The Chinese Embassy in the United States lodged an official protest in response to the US State Department’s announcement that it would “aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students.” The embassy said: “Such a move by the US side will seriously undermine the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese students in the US. It will also further damage the image and reputation of the US itself.”
China’s embassy in Bangladesh warned Chinese citizens against scams by cross-border marriage agencies that advertise matchmaking services or brides for sale. It said no companies have been licensed in China to conduct cross-border matchmaking and that the Bangladeshi government severely punishes human trafficking. With millions of mostly rural Chinese men unable to find wives—partly due to decades of strictly limiting births—some seek brides from neighboring countries.
The nonprofit China Law Translate website has translated into English several significant legal documents that have received little publicity abroad, including the Implementation Rules for the PRC Provisions on the Administration of Foreigners' Religious Activities in the Mainland (which took effect on May 1, 2025), the Supreme People’s Court’s Interpretation on Several Issues Regarding the Application of Law in Administrative Open Government Information Cases (which takes effect June 1, 2025), and the multi-agency Measures on the Management of the National Online Identity Authentication Public Service, which take effect on July 15, 2025.
Hong Kong
A week after the Legislative Council approved legislation creating a licensing regime for fiat-referenced stablecoins, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) released for public comment two draft regulations containing guidelines for stablecoin issuers and anti-money laundering requirements. Proposals include allowing US dollar reserves for Hong Kong dollar-referenced stablecoins due to the HKD-USD peg and relatively limited supply of HKD securities. Issuers must perform enhanced due diligence; reserves must consist of high-quality, liquid, and low-risk assets; and issuers cannot pay interest to stablecoin holders but may offer marketing incentives. Public comments may be submitted through June.
The Chinese government and representatives from 32 other countries held a signing ceremony in Hong Kong for the new International Organization for Mediation (IOMed or 国际调解院), described as the first intergovernmental organization dedicated to resolving international disputes through mediation. The treaty-based organization was initiated by China in 2022 and a preparatory office was opened in Hong Kong in 2023 to negotiate the organization’s founding convention. The founding members are all developing countries. The IOMed will mediate disputes between states, between a state and nationals of another state, and between private international entities. Hong Kong officials described IOMed as “on a par with” the United Nations’ International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.
Hong Kong universities offered streamlined admissions to international students stranded by a raft of recent US government policy moves. Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said the government will support its universities, including by increasing the quota for international student intake if needed. Hong Kong currently offers 30,000 places for international students at its eight publicly funded universities.
Japan
The Japanese and Chinese governments reported progress in talks to lift China’s ban on importing Japanese seafood. China imposed the ban in 2023 after Japan began gradually releasing treated wastewater from the quake-damaged Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean, a step that was approved as safe by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said the two sides “reached an agreement on the technical requirements necessary to resume exports.” Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and other top Japanese officials spoke in terms of a deal having been reached, but a statement from China’s General Administration of Customs only mentioned “substantial progress.”
The Tokyo High Court ordered the national government and Tokyo metropolitan government to pay ¥166 million (about $1.15 million) in compensation to Ohkawara Kakohki Co. President Masaaki Okawara and two others for a botched investigation in 2020-2021 into alleged unauthorized exports of spray dryers, which authorities claimed could produce biological weapons. The court found the case fundamentally flawed. It said the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, which oversees export activities, told police they were misinterpreting export control rules but police ignored them.
Koreas
South Korean presidential front-runner Lee Jae-myung proposed a constitutional amendment to make it harder to impose martial law. Lee’s proposal would require legislative approval within 24 hours of the president declaring martial law. Lee, whose Democratic Party controls the National Assembly, narrowly lost the last presidential election to conservative Yoon Suk Yeol. As president, Yoon briefly declared martial law in December 2024; the National Assembly promptly impeached him, and the Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment in April.
The Democratic Party (DP) said it instructed two of its National Assembly members to withdraw controversial bills—one to expand the number of Supreme Court justices from 14 to 100 and the other to allow non-lawyers to serve as justices—in response to accusations of trying to politicize the judiciary. However, the DP did not withdraw other bills that propose to raise the number of Supreme Court justices to 30 and appoint a special counsel to investigate the Supreme Court. The DP has criticized the court for its recent ruling against party leader Lee Jae-myung in an election violation case.
Relatedly, the National Association of Judges held an emergency meeting to discuss growing concerns over judicial independence and public trust in the courts. The meeting was prompted by debates over the nature and timing of the Supreme Court’s ruling in an election violation case against DP presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung. The judges deferred any formal resolution until after the June 3 election.
Chinese investment in South Korean real estate is causing controversy and calls for new restrictions. Critics claim that foreign buyers can more easily evade regulations designed to cool the real estate market, and in some cases use funds smuggled into the country illegally. A furore erupted in mid-May when it was reported that the Chinese government owns about 4,100 square meters of land in Seoul’s Itaewon district, close to South Korean government and diplomatic sites.
Taiwan
The Executive Yuan is finalizing a set of proposed legal and administrative measures designed to counter Chinese infiltration in line with the national security strategies announced March 13 by President Lai Ching-te. The measures include proposed amendments to 11 laws, 75 policy initiatives, and 17 programs. Some can be implemented without approval by the opposition-controlled legislature, such as requiring religious groups that visit mainland China to register their program with the Taiwan government and requiring Chinese spouses of Taiwanese citizens to renounce their mainland household registration. However, opposition support would be needed to amend the Criminal Code of the Armed Forces to reinstate a military court system and increase penalties on military officers convicted of espionage or swearing allegiance to an enemy state. Other proposed measures include increasing background checks on government personnel and updating education materials to reinforce Taiwanese identity.
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said it is considering requiring civil servants at all levels to obtain permission from the Ministry of the Interior to travel to mainland China, expanding a requirement that applies to those of upper ranks.
The Constitutional Court accepted the Control Yuan’s petition to review the constitutionality of this year’s central government budget. The Control Yuan said that deep budget cuts by the opposition-controlled legislature endanger its ability to carry out its duties and undermine the principle of a separation of powers. Taiwan’s Control Yuan has powers of audit, censure, and impeachment with respect to other branches of government. The Constitutional Court, however, is currently immobilized because of the legislature’s rejection of two slates of President Lai Ching-te’s nominees for its bench, which currently has just eight out of 15 seats filled.
The Tainan branch of the High Court sentenced two businessmen and eight active service members to prison for spying on behalf of China. Prosecutors said that beginning in 2021, two brothers surnamed Hsu traveled to Macau and Zhuhai in China’s Guangdong Province, where they set up companies as a front for collecting Taiwanese military intelligence. They worked with pawnshops to identify service members in need of money.
The Cabinet approved a draft measure that it said would make it easier for foreign nationals to live and work in Taiwan. The proposed changes to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) would allow graduates of the world’s top 1,000 universities — up from the current top 500 — to seek employment in Taiwan without work experience. The maximum length of stay on a digital nomad visa would be extended to two years, from the current six months, and some foreign professionals would be allowed to obtain permanent residency after one uninterrupted year in Taiwan.
A Taiwanese citizen was permanently barred from donating blood after they admitted consuming cannabis gummies during a visit to Thailand, where cannabis is legal. Taiwan’s Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act classifies cannabis as a category two narcotic and mandates a lifetime blood donation ban for persons with a history of narcotic use. The incident sparked public debate.