Michael Caster

Very excited to drop our long awaited report on #China's Digital Silk Road! We show how Beijing is seeking to create a China-centric global authoritarian alternative to digital governance norms, through examples in the Indo-Pacific article19.org/resources/chin…

#PropagandaMonitor: After reporting on #China’s military parade and Beijing’s efforts to influence Western narratives about #Taiwan, Danish newspaper @berlingske came under scrutiny by the Chinese embassy in Copenhagen, which attempted to publicly discredit its work. rsf.org/en/press-freed…

Iran’s control over the internet is modelled on China's approach, and China plays an advisory role in Iran’s tech and surveillance – including efforts to ‘centralise control and perfect digital authoritarianism', says ARTICLE 19’s @michaelcaster thewirechina.com/2026/03/15/how…

As #Vietnam tightens its #cybersecurity framework, a new draft decree reveals how #digitalprivacy may increasingly be shaped not just by protection but by state control. tinyurl.com/yc3ufphj

Today, we launched the 2nd edition of the #PropagandaMonitor, which focuses on #China. After investigating Russian propaganda, the project will now expose Beijing's strategies to reshape the global media landscape by influencing foreign news outlets and spreading its narrative. rsf.org/en/reporters-w…

“There’s a documented history...that has shaped the infrastructure, governance and the institutions of how #Iran has approached information control in the digital domain that aligns with #China’s digital authoritarian model,” I spoke with the @thewirechina thewirechina.com/2026/03/15/how…

Freedom House is glad to join with 34 other organizations to urge the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to mark up the bipartisan and bicameral #TransnationalRepression Policy Act (H.R. 4829/S.2525) this spring. This would be a critical step forward in the fight to counter authoritarian efforts to silence dissent beyond their borders. Read the letter here: freedomhouse.org/article/reques…

Beijing's "long-arm jurisdiction" targeting overseas independent cultural spaces has become routine. Last year, the first Indiechina Film Festival in New York was canceled after the CCP leveraged the safety of directors' families back home to force them to withdraw. Now the CCP has hacked the ticketing system for a similar film festival in Berlin, attempting to keep audiences locked out of the cinema. Human Rights in China calls attention to these acts of suppression and welcomes those in the Berlin area to join the viewing!

This #China govt law is actually aimed at the utter eradication of distinct identities, not “forging a shared national identity.”

Reads like a clear expression of intent to ramp up its long-arm and often illegal policing efforts under the guise of “countering corruption”. Read more about the extrajudicial methods long used by the CCP to conduct such operations across the globe: safeguarddefenders.com/en/publication…

Today, Italy deported eight Chinese nationals who had assisted Chinese overseas police in carrying out transnational repression against me over the past three years. My team and I sincerely thank the Italian government for all its efforts, and extend our sincere gratitude to Safeguard Defenders for their continuous monitoring, documentation, and support throughout this process. Over the past three years, my team and I have worked every day to uphold press freedom in China by continuously documenting and publishing cases of social injustice censored within China’s domestic internet, as well as the Chinese people’s aspirations for freedom, democracy, and the rule of law. As a result, we have endured prolonged transnational repression by the Chinese government. My team, our family members, and I have faced persistent and wide-ranging harassment, threats, and violations across the globe. We are heartened to see the Italian government taking action against China’s transnational repression overseas. This represents not only protection for us, but also a defense of democratic principles and the rule of law. Moving forward, we will continue to work with various organizations to support Chinese dissidents around the world and to resist the Chinese Communist Party’s tactics of transnational repression. Team Teacher Li

Transnational Repression: Italy orders expulsion of eight Chinese nationals on national security grounds following years of relentless surveillance, harassment and threats against prominent Chinese dissident and influencer @whyyoutouzhele Read more 👇 safeguarddefenders.com/en/blog/transn…

Beijing’s intimidation doesn’t stop at its borders. As highlighted in a bipartisan op-ed by @SenDanSullivan and @SenJeffMerkley, the CCP is targeting people living in the United States through threats, coercion, and hostage diplomacy. From the case of @AnnaKwokFY to families facing harassment on U.S. soil, transnational repression is an attack on our sovereignty and our freedoms. Congress must continue bipartisan action to expose and stop these abuses. wsj.com/opinion/china-…

On the 8-month jail time the Hong Kong gov't imposed on my father: 1. To sentence my 69-year-old father under the pretext that his actions lowered the “likelihood” of my return to stand trial is not justice; it is a judicial farce. I will return only to a liberated Hong Kong.

HKDC's @AnnaKwokFY responds: "Even one day's too many. Today my father officially became another of the over 1,900 political prisoners in HK...I hope society won't forget or become numb. If we remember, there'll be a response. We must all become stronger" x.com/hkdc_us/status…

From #JimmyLai’s sentencing to the collective punishment of activists’ families, Beijing is watching how the US responds as it escalates repression in #HongKong.@jonstivers' piece lays out the tools US has—Congress can start passing HKETO Certification Act.thediplomat.com/2026/02/americ…

This is collective punishment at its basest. Hong Kong authorities have no shame.

The Iranian government has engineered a digital ecosystem designed for surveillance, censorship, and control. But this model didn't develop in isolation. China provided tech tools & the governance "playbook" that underpin this system. Find out more: article19.org/resources/tigh…

RT @article19org: We were deeply saddened to learn about the passing of our friend and colleague, human rights giant Mugambi Kiai, who led…

A new report highlights Iran’s use of Chinese technology to enforce Internet controls. @RFERL spoke with @article19org’s @michaelcaster on the methods used to impose a full-scale digital blackout during January’s anti-government protests. rferl.org/a/iran-china-i…

While Trump is busy dismantling America's freedom and democracy-promotion apparatus, China has been quietly helping its autocratic little brothers build systems of information control.