Arresting Dissidents · Full chronicle and history

On November 5, the National Security Department of the Hong Kong Police Force arrested a 34-year-old man, alleging that he imported seditious books from Taiwan and sold them in Hong Kong. Hong Kong media reported that the arrested individual is a director of "Migratory Birds," an organization supporting prisoners. "Migratory Birds" previously stated that customs had seized 60 books ordered by the organization from Taiwan under the National Security Law.

When influencer Feng Ge appeared in Hangzhou to celebrate Halloween, he was taken away by local police as soon as he showed up.

Influencer Feng Ge, who recently sparked widespread discussion by releasing videos filming the lives of the underclass in Majuqiao, was taken away by police at a Halloween event in Hangzhou on October 31, and later reappeared participating in a half marathon on November 1.

A video by influencer Fengge on Bilibili showing Beijing's Majuqiao bottom-tier day laborers and their harsh living conditions quickly surpassed 3 million views, after which he was reportedly taken away by police during a livestream.

On October 21, Zhang Wenbin, a volunteer who has long been engaged in environmental supervision and runs the WeChat public account "Zero-Distance Pollution Task Force," was taken away by police from Wanzai County, Yichun, Jiangxi, in Urumqi. Online reports say he is suspected of extortion; colleagues suspect it is related to his exposure of environmental violations by Wanzai enterprises in 2023. No official announcement has been made yet.

According to a report by China Digital Times, the detention of labor rights activist Feng Rui has drawn outside attention while highlighting official pressure and censorship surrounding labor issues. Related commentary noted that if recording injustice requires walking on thin ice, society will ultimately become empty and silent.

Zhang Yi, a dissident from Wuhan, was arrested by Chinese Communist Party authorities on suspicion of "inciting secession" after showing a photo of the Dalai Lama to a Tibetan woman at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, Tibet. His family learned on October 8, 2026 that the Lhasa Public Security Bureau had transferred the case to the procuratorate for review and prosecution. Zhang Yi remains detained at the Lhasa Detention Center, and his lawyer has not yet been granted access to the case files.

On October 6, Caixin revealed that science popularization blogger Hong Guangyu was criminally detained by Dalian police. He had helped cherry growers draft and revise complaint materials and spoken out online. Sources said the detention was related to his involvement in fruit farmers' rights defense.

On October 2, Hong Kong’s “Courtline” and “Independent Media” reported that Tang Ho-wing, founder of the online media outlet “Explosion Head,” and dentist Lee Ying-chi were granted bail. Tang walked out of the Yau Ma Tei Police Station in the early hours of that day and left after thanking reporters. The two were arrested on September 30 in connection with an activity outside Prince Edward Station on August 31 and related reporting; the police investigation on suspicion of incitement is still ongoing, and bail does not mean the case has been dropped.

On September 30, Tang Ho-wing, founder of the Hong Kong independent online media "Boom News - Afro," was arrested by the Hong Kong police on suspicion of "publishing false information to incite" on August 31, when he was reporting on a rally commemorating the anniversary of the 2019 crackdown on protests. The Hong Kong Journalists Association said he is the first journalist arrested on suspicion of incitement since the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance took effect, and Reporters Without Borders condemned the weaponization of national security procedures.

On September 30, Tang Ho-wing, founder of the Hong Kong internet media outlet “Explosion Head,” and dentist Lee Ying-chi were arrested in connection with an activity and reporting outside Prince Edward Station on August 31, with police launching an investigation on suspicion of incitement.

Min Zin, director of a Myanmar think tank, was arrested in June while attending an academic conference in Kunming, charged with espionage and endangering state security. His wife, Sylvia, testified before the U.S. Congress on September 17, calling on Trump to secure her husband's release during his meeting with Xi Jinping next week.

On September 19, Hong Guangyu, a former reporter for the Beijing Science and Technology Report and a popular science author on food safety, was taken away across provinces in Xiamen by the Zhongshan Branch of the Dalian Public Security Bureau. He was criminally detained on suspicion of picking quarrels and provoking trouble and is currently being held at the Dalian Detention Center. Netizens exposed the incident on September 24, and his family confirmed it.

On September 16, Dalian fruit grower Yu Kewei, who participated in the rights-defense campaign over the death of cherry trees, was approved for arrest on suspicion of the crime of picking quarrels and provoking trouble; the charges are related to his online speech. Ji Xiaowei and several other fruit growers engaged in rights defense had previously been arrested as well.

Liu Kai, a 20-year-old college student in Beijing, used circumvention software to follow anti-CCP influencers on YouTube and downloaded videos to share with classmates. He was criminally detained by the Haidian Branch of the Beijing Public Security Bureau on suspicion of inciting subversion of state power.

According to a program on the Luther Society, the King of Tibet issued a public announcement claiming that netizens were distorting China’s rescue work in Nepal and one-sidedly applying other countries’ cases to make “malicious comparisons,” and that such netizens would be punished. Several netizens have been detained.

On September 9, 2026, the Scholars at Risk Network released an email addressed to Xi Jinping, urging the Chinese government to immediately and unconditionally release the Burmese-American scholar Min Htin, who was detained at Kunming Airport on June 3 and later accused of suspected espionage. The email was also copied to several officials on both the Chinese and American sides. This is the second time in two weeks that the organization has spoken out for Min Htin.

Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, who were arrested, were announced to be expelled from the Party and the military, and transferred to a military court; this news was released nine months after their arrest.

On August 31, some Hong Kong residents held bouquets and chanted slogans outside Prince Edward Station to commemorate the 2019 crackdown on protests. Hong Kong police arrested them on suspicion of violating Article 24 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, "doing an act with seditious intent." As of now, eight people have been arrested in total.

The scale of the search and arrest operation has further expanded, with dozens of buses forming a convoy to transport personnel, and large numbers of police and civilians carrying sticks conducting inspections along the roads.

Zhang Yi, a Wuhan dissident who had previously been sentenced for taking part in the 1989 pro-democracy movement, was taken away by police while traveling in Lhasa, Tibet in July 2026, and was formally approved for arrest on July 28 on the charge of inciting secession.

In late July 2026, Zhu Yidan, a victim of the Zhejin Center collapse, was designated a ringleader by Hangzhou police and detained for an extended period for reposting rights-defense information online; her family publicly issued an accusation letter questioning whether judicial organs were engaging in retaliation.

On July 17, 2026, Mandy, manager of the independent bookshop Liu Xia Bookshop, who had earlier been taken away in handcuffs during a search operation by the Hong Kong Police's National Security Department, along with two other arrested employees, were granted bail pending investigation and left the police station.

On July 15, 2026, the National Security Department of the Hong Kong Police Force searched the independent bookstores "Lau Ha Shuk Se" and "Tin Yuen Shuk Uk", arrested five staff members and persons in charge on suspicion of committing the sedition offense under Article 23 of the Basic Law, and seized multiple boxes of books.

Reuters disclosed that Youlin Chen, a Chinese-American seismologist studying North Korea's nuclear tests, has been secretly detained by China for nearly two years and charged with espionage.

Chinese-American seismologist Chen Youlin has been detained by China for more than 600 days over his research on North Korean nuclear tests, has yet to face a formal trial, and faces espionage charges.

A person claiming to be a staff member of the Three Gorges Corporation revealed that the Three Gorges Dam is leaking severely and that managers have already relocated their families; the video claims that the individual was subsequently arrested by local police.

Zhang Naixian, an independent film director in Beijing, was taken away from his home by multiple police (Public Security) officers on the evening of July 1 for posting satirical comments about the authorities on the X platform. His family later received a criminal detention notice for the crime of picking quarrels and provoking trouble issued by the Haidian Branch.

Kim Myeong-il said that in July, Autumn Rain Church, Wuhan Cedar Tree Church and Hunan Rock Church were raided, and personnel may have been summoned by the relevant authorities.

On July 1, 2026, Zhang Yi, a leader of the 1989 student movement, was taken away by police while sightseeing at Sera Monastery in Lhasa, Tibet, after showing a Tibetan woman a photo of the Dalai Lama on his phone. On July 28, the Lhasa Municipal Procuratorate approved his arrest on suspicion of inciting secession.

On June 24, 2026, the National Security Department of the Hong Kong Police searched the independent bookstore "Hunter Bookstore" in Sham Shui Po on suspicion of offences under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, including incitement, and money laundering, and arrested its person in charge, former district councillor Wong Man-huen, and others.

The prominent underground Early Rain Church was raided by police, with two pastors criminally detained and dozens of others questioned, drawing outside attention to religious persecution.

On June 14, 2026, when Chengdu Autumn Rain Covenant Church held a Sunday gathering at the Jiangyou City auditorium, it was raided by a large number of police; 33 church members at the scene were taken away and detained, and several elders were not released.

Min Zin, a US-Myanmar political scholar, suddenly disappeared at Kunming Changshui International Airport in Yunnan. It was later confirmed by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs that he has been criminally detained on suspicion of endangering state security.

A capture incident occurred at Beijing Pinggu Airport, after which commercial flights were prohibited within a 300‑kilometre radius of Beijing Tiananmen, and the parachuting base was dissolved.

Wang Ning traveled from Nanjing to Beijing to attend the Two Sessions, during which he was arrested and detained.

On February 2, 2026, the Jinjiang Branch of the Chengdu Public Security Bureau announced that former investigative journalist Liu Hu and self-media person Wu Yingjiao were subject to criminal coercive measures on suspicion of fabricating accusations to frame others and illegal business operations. The two had previously published reports alleging that Pu Fayou, the Party Secretary of Pujang County, was suspected of illegally seizing corporate assets. The incident sparked condemnation from journalist organizations and public opinion both at home and abroad. On February 14, the police, citing the application of the two individuals, changed the coercive measures to release on bail pending trial in accordance with Article 67 of the Criminal Procedure Law. On September 10, 2026, defense lawyer Zhou Ze released the decision of the Jinjiang Branch to lift the bail pending trial, citing 'changes in the case circumstances,' and Liu Hu would not need to stand trial. Liu Hu had previously filed real-name reports against several high-ranking officials between 2012 and 2013, leading to multiple detentions.

Zhang Youxia was secretly placed under control and arrested in December, and the news was made public the following January.

Police in Beihai, Guangxi, took away Pastor Kim Myeong-il on suspicion of the crime of illegally using the information network. Kim Myeong-il said that a total of 18 people were taken away, some of whom were released on bail pending trial, while 8 remain detained.

Pastor Jin Mingri (formerly a U.S. citizen) was arrested by the CCP in China last October (calculated as October 2025 based on the video release date), along with dozens of members of the Xi'an church. Pastor Jin had lived in the U.S. and later became a U.S. citizen, but chose to return to China to shepherd the church.

On April 25, 2025, a Chinese netizen was criminally detained by police on suspicion of picking quarrels and provoking trouble, for circumventing the Great Firewall to fill in real working conditions such as evening overtime at a former employer on an overseas job-seeking website, prompting questions about the abuse of pocket offenses and the conviction of online speech.

In a speech at the end of 2024, Gao Shanwen expressed sensitive views on the cyclical bubbles, consumption structure, actual growth rate, and future low growth of the Chinese economy. The speech was subsequently banned, marking his final public address.

On November 5, 2024, US-based seismologist Chen Youlin was arrested by state security at the Beijing airport as he prepared to return to the United States after visiting family and lecturing. His wife stated that he has already faced over 100 interrogations and is facing trial on fabricated espionage charges.

On July 30, 2024, 22-year-old Fang Yirong from Loudi, Hunan, imitated the Sitong Bridge protest by hanging anti-Xi banners and playing a broadcast on a pedestrian bridge in Xinhua County. He subsequently recorded a video declaring his opposition to authoritarian rule and was arrested by the authorities shortly thereafter.

In 2024, Nanjing rights defender Shi Tingfu was arrested across provinces for helping Xinjiang fruit farmers defend their rights, and was subsequently sentenced to three years for the crime of picking quarrels and provoking trouble. Radio Free Asia reported that his health deteriorated during detention.

Jing Shuren, a migrant worker and self-media creator in Gansu, was criminally detained by Lanzhou police in 2024 for repeatedly reposting posts by his friend Zhou Lubao that exposed companies' unpaid wages.

In 2024, blogger Hui Jian publicly reported Liu Ren, president of the Cambodia Anhui Chamber of Commerce, for telecom fraud; afterwards the article was deleted and he lost contact. Acquaintances told Jiemian News that Liu Ren's side had proposed paying for post deletion before calling the police, and Hui Jian was criminally detained on extortion charges; reporters contacted multiple parties but received no response.

On October 30, 2023, Gu Wanming, former head of the Guangdong branch of the Xinhua News Agency, issued an open letter in his capacity as a veteran Party member, making five demands regarding the death of Li Keqiang: suspending the cremation, setting up an investigation team, holding those responsible accountable, conducting an autopsy, and holding the funeral according to protocol. He was subsequently placed under criminal detention.

Qiao Xinxin, the initiator of the Demolish the Wall Movement, was cross-border arrested in Laos by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) police and brought back to China. He was later secretly sentenced to 5 years in prison and subjected to torture in prison.

After Pan Shiyi arrived in New York in September 2020, a friend who interacted closely with him on Weibo was arrested for mailing a letter containing sensitive information to eleven people, leaving Pan Shiyi unable to return to China to this day.

While working at CCTV, Cheng Lei was secretly taken away by Chinese state security authorities for disclosing some economic figures from the government work report to foreign media, and was detained on suspicion of illegally providing state secrets to parties outside China.

Ren Zhiqiang was taken away by special personnel from the Beijing municipal discipline inspection commission; his eldest son and long-time secretary were arrested the same day.

Ren Zhiqiang disappeared from public view after an article criticizing Xi Jinping.

After Ren Zhiqiang's article circulated, he lost contact for a time; Pan Shiyi later said that 10 other recipients besides himself were all arrested.

During the Wuhan pandemic, Ren Zhiqiang wrote a long article criticizing epidemic prevention and control as well as the personality cult, which caused a huge反响 and he subsequently went missing.

The video says that after Wuhan doctor Li Wenliang warned about the spread of the virus and conditions in the hospital, he was ordered to receive an admonition, write and sign a confession statement; the incident subsequently drew international attention.

Nicknamed “Review”, Li Yanheng was arrested by Shanghai state security on charges of endangering national security when he returned to Shanghai to handle the cancellation of his Chinese nationality.

Rights lawyers and civic activists such as Xu Zhiyong, Ding Jiaxi, and Wu Shaoping gathered in Xiamen, Fujian to discuss current affairs and the development of civil society in China, prompting a nationwide crackdown by the Chinese authorities.

In the early morning of November 7, 2019, while waiting for a flight at Terminal 3 of Beijing Capital International Airport, Cheng Wanjun was suddenly surrounded and captured by over a dozen SWAT police officers. He was handcuffed behind his back, hooded, shoved into a police car, and taken to an undisclosed location, beginning a long-term detention.

Hokkaido University professor Yuan Keqin was arrested by state security during a trip back to China for a funeral.

Sun Yuanping was taken by several police officers to a police station, searched, and forced to close his Twitter account after retweeting a cartoon depicting dictators, including Xi Jinping, playing cards. He was subsequently placed under administrative detention for seven days.

Days after Meng Wanzhou's arrest, Canadian citizens Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were taken away in Beijing and Dandong, respectively, by state security (MSS) on charges of endangering national security.

In January 2018, Guangzhou doctor Tan Qindong was arrested across provincial lines by police in Liangcheng County, Inner Mongolia, and detained for nearly 100 days after writing a popular science article questioning the false advertising and medication risks of Hongmao Medicinal Liquor. The case was ultimately dropped due to insufficient evidence and concluded with a settlement.

A graduate doctor working at a hospital of traditional Chinese medicine in Guangzhou published a post pointing out that Hongmao medicinal liquor contains a variety of toxic Chinese herbs. After the article was widely shared online, Inner Mongolia police, without any coordination with local public security, secretly arrested him across provincial lines and detained him for months. When he was released from prison, he was physically and psychologically traumatized and covered with illnesses.

From July 9, 2015, Chinese police (Public Security) carried out large-scale arrests, summons and detentions of over a hundred rights lawyers, rights defenders and their relatives across 23 provinces, an event known as the 709 crackdown.

The Ghanaian couple, the Jia Cheng couple, who run a café in Dandong, a border city between China and North Korea, were arrested by Chinese state security on suspicion of espionage and endangering national security; the timeline is basically the same as that of the arrest and release of the Ghanaian-Chinese businessman Su Bin.

On September 13, 2013, Beijing police criminally detained venture capitalist Wang Gongquan on suspicion of assembling a crowd to disrupt order in public places. He is a major supporter of the New Citizens' Movement, and his Weibo account had previously been deactivated.

On August 19, 2013, internet promoter Qin Zhihui (online alias Qin Huohuo) was criminally detained by Beijing police on suspicion of picking quarrels and provoking trouble and illegal business operations, becoming the landmark case of that year's special campaign against online rumors.

Well-known public intellectual Xue Manzi was arrested on charges of prostitution and had his account banned, signaling a crackdown on public opinion.

Liu Shaokun, a teacher in Deyang, Sichuan, photographed school buildings that collapsed during the earthquake and questioned the construction quality. He was taken away by police on June 25, 2008, and was later sentenced to one year of re-education through labor.

After the Guangxin Road crossing incident, Shanghai police arrested those involved, including Xu Guoming, Bian Hanwu, and Yan Xuerong. English-language materials say 11 people were arrested at the scene; the claim of dozens of arrests and nighttime raids from June 7 to 9 could not be verified.

Zhang Langlang was arrested in Hangzhou on charges including viciously attacking central leaders. At the time, Yu Qiangsheng served as the head of the special investigation team.

In the Anti-Rightist Campaign, the Chinese Communist Party labeled some individuals as rightists because intellectuals had voiced their opinions, and the people involved and their families subsequently suffered long-term political and social consequences.