Category: English — Responses

RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-18

Rapid-response standards: Editorial Standards · Sources & Attribution · Corrections & Updates

A “996” schedule can violate Mainland Chinese overtime limits, but unlawful overtime is not automatically forced labour. Forced labour requires coercion or menace of penalty and lack of genuine voluntariness. Free China calls for enforcement of working-time law, protection from retaliation, independent reporting, and supply-chain due diligence focused on coercion, document retention, wage withholding, threats and inability to leave.

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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0905-01

Hong Kong police have arrested three people over alleged seditious conduct connected to an August 31 remembrance outside Prince Edward MTR station. The allegations have not been adjudicated.

Holding flowers, remembering a disputed historical event and expressing political views should not by themselves establish criminal intent. Authorities should disclose the specific words and conduct relied upon, preserve access to counsel and judicial review, and avoid treating remembrance itself as evidence of sedition.

National-security laws must be applied narrowly, transparently and consistently with fundamental freedoms.

News + Editorial: Hong Kong National-Security Police Arrest Three Over Prince Edward Remembrance
Formal Press Release: FCM Condemns Hong Kong Arrests Over Prince Edward Remembrance
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-18

“996” schedules can violate overtime law in Mainland China, but unlawful overtime is not automatically forced labour. International forced-labour standards require coercion, menace of penalty and a lack of genuine voluntariness.

Authorities should enforce overtime protections and protect workers from retaliation. Companies and importers should examine threats, document retention, recruitment debt, wage withholding and whether workers can actually leave.

The EU product-ban regime should be applied on evidence connecting forced labour to specific products and supply chains, not by collapsing every labour-law violation into the forced-labour category.

News + Editorial: Mainland China’s ‘996’ Overtime, Forced Labour and the EU Product-Ban Rule: What the Law Actually Requires
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0903-03

Mainland China has set ambitious 2030 targets for “little giants,” SME clusters, productivity and R&D. Free China calls for public reporting on who receives grants, loans, procurement and tax support; competition on equal terms; and outcome measurement based on productivity, innovation and job quality rather than target counts alone.

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News + Editorial: Mainland China Sets 2030 Targets for ‘Little Giants’ and SME Innovation Support
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-06

Mainland China and Egypt announced expanded cooperation across logistics, technology, critical minerals, finance and security, while Xi proposed a new regional-security framework. Free China calls for transparent financing and contract terms, measurable delivery, technology and data safeguards, and respect for regional sovereignty. Announced cooperation should not be counted as implementation until projects and institutions actually exist.

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News + Editorial: Mainland China and Egypt Expand Strategic Cooperation as Xi Proposes a New Middle East Security Framework
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-02

Taiwan proposes NT$145.7 billion in additional 2026 defense spending. Free China supports transparent democratic defense planning but stresses that proposed appropriations, signed contracts, delivered systems, trained units and operational readiness are different stages. Publish milestones, costs, maintenance and training outcomes so capability can be measured rather than assumed.

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News + Editorial: Taiwan Proposes NT$145.7 Billion in Additional 2026 Defense Spending
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-15

Mainland China objected to several G20 finance-statement paragraphs on non-market policies, imbalances, economic surveillance and debt coordination. Free China calls for comparable subsidy, industrial-policy, trade and debt data, clear definitions and measurable commitments. Competing U.S. and Mainland Chinese diagnoses should remain attributed rather than treated as self-proving facts.

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News + Editorial: Mainland China Dissents From G20 Language on Non-Market Policies and Global Imbalances
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-07

Mainland China conducted an August seabed survey east of Taiwan and has announced recurring coast-guard patrols; Taiwan rejects Beijing’s jurisdiction claims and has shadowed a Mainland Chinese research vessel. Free China calls for transparent legal positions, navigational information, incident-prevention rules and peaceful resolution under applicable international law rather than jurisdiction by operational repetition.

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News + Editorial: PRC Survey and Coast-Guard Patrols East of Taiwan Deepen a Maritime Jurisdiction Dispute
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-03

Some Mainland Chinese rare-earth suppliers are pausing or delaying U.S. shipments and export-license delays affect multiple countries. The evidence does not show a blanket embargo. Free China calls for transparent licensing rules, timely decisions, published data and accelerated diversification, recycling and substitution so critical supply chains cannot be destabilized by opaque political risk.

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News + Editorial: Some Mainland Chinese Rare-Earth Suppliers Pause U.S. Shipments as Licensing Delays Persist
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RAPID RESPONSE | September 5, 2026 | P5-EVT-2026-0904-17

Singapore confirms 52 citizens are detained in Guangxi in an ongoing suspected pyramid-scheme investigation and says all have received consular visits. No individual guilt has been established publicly. Free China calls for prompt notice of legal basis, access to counsel, continued consular access, humane conditions, case-specific information and judicial review.

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News + Editorial: 52 Singapore Citizens Detained in Guangxi; Singapore Seeks Due Process and Further Case Information
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