An international investigation involving dozens of news organizations has revealed how Beijing is exploiting global institutions - from Interpol to the United Nations - to silence critics and expand its authoritarian reach worldwide.
Led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), the project, China Targets, brought together more than 100 journalists from 42 media organizations, including Radio Free Asia.
Over a 10-month period, reporters interviewed 105 individuals across 23 countries who had been pursued, harassed, or threatened by Chinese authorities - often for merely expressing dissent online or engaging in peaceful activism.
Targets include pro-democracy advocates from China and Hong Kong, as well as Uyghur and Tibetan exiles. Many described experiences of digital surveillance, threats to family members still in China and transnational pressure campaigns carried out through diplomatic or legal channels.
China Targets documents how protests were suppressed during Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s foreign visits. Since 2019, at least seven of Xi’s 31 trips saw local police detain or harass protesters.
The investigation also found that Beijing has weaponized international organizations such as Interpol - abusing its Red Notice system to target dissidents - and co-opted parts of the United Nations to surveil and intimidate human rights advocates, particularly those speaking out about abuses in Xinjiang and Tibet.
In one high-profile case, documents reviewed by RFA show that Chinese authorities enlisted billionaire Jack Ma to try to personally persuade a Chinese businessman whose extradition was being sought from France to return to China.
The revelations come amid mounting international concern over Beijing’s efforts to reshape global norms and institutions in line with its political interests. Critics warn that these moves are undermining international frameworks originally designed to protect fundamental rights and the rule of law.
Edited by Mat Pennington.
