Anti-CCP Slogans Calling for Democracy, Freedom Emerge Across China’s Major Cities | China in Focus

Welcome to China in Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. Our top story. Homemade slogans calling for freedom and rising up against the Chinese communist regime are resurfacing across China. A closer look at the developing situation. The transformation that you see may not be on the surface, may not be online in China, but they're deep down within people individually. Following Charlie Kirk's death, Utah's governor is warning that China and Russia are spreading disinformation online to We hear from American officials and foreign commentators. We have bots from Russia, China, all over the world that are trying to instill disinformation and encourage violence. Federal agents seized over $80 million worth of illegal vapes, most of them smuggled in from China. And the Chinese are getting richer, a lot of children get sicker. NASA is banning Chinese nationals from working on its space programs. It is part of a wider US strategy to win the space race against communist China. It's not just about the moon, it's about earth. The countries and companies that control the moon will control the earth. Taiwan is preparing for a potential Chinese invasion. On a new handbook, the island sends a message telling its people that it will never surrender. We must clearly tell our people in the handbook that Taiwan will not succumb to any authoritarian military aggression, and we will not surrender. Slogans urging the Chinese people to rise up against the communist regime and calling for freedom are surfacing across major cities, with many reportedly seen in Beijing. That's despite China's strict censorship and surveillance. Many of these banners were photographed and spread across social media platforms. One Chinese user on X said they saw three separate banners on Wednesday alone, and two of them were seen in Beijing. One of the banners appears to draw inspiration from movements in Syria, Bangladesh, and Nepal. It pointed out that Chinese people have always stayed silent, saying, quote, we need to let them know that all men are created equal. On top of that, it included, quote, we should prove to the world that those who destroy us, exploit us, enslave us, and harvest our organs Another slogan reads, tanks cannot crush the truth. Liberty will ultimately defeat autocracy. It cited the CCP's history of using tanks to crush student protesters during the Tiananmen massacre. The third banner appeared in northern China's Shen Yun, with texts emphasizing that the Chinese Communist Party doesn't equal China. China Affairs commentator and host of China Insider, David Zhang, says this resentment isn't sudden. It's the result of long-term buildup. There is a general fed up feeling among many young Chinese people, especially those who do get access through, despite scaling the firewall and increasing censorship in China, that they're still able to get access to information outside of the Chinese firewall. And in doing so, they really see a separation of reality from what's being told by Chinese state media and what's out there in the real world. Two huge banners were projected onto a building at the University in southern China just a few days before China held its military parade. They read, quote, only without the Communist Party can there be a new China. And no more lies. We want the truth. No more slavery. We want freedom. This isn't the first time protests like these have appeared in China. China, because of the digital surveillance and the massive amount of resource that they put into so-called stabilization of the power, is that many protests happen in this decentralized and very localized form, like how you can write on the walls. And in turn, even though these are just singular images or singular instances, they actually get amplified through various channels by outside social media, inside China in some degrees, and even through different chat groups. David says the change in how Chinese people think might be even more important than most outsiders realize. The transformation that you see may not be on the surface, may not be online in China, but they're deep down within people individually. So that's why you see this reflected in the form that people are now demanding liberty, freedom and fundamental changes in those protest slogans. It's been just a week since the Chinese regime showcased its military power on the streets of Beijing. Narratives of a strong communist China surfaced across the country. But these uncensored, handwritten slogans reveal the true feelings of many Chinese people. Utah's governor is warning that foreign actors are exploiting Charlie Kirk's death. He says countries like China and Russia are spreading disinformation online to stoke division and even violence in the U.S. Here's Governor Spencer Cox addressing the matter. There is a tremendous amount of disinformation. We are tracking our team, the state team, and I'm sure the federal team as well. What we're seeing is our adversaries want violence. China, we have bots from Russia, China, all over the world that are trying to instill disinformation and encourage violence. I would encourage you to ignore those, to turn off those streams and to spend a little more time with our family. Cox's warning comes as Chinese commentators are weighing in on the violence here in America. Hu Xijin, a former editor of Chinese state-run media, commented on social media. He said after Charlie Kirk's assassination, conservatives may try to fight back. Many Chinese social media users echoed those views online as well, criticizing America's political system to further stoke division in the U.S. For more on how Charlie Kirk educated young people on the threat of the Chinese Communist Party and its influence in South Korea, we bring in Morse Tan. He's the former U.S. ambassador at large for global criminal justice and dean of Liberty University School of Law. I think he was clear-minded on many things. He was a tremendous leader. He led the largest youth organization in America and had a major impact on politics and culture and the thought life of the country. It was very notable to me, he just spoke at the Build Up Korea event in South Korea, literally just days before the assassination happened. Before the assassination happened, I watched him speak both of those days. He seems to understand that the CCP is interfering in South Korea, is trying to do a lot of similar things to the sorts of things that they do in other places where they try to flood a place with the CCP people. That is in the process of happening. It seems like this current administration is taking orders from the CCP. They are trying to investigate and go after those who as a protest, those who were tearing up a Chinese flag, those who were tearing up pictures of Wang Huning, and also Han Fanming, who are the people who have been largely involved in the election fraud and other interference that is covered, by the way, by Article 3 of the Mutual Defense Treaty between the US and Korea. One of the last things Charlie did on this earth was talk in Korea about the raids on churches and on other things that are happening, the raid on the Osan joint base between the US and South Korea. These are things that he called out. In the midst of the grief, as I was shedding tears myself, I think if we could continue on Charlie's amazing legacy. He was only 31, but he did more in his short life than people who lived twice or three times as long. If we could live out his legacy where he sees the threat of the Chinese Communist Party of North Korea, what is happening in South Korea, what is happening in the United States, he was actively involved in speaking out all these things. US authorities carried out a major raid targeting vape retailers and distributors nationwide. Over 80 million dollars in illegal vapes were seized Wednesday. Many of them are made in China. Here's US Attorney General Pam Bondi speaking on the matter. Parents, talk to your children. These things seized right here today. Watermelon ice. Targeting a child? Also an American flag on it. Don't let the American flag fool you. It's Chinese. These dangerous vapes are being sold near our bases, our military bases, our schools, and they are exposing our children and service members to serious health risk from untested chemicals. Bondi says the raids were done in cooperation with the FDA and were carried out across six states, North Carolina, Arizona, Illinois, New Jersey, Georgia, and Florida. She says illegal vaping products are usually smuggled from China. They also contain high levels of nicotine, as well as metals and chemicals that fail to meet FDA's safety standards. Secretary of Health and Human Services R.F.K. Jr. chimed in on the dangers of these products hitting American shelves. They're making products there that they believe are so dangerous they can't sell to their own citizens, and they're dumping them here in our country. And the Chinese are getting richer while our children get sicker. Bondi and Kennedy says they plan to ramp up enforcement efforts and pull illegal vapes off the shelves. Among the products seized were brands called Sad Boy and Pillow Talk Ice Control. NASA's acting administrator Sean Duffy has declared that the United States will win the space race against Communist China. As the two nations compete to make it to the moon, NASA has introduced a new policy. Chinese nationals, including those who hold a U.S. work visa, will no longer be allowed to work on its space programs. NASA has banned Chinese citizens, even those with U.S. work visas, from participating in agency programs. The ban includes restricting physical and cybersecurity access to NASA facilities, materials, and its network. Even attendance at NASA-funded meetings is restricted. The rule has been in place since September 5th. The reason? I don't think they have the same intentions that we have and our international partners have on how we keep space peaceful. They have a different intention, and that's why it's so important that we win. According to a NASA spokesperson, the ban affects around 100 scientists and researchers. It comes as China ratchets up its manned lunar exploration program. It's aiming to land Chinese astronauts on the moon by 2030 and potentially establish a habitat there. Last month, China announced significant progress on its new rocket and moon lander. Earlier this month, during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit, Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping invited counties to participate in the construction of a lunar research station. We're in a second space race right now. The Chinese want to get back to the moon before us. That's not going to happen. NASA is aiming to land astronauts on the moon by mid-2027. But what happens if China wins the race? The country that lands astronauts on the moon next shapes the rules of engagement in space for decades to come. These comments were made by experts during a Senate hearing last week. Let me put it this way. China lands on the moon. The next day, we see tremendous benefits to China geopolitically, where our allies turn to them not only for space exploration, but for national security agreements, for trade agreements. If they get there first, we will see a global realignment that will impact our economy, our tax base, our ability to innovate, and our national security in terms of diplomacy and geopolitics that will affect security and many other aspects of our daily lives. NASA's overall budget will reportedly be cut by 24%, but funding for the Artemis moon landing program remains mostly unaffected. Coming up, Treasury Secretary Scott Bassett will meet Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Madrid. Meanwhile, U.S. ally Mexico is planning to slap new tariffs on Chinese autos. The move aligns with Bassett's call for a united response to China's unfair trade practices. Taiwan is preparing for a potential Chinese invasion. In a new handbook, the island sends a message telling its people that it will not surrender. We must clearly tell our people in the handbook that Taiwan will not succumb to any authoritarian military aggression, and we will not surrender. The U.S. has sentenced a student to time served and is sending her back to China. Authorities say what she smuggled could pose a serious threat. That and more in just a minute here on China In Focus. Welcome back to China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. In the coming days, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bassett is set to meet with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Madrid. The meeting comes as Mexico, a U.S. ally, announces new tariffs on Chinese automobiles. The move aligns with Bassett's push for a coordinated response to China's unfair practices. Mexico plans to raise tariffs on automobiles from China and other Asian countries to 50 percent. Currently, tariffs on Chinese cars entering Mexico are at 20 percent. On Thursday, China's Ministry of Commerce warned Mexico that it should think twice before acting. Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Friday that the tariffs were not targeting any country in particular. Officials from the two nations are set to speak next week. Analysts say Mexico's plan aligns with America's China strategy. Treasury Secretary Scott Bassett called for Mexico and Canada to match U.S. tariffs on China, describing the plan as Fortress North America. Meanwhile, Secretary Bassett will meet with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Madrid, Spain. They're set to cover key concerns, including economic and trade issues, money laundering networks and TikTok. The U.S.-China talks are part of the Treasury Secretary's trip to Europe. They'll be there from September 12th to September 18th. This week, President Trump reportedly asked the EU to impose 100 percent tariffs on China. Taiwan is telling its people how to respond if China invades. In a new handbook on civil defense, the island sends home a message that it will not surrender amid rising military threats from Beijing. Taiwan is preparing its people for the worst. The 2025 edition of its civil defense handbook, which comes out next week, will advise citizens to disbelieve all claims of defeat or surrender in the event of a military invasion. It's the first time the guidance has explicitly addressed the scenario. We must clearly tell our people in the handbook that Taiwan will not succumb to any authoritarian military aggression and we will not surrender. This concept must be understood by all people. When every Taiwanese person has this understanding, in fact, they will naturally become more psychologically resilient. The handbook gives a list of scenarios that Taiwan might face, from sabotage of undersea cables to cyber paralysis. It also warns that an adversary could make a unilateral declaration of no-sail or fly zones under the guise of military exercises, ultimately detailing an all-out military invasion. Democratic Taiwan has been facing China's escalating military pressure, which is meant to force it to accept Beijing's sovereignty claims. The global situation, whether in Europe or the Indo-Pacific region, is not a distant concern. It is right at our doorstep. So how can we better respond and prepare? In fact, how we respond and prepare effectively hinges on everything from national to civil defence and the self-safety, even self-protection awareness of every citizen. Those are all crucial. The handbook also offers guidance on how to find bomb shelters and supply stations via smartphone apps, as well as tips for preparing emergency kits for family members, including pets. Officials say the handbook was designed for people of all ages to read, featuring numerous cartoon illustrations. It also offers tips on how to discuss crisis and military invasion with children to alleviate the anxiety. U.S. authorities sentenced a Chinese Ph.D. student to three months in jail for smuggling biological material into the U.S. A student called Chen Chuanhan will return to China and be barred from re-entering the U.S. I'm happy that Ms. Han gets to go home, and I don't have a further comment for you, okay? Thank you very much. Investigators say Han sent multiple packages of biological material related to roundworms from the city of Wuhan to the U.S. in the last two years. The packages were sent to people associated with a lab at the University of Michigan. Han was stopped by Customs and Border Protection officers when arriving at an airport in Detroit in June. She was going to work at a lab at the University of Michigan for a year. Han lied to the officers about the packages she had previously sent over to the U.S. Her case is one of three Chinese citizens accused of smuggling biological material into Michigan. In another case, Yun Qingjiang was charged with conspiring with her boyfriend to bring a toxic fungus into the U.S. Her case is still pending. More than 300 South Korean workers reunited with their families on Friday. This comes just one week after being detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai battery plant in Georgia. Workers arrived in South Korea on a chartered plane and were greeted by officials, including the presidential chief of staff. Their return follows a week of intense negotiations by Seoul to win their release. South Korean businesses have long struggled to secure proper visas for specialist workers needed at project sites for months at a time. The issue has led some workers to try to circumvent U.S. visa enforcement. Meanwhile, South Korea's foreign minister said the U.S. will allow the workers to return for work in the future. We demanded that this incident should not cause any problems when these workers go back to the U.S. for work, and we received a clear assurance on that point from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The foreign minister added that the two countries have also agreed to create a working group to resolve visa issues for South Koreans. The battery plant where the workers were detained is a joint venture between Hyundai and LG Energy Solution. The facility is one of more than 20 major industrial sites that South Korean companies are currently building in the U.S. Chinese cyber attackers are escalating their campaign against the United States. This time, they're impersonating the Epoch Times to issue fake threats against federal agencies and even the White House. Hackers notified the Epoch Times of their threats, saying they sent emails posing as the newspaper. The emails contained bomb threats and shootings. It even claimed they would live stream the violence online. At the end of the email, it mentioned, quote, the Communist Party's transnational repression. That's a phrase often used in Western media coverage to describe China's long-arm suppression. Screenshots show the attackers filling out the White House Contact Us form using Epoch Times details. Similar threats were also allegedly sent to the CIA, the Justice Department and local police. The Epoch Times, founded by practitioners of the persecuted spiritual group Falun Gong, condemned the impersonation as part of Beijing's broader intimidation strategy. Back in 2024, a political insider revealed a directive from Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping to suppress Falun Gong globally. The campaign's key targets were companies founded by practitioners of Falun Gong. Xi expressed frustration with international media organizations, calling them the main hostile force against the Chinese regime and the English-speaking world. The Epoch Times sister media NTD Television, alongside other companies founded by Falun Gong practitioners, were also targeted in this email threat. Wang Wanqing, editor-in-chief of the Epoch Times' Chinese-language edition, condemned the threat, calling it a malicious matter. A U.S. law enforcement investigation is now underway. Since last May, the Epoch Times has received nearly 50 email threats. That's all for today's China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. If you have any feedback on the show or have something you'd like to see us cover, send us an email at chinainfocusatntd.com. We'd love to hear from you. For on-the-clock original news coverage, visit us at ntd.com or download our NTD app. Thanks for watching. See you soon.