Overview

• A UK-China Transparency survey found widespread harassment, surveillance and pressures to self-censor among scholars and students in Chinese studies.
• Nearly two-thirds of respondents said their universities’ reliance on Chinese student fees shaped administrative decisions to maintain good relations with Beijing.
• Respondents reported that CCP officials pressured students to spy on peers, visiting scholars issued veiled threats like “we’re watching you,” denied visas to sensitive researchers and harassed academics’ relatives in China.
• OfS chief Susan Lapworth and Skills Minister Jacqui Smith signalled probes into Confucius Institutes and warned universities they face heavy fines for failing to resist foreign intimidation under the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act.
• The Chinese embassy in London rejected the findings as “groundless and absurd,” insisting China respects academic freedom abroad.