A 9-year-old schoolgirl in China found herself caught up in the country’s burgeoning national social credit system, prompting concerns that the scheme’s wide net may unwittingly capture the wrong people. 

In November, the girl, named Chen Man, was banned by a local court in Henan from doing “high-level consumption” activities, which include flying, travel by high-speed rail and checking into hotels - not typical activities for a kid.

The girl appears to have been caught up in China’s social…

China is home to 44 of the world’s 100 tallest buildings, including the 128-story Shanghai Tower, the second tallest in the world at 2,073 ft.

But China is also home to one of the tallest unfinished towers anywhere, the Goldin Finance 117 – otherwise known as the China 117 – in Tianjin, a major port city a couple of hours away from Beijing.  

When it broke ground 12 years ago, the hope was that the mega skyscraper eclipse the Shanghai Tower as the tallest building outside of the Burj Khalifa…

In some countries, who you love can be deadly.

Same-sex activity is illegal in almost 70 countries. In six, it’s punishable by death. These include Brunei, Iran, Mauritania, Nigeria (the 12 northern states only), Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

These were the findings of a world survey on sexual orientation laws released this week that found dozens of nations across the globe still treated same-sex couples as criminals.

The organization (The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex…

An image of poor young rural Chinese boys swinging baseball bats in a bid for a better life has moved a nation to tears with the release of a new documentary that sheds light on the lives of the country’s “left-behind” children.

The documentary, Tough Out, opened last week to critical acclaim and is a devastating reflection of the reality faced by seven million children who have been left behind in rural China by parents forced to move to the cities in search of work. 

Named best documentary…

After living with a nitpicking husband for over 30 years, supporting her daughter to finish university and raising her grandchildren to preschool age, 56-year-old Su Min decided it was time for her to be just herself.

While most of the Chinese women at her age would be babysitting their grandchildren or cooking and washing clothes for their husbands, Su started a solo road trip in September with her white Volkswagen Polo that she bought with two years’ savings from taking odd jobs.

Without…

Click here for the audio

Script:

Info officer: Good morning. EcoPark Management Office. How may I help you?

Mrs Shum: Good morning. I'm Mary Shum, a teacher at Park Valley Secondary School. I'm thinking about bringing a party of students to visit EcoPark and I'd like some information about what we can expect to see during our visit. I’d also like to make a booking for the visit.

Info officer: No problem, Mrs Shum. We accept bookings for groups of fifteen to forty people.

Mrs Shum: Would a…

Early 2020 should have been a happy time for Wuhan accountant Cheng Pan, whose second child – a son– was due to be born in just ten days.

Instead, Cheng was plunged into the chaos and devastation of a mystery virus that not only threatened the lives of three generations of his family but would later become known as the Covid-19, killing thousands of Wuhan residents before sweeping across countries in the world’s largest modern public health crisis.

Frantically searching for hospital beds and…

A large headless statue of Buddha was discovered in southwest China last week – and it was used to prop up a high-rise apartment building.

It is currently unknown when the statue was built, with rumors circulating that it is almost 1,000 years old. Professionals were unwilling to date the statue at this point.

The Buddha, which was discovered in the city of Chongqing, is nearly 30ft tall and is built on the surface of a cliff that is extremely difficult for the public to access.

Earlier last…

The top buzzwords in China for 2020 reflected the coronavirus fatigue and general sense of aimlessness that have plagued this pandemic-addled year.

Some trending terms also touched on social stagnation and wealth inequality.

Selected by Yaowen Jiaozi, a magazine that promotes the Chinese language, the top buzzwords included “sacred beasts,” “new wave” and “Versaille literature.” 

One word was particularly insightful: “Involution,” which describes the lack of advances in agrarian societies…

As a 20-year-old woman surnamed Zhao in southwest China lay in a hospital bed this week being treated for Covid-19, she was unaware of the simmering vitriol gaining momentum online.

Unbeknown to her, a 24-year-old man found Zhao’s personal information published on a Chinese health government website, including details that she had been to numerous bars and clubs in the two weeks prior to her diagnosis. 

With the click of his keyboard, he posted the unemployed woman’s photo, address, phone…