Discover Insights into China's Regions
Tibet
Tibet, one of China's five autonomous regions for ethnic minorities, has a permanent population of 3.7 million (2025), 90% of whom are Tibetan. Discussions in international media frequently cover topics such as its culture, education, and religion. Reports focus on China's accelerated relocation of herders and rural Tibetan residents in Tibet, noting these moves are often “persuaded” yet contradict official narratives with local accounts. Simultaneously, local boarding schools remain highly controversial. Many media outlets highlight that large numbers of Tibetan children are sent to boarding schools far from home, with numerous courses taught in Mandarin, marginalizing local languages and cultures. Other reports documented suppression of children for speaking Tibetan, praying, or wearing Tibetan Buddhist prayer ribbons. Additionally, the mental health of children separated from their families for extended periods in boarding schools has drawn significant concern. Religious freedom remains a core concern, including strict restrictions on religious activities and monastery education.
Xinjiang
Xinjiang, China’s largest autonomous region, is home to over 25 million people, including Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Hui, and other minority ethnic groups. International attention has focused on security policies, cultural rights, and religious restrictions. Since 2017, reports by researchers and media have described large-scale detentions in “vocational education and training centers,” reduced Uyghur- and Kazakh-language education, and limits on religious practices, while authorities frame these policies as counterterrorism and poverty alleviation efforts. Extensive surveillance, checkpoints, and digital monitoring continue to shape daily life in many areas, and labor transfer programs tied to cotton, textiles, and renewable energy industries have raised concerns about coercion and limited consent. Boarding schools, where Mandarin dominates instruction, play a growing role for children whose parents are in detention or employment programs. The region’s rapid economic development coexists with persistent international concerns over cultural preservation, freedom of movement, and civil liberties.
Yunnan
A multi-ethnic province where up to six minority groups reach over one million in their populations. Popular tourist sites such as “Ethnic Minority Theme Villages” have been criticized for cultural appropriation and the commodification of minority cultures. Religious activities are tightly regulated by the Party-state, and instruction in minority languages (such as Yi, Bai, Hani, Lisu etc.) is limited within the school curriculum.
Henan
Henan has been one of the most frequently cited provinces for church demolitions and removal of crosses, with communities in Anyang, Zhengzhou, and Kaifeng reporting closures of meeting venues and pressure on unregistered congregations. Members of churches affiliated with groups similar to Early Rain also reported questioning and disrupted gatherings. Civil liberties came under sharp international attention in 2022 when protesters involved in the Henan rural bank scandal alleged their health codes were turned “red” to prevent travel and assembly—raising concerns about the use of public-health tools for social control. Rural rights disputes continued to surface, with petitioners in Nanyang, Luoyang, and Shangqiu reporting surveillance or brief detention when challenging land requisitions and housing demolitions linked to urban development. In the aftermath of the 2021 Zhengzhou floods, families seeking information on victims reported difficulties holding public vigils or accessing detailed investigative findings. These conditions contributed to a constrained environment for freedom of expression, religious practice, and grassroots organising across the province.
Shandong
Authorities continued to apply broad public order and national security provisions to restrict freedom of expression, religious activity, and local-level advocacy in Shandong. The province is widely known for the case of Chen Guangcheng, the blind “barefoot lawyer” from Linyi, whose house arrest and reported beatings drew international attention to constraints on legal activism and rural rights defence. Environmental grievances remained sensitive: residents in Qingdao voiced concerns over proposed PX and chemical projects, while communities in Rizhao and Weifang protested industrial pollution and water contamination. In several instances, police presence, surveillance, or administrative penalties limited peaceful assembly. Religious restrictions also intensified for unregistered Christian groups, with churches in Jinan, Qingdao, and Yantai facing disruptions, registration requirements, or pressure to align with official associations.
Inner Mongolia
While the economic development and resource exploitation in Inner Mongolia continue to advance, the Mongolian community is facing certain pressures in terms of language, culture and land rights. In recent years, Mongolian language education has been reduced, and Mongolian courses in some schools have been cut, resulting in a shrinking use of the ethnic language in public. The restoration of grassland ecology and resource exploitation policies have led to the relocation of a large number of herdsmen, which have affected the traditional pastoral lifestyle and cultural inheritance although they aim to improve the ecology and economy. In terms of social governance, Inner Mongolia has a relatively milder overall control compared with other ethnic areas, but restrictions on rights protection campaigns, cultural initiatives and online expressions still exist––some advocates have been detained or subject to long-term monitoring. To sum up, Inner Mongolia shows a state of development and limitations in terms of human rights. What modernization brings are not only opportunities, but also challenges such as weakened cultural rights, insufficient land protection and restricted expression space.