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AMNA NAWAZ: The FBI arrested 
two Chinese nationals in New 
York last month, accusing

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them of running a secret 
police station to watch 
and intimidate Chinese 
dissidents living overseas.

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There are more than 
100 of these stations

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around the world that 
researchers say Beijing 
uses to silence its critics.

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Nick Schifrin and producer 
Teresa Cebrian Aranda reports.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: Nearly 6,000 
miles from Beijing, on a 
quiet street in Madrid,

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a nondescript office 
claims to offer assistance 
for Chinese citizens.

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But the reality is more 
shadowy. A Chinese dissident 
leads us to what he calls the

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source of Chinese repression 
that begins with an invitation.

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YUAN LEE, Chinese Dissident 
in Madrid (through 
translator): Here,

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it says we should be careful 
with telecommunications fraud,

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that if you receive a suspicious 
message, you should get in 
touch with the Chinese Embassy.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: But 
Yuan Lee says the only 
suspicious messages came

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from Chinese authorities and 
were sent in order to silence.

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YUAN LEE (through translator): 
I am sure they did a systemic

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campaign against me led by these 
Chinese associations. And now we

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know there are secret 
police stations hidden 
inside Chinese associations.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: When 
the pandemic began, he 
created a YouTube channel

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to expose what he calls 
the truth about the 
Chinese Communist Party.

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And he appears on far 
right Spanish TV, what 
some call Spanish FOX News.

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YUAN LEE (through translator): 
I had a rebel opinion, 
because I think everyone is

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a victim of Chinese 
communism. We have to hold 
the Chinese Communist Party 
accountable. It withheld

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information by censoring doctors 
who blew the whistle on COVID 
and threw journalists in jail.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: In response to 
that criticism, he says these 
posters circulated on Chinese

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social media calling for 
him to -- quote -- "drink 
tea," that is, submit to 
interrogation by Chinese

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officials. He says he received 
death threats and his family 
back in China was intimidated.

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YUAN LEE (through 
translator): My sister 
called and asked, "Brother,

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what did you do? Because 
the police came to our house 
with many police vans. They

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came in and asked: 'Where's Yuan 
Lee? When is he coming back?'"

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My mom was also arrested. 
She spent three days in jail.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: This 
association is in a residential 
neighborhood and your Madrid's

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Chinatown. It was closed 
when we filmed, but, inside, 
a photo the Chinese county

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Chinese county Qingtian, 
which is in the office's 
name, the General Qingtian 
Association in Spain.

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International researchers say, 
in 2021, the association worked 
with Chinese mainland police

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to question a Chinese 
entrepreneur, as seen 
in this video posted by 
Chinese officials. Beijing

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says he was -- quote -- 
"persuaded" to return to 
China to face charges.

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YUAN LEE (through translator): 
There are many dissidents in 
Madrid. And many of them ask me,

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what can we do to protect 
ourselves, for instance, in 
the case of an extradition? 
Because this could

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happen to any of us. The 
Chinese Communist Party controls 
all Chinese associations.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: The 
association Web site says its

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police stations -- quote 
-- "protect the rights and 
interests of overseas Chinese."

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And Chinese state Qingtian 
launched police stations in 
11 countries, including Spain.

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LAURA HARTH, Safeguard 
Defenders: Beijing 
is quite explicit in 
what its attempts are

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when it conducts its 
transnational policing or 
transnational repression 
activities. It wants

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to control the overseas 
communities, but, to 
a larger extent, also, 
it wants to control the

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narrative worldwide about the 
Chinese Communist Party, about 
the People's Republic of China.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: Laura Harth 
is the campaign director 
with Safeguard Defenders,

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the human rights group 
that first revealed 
Beijing's covert police

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stations using open-source 
Chinese documents. They 
found more than 100

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Chinese police outposts in 53 
countries set up by authorities 
from four Chinese regions.

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LAURA HARTH: These are stations,

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centers that have not been 
declared to the host governments 
where these are operating.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: And, as far as 
you can tell, how extensive,

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how expansive is this 
effort across the globe?

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LAURA HARTH: Really, these 
stations are the tip of the 
iceberg of what is a massive,

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massive campaign to 
really crack down on 
dissent around the world.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: Xi Jinping 
has targeted critics both 
inside China and overseas.

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He's portrayed his 
efforts as a way to fight 
crime and corruption.

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HU XIJIN, Former Editor 
in Chief, Global Times: 
The so-called human

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rights organization 
Safeguard Defenders...

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NICK SCHIFRIN: Beijing's 
advocates argue they 
have every right to 
target Chinese overseas.

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Hu Xijin is the former 
editor in chief of the 
Communist Party-aligned 
tabloid Global Times.

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HU XIJIN: Most countries have 
supported and cooperated with 
China's pursuit of fugitives.

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The accusation made by 
Safeguard Defenders is 
an old-fashioned way

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by demonizing Thailand 
by calling criminals 
fleeing overseas as 
political dissidents.

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BREON PEACE, United States 
Attorney For Eastern District 
of New York: We cannot

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and will not tolerate 
the Chinese government's 
persecution.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: But now 
countries are exposing 
Chinese tactics. Last month,

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the United States 
attorney for New York's 
Eastern District revealed

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federal charges that 
accused Lu Jianwang and Chen 
Jinping of running a police

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station in New York's Chinatown 
on behalf of China's Ministry 
of Public Security, or MPS.

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BREON PEACE: The MPS officers 
who have been charged today are 
not focused on preventing crime.

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Rather, the complaints charge 
these MPS officers with 
engaging in transnational 
repression schemes.

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JIE LIJIAN, Chinese Dissident 
(through translator): When 
I arrived in the United

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States. I thought that 
there would be fewer 
threats, but it feels like

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the Chinese Communist Party is 
everywhere in this country. And 
the threats are very severe.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: Jie Lijian is a 
prominent Chinese pro-democracy 
activist living in Los Angeles,

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where Safeguard Defenders 
found another police station.

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He criticizes Chinese human 
rights abuses and the silencing 
of Chinese doctors who

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blew the whistle on COVID. 
He fled China in 2018 after 
being arrested and he says

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tortured in a psychiatric 
hospital for advocating 
for better labor rights.

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He says, in California, Chinese 
agents record his protests,

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and worse. He says he's 
been attacked five times 
and was once stabbed.

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JIE LIJIAN (through translator): 
In my home, my windows have 
been destroyed. These threats

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and harassment have brought me 
to a dark place. As victims, 
we experience tremendous

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psychological pressure and 
a deep sense of oppression 
that is difficult to express.

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They work

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very efficiently. For example, 
if we hold protests, even 
before they end, Chinese

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agents will have visited some 
of their homes and threatened 
and intimidated their families.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: Senior 
FBI officials believe the

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same actors who physically 
intimidate also intimidate 
online. On Twitter,

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Jie received death threats. 
This message says: "I will 
shoot and kill Jie Lijian."

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Social media researchers 
say Beijing uses bots to 
target Chinese critics

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with thousands of messages. Last 
year, Google removed more than

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50,000 accounts made 
by a Chinese influence 
operation. Researchers

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believe the same operation 
imitated Safeguard Defenders to 
try and conceal their reports.

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LAURA HARTH: The Chinese 
authorities are not 
completely stupid. They 
will prefer to do as

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much of this as possible 
through online means, because 
that does kind of insulate

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those Chinese actors, agents, if 
you will, from accountability.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: But activists 
including Yuan Lee say their 
messages won't be obscured. He

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says he hopes to build his 
own association that protects, 
not targets, dissidents.

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YUAN LEE (through translator): I 
can no longer take a step back.

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This is my face. And I hope 
this personal sacrifice that 
I made will be worth it.

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NICK SCHIFRIN: But, even 
as countries crack down, 
activists know that 
Beijing is still watching.

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For the "PBS NewsHour," 
I'm Nick Schifrin.