A bipartisan delegation led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) arrived in Shanghai on Saturday afternoon, amid concerns about the timing of the trip. The delegation’s arrival was first reported by China’s state-run media, which said Shanghai will be the first stop of the senators’ trip. After visiting China, the senators are scheduled to travel to South Korea and Japan. The delegation is co-led by Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idado). The four other senators on the trip are Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), and Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) Before leaving for China, Mr. Schumer said on the Senate floor on Oct. 4 that the senators will meet government and business leaders from both nations during their trip. However, it is unclear if the senators will meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping....Read more https://www.theepochtimes.com/china/senate-delegation-led-by-schumer-arrives-in-china-5505716
Multiple recent official reports in China reveal the setting up of Armed Forces Departments (AFDs), a paramilitary entity under the supervision of both the army and the regime that oversees China’s militia, one of the largest of its kind in the world. A major state-owned enterprise (SOE) in Shanghai, China’s commercial and financial hub, reportedly launched an AFD inside the company last Thursday. Shanghai Municipal Investment Group (SMIG), a major infrastructure construction service and property development company run by the Shanghai municipal government, held a formal launching ceremony of its AFD on Sept. 28, with the two commanding generals of the Shanghai garrison attending, according to Jiefang Daily, an official publication of China’s Army.... 
China “remains the world’s worst abuser of internet freedom” for the ninth year in a row as the communist regime is pushing to deploy artificial intelligence (AI) technology to exert increased control over information available to its citizens, according to a new report by Freedom House. The Washington-based nonprofit organization on Oct. 4 released the report titled “Freedom on the Net 2023: The Repressive Power of Artificial Intelligence.” China scored 9 out of 100, ranking at the bottom of the internet freedom list. The report provides an overall picture of internet freedom in 70 countries worldwide, representing 89 percent of the world’s internet users. The findings were based on multiple questions focusing on three main categories—including obstacles to access, limits on content, and violations of user rights—to determine each country’s score on a 100-point scale....