Chinese artist Hua Yong was arrested on 15 December 2017 on charges of "gathering a crowd to cause a disturbance to traffic order". He was released on bail three days later on 18 December and may still face criminal charges as his case continues to be investigated by police.

US singer Katy Perry has become the latest artist banned from China allegedly “indefinitely” due to wearing a sunflower dress at her 2015 Taiwan concert.

Tibetan monk and song lyricist Lobsang Jinpa was released from prison on 30 October 2017 after serving out his full five-year sentence.

Singer Xu Lin was officially arrested on 2 November for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”, while fellow singer Liu Sifang has been released on bail.

Popular and influential Uyghur singer Abdurehim Heyit has been detained and held without formal charge in regional capital Urumchi since April 2017.

Poet Wu Mingliang (aka Langzi) was detained on charges of “illegal business operations”; later released on bail with restricted movement as case is ongoing.

Freemuse welcomes Kelsang Yarphel’s release but remains concerned that it only comes after he served out his four-year prison sentence.

Artist Chen Yunfei was sentenced to 4 years in prison for “picking quarrels & provoking trouble” related to his art and criticism of the Chinese government.

Chinese media blocked live coverage of the 36th Hong Kong Film Awards every time mention was made of Hong Kong crime film ‘Trivisa’.

PEN International continues to call on Chinese authorities to release Tibetan writer Kunchok Tsephel Gopey Tsang who has served 8 of his 15-year sentence.