**Update 28 October 2020: In August, Apple published its first human rights policy, which included a commitment to uphold freedom of expression. However, the document is short on detail for implementation, so we're continuing to push Apple, but this is a big step forward!**
Unlike some other tech companies, Apple has complied with the government of China's censorship demands in order to operate there.
The company has deleted over 1000 "virtual private network" apps (VPNs) from the China app store in recent years, on request of the government of China. VPNs are crucial for vulnerable human rights defenders to evade censorship, surveillance, and political backlash.
Without VPN’s and with the enormous surveillance machine of the government of China, it’s almost impossible for activists to evade censorship and surveillance in order to report human rights abuses when they are committed, without putting themselves in even greater danger. Apple is complicit in that.
It also removed HKMap live, a mapping app Hong Kong pro-democracy activists used to keep themselves safe, and excluded PopVote from the app store. PopVote is a voting app used by Hong Kong's pro democracy politicians to connect with citizens.
Tell Apple to drop China's censorship act and commit to upholding human dignity and political freedom.
And while Apple is doing business with government officials, Uyghur Muslims who were detained in the government’s so-called ‘re-education’ camps report being abused, forced to learn Mandarin and undergo political indoctrination.
Uyghur families are also being forced to welcome government officials to stay in their homes for up to one week per month. These live-in officials require families to provide detailed information on their personal lives and political views, and subject them to "political education".
Of course, the government of China is no stranger to brutal repression. It has committed large scale human rights abuses against the Tibetan people for decades using the same argument -- combating extremism and terrorism -- that it’s using to justify mass detention and surveillance of Uyghur Muslims now.
Are Apple’s profits more important than the lives of the millions of Uyghurs, Tibetans and Chinese rights activists surveilled and detained?
Demand Apple protect its users from the government of China's censorship and surveillance.
Here’s how Apple can take action to protect freedom of expression & access to information:
- Apple publicly commits to respecting freedom of expression as a human right -- this is included in Apple's August 2020 human rights policy
- Apple puts in place a panel of human rights experts or the equivalent to monitor the development and implementation of policies by which Apple will protect freedom of expression and access to information.
- Apple reports annually to shareholders on the actions it’s taking in response to government or other third party demands that might limit free expression or access to information.
- The above actions are included in our shareholder proposal which was supported by over 40% of Apple's investors in February. More information about that is available here. We'll be submitting an updated proposal for consideration at the 2021 AGM
- Apple allows third party apps on its hardware
More information
Apple will take a rare shareholder grilling about free speech after it removed a map app used by Hong Kong protesters
Business Insider. 16 December 2019.
Business Insider. 16 December 2019.
Tim Cook defends Apple's removal of Hong Kong mapping app
The Guardian. 10 October 2019.
The Guardian. 10 October 2019.
Apple accedes to China’s despotic demands
The Washington Post. 16 October 2019.
The Washington Post. 16 October 2019.
Apple reveals App Store takedown demands by government
TechCrunch. 2 July 2019.
TechCrunch. 2 July 2019.
Apple pulls hundreds of apps from China after requests from Beijing
The Telegraph. 3 July 2019.
The Telegraph. 3 July 2019.
New Site Exposes How Apple Censors Apps in China
The Intercept. 1 February 2019.
The Intercept. 1 February 2019.
