Chinese journalist Du Bin detained for third time, held since October

New York, December 3, 2025—Chinese authorities must immediately release journalist Du Bin, drop all charges related to his work, and end the campaign of harassment against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday.

Du, 53, was detained at his home in Beijing on October 15, a day before he was scheduled to fly to Japan, according to his sister Du Jirong, who was quoted in multiple news reports.

She said her brother is currently being held at the Shunyi Detention Center in Beijing and that police had told the family he is facing charges of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” an accusation commonly used against journalists and political dissidents in China.

Chinese journalist Su Yutong, who is based in Berlin and familiar with the case, told CPJ she had been informed by a source that police detained Du because of a book he authored that was deemed to have “attacked state leaders.” The source did not specify which leaders or book authorities were referring to.

“This is the third time Du Bin has been detained by Chinese authorities — it’s a campaign of harassment,” said CPJ Asia-Pacific Director Beh Lih Yi. “Du is a journalist, dedicated to reporting the truth, and should be freed immediately and unconditionally.”

Du, a freelance writer, filmmaker, and photographer, has previously worked for state-owned newspapers such as Beijing Youth Daily and for international outlets including The New York Times. He has long reported on human rights issues and written multiple books about China’s leaders, politics, and historical events.

In 2013, he released a documentary on the alleged abuses of women at a forced labor camp, and published a book about the Tiananmen Square crackdown that led to his first period of detention for 37 days in May of that year. He was detained for another 37 days in December 2020. On both occasions he was accused of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.”

China consistently ranks as the world’s worst jailer of journalists, with at least 49 behind bars, according to CPJ’s latest research.

The Beijing Shunyi District People’s Government did not immediately reply to CPJ’s emailed request for comment.