cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/53443754
Foreign policy experts say they are not surprised at China’s efforts to exert its influence over local US communities after the mayor of a southern California city resigned this week and said she would plead guilty to acting as an illegal foreign agent of Beijing.
Eileen Wang, 58, agreed to plead guilty to a felony count related to the charge on Monday and could face up to 10 years in federal prison. According to a plea agreement filed by the justice department, Wang and an associate worked with the People’s Republic of China to promote Beijing’s interests, touting pro-PRC propaganda on a website purported to be a news source for the local Chinese American community.
The revelation sent shockwaves through the city of Arcadia, which is often referred to as the “Chinese Beverly Hills” due to its large and affluent Chinese American population. Of the city’s 56,000 residents, roughly half are of Chinese descent.
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Joshua Kurlantzick, a senior fellow for Southeast Asia and South Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations, said China’s efforts to exert influence beyond its borders have become “very, very, very common”. Beijing has an entire agency dedicated to meddling in foreign governments that often works with diaspora communities, with a goal to shift narratives, reduce dissent and gain control of political discourse in other countries.
“China is interested in having influence over politicians from a whole range of [countries] … ranging from the local to the national level, as well as the media, as well as student groups … there’s an enormous effort to do so,” Kurlantzick said.
“Their focus, increasingly, has been on mayors, state legislatures, etc, because those people have less knowledge and less background and fewer staff to protect them.”
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Rose Chan Loui, a legal expert at the University of California at Los Angeles who has helped non-profits navigate foreign agent report requirements, said US law is quite broad when it comes to actions that require registration, or what type of content would run afoul of federal statutes.
“It doesn’t matter what the content is, as long as you think it will influence the public’s opinion. That’s the only intent you need to have,” she said. “If they can say that you are acting as an agent of that foreign person, and you are engaging in political activities for that foreign principle, you are required to report those activities.
“If you know that what you’re doing can have the effect of influencing public opinion about that foreign entity, then [US law] can catch you.”
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Mareike Ohlberg, a senior fellow in the Indo-Pacific program at the German Marshal Fund of the United States, said China’s efforts to see foreigners advance its interests abroad were nothing new, but had grown more sophisticated in recent years.
“It’s quite common for them to try and rope foreigners, either speaking out on China’s behalf and kind of repeating key talking points, or to amplify stuff that was already out there,” Ohlberg said. China’s mentality, she said, is that you “need to fight hostile narratives and you need to make sure there’s no space for them”.
“It’s seen as a concrete threat that you have narratives out there that you can’t control,” she went on.
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Rushan Abbas, a Uyghur American activist whose sister was detained and arrested in 2018, said Wang’s arrest was a disturbing reminder of China’s efforts to stifle dissent and shape the global narrative. Abbas spoke out about China’s treatment of Uyghurs at a US event eight years ago, just a week before her sister, Gulshan Abbas, was arrested. Her sister was later sentenced to 20 years in prison.
“More than anything, it’s upsetting, but not surprising,” Abbas said of Wang’s plea. “It’s a very disturbing reminder that the Chinese Community party, its reach is global. … I’m glad the American public is finally starting to realize what kind of government this is, and how everyone around us can be manipulated.”
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In Arcadia, officials have moved to both cast blame and urge the city to move on from the episode.
Sharon Kwan, a city councillor who served as Arcadia’s mayor in 2025 and 2026, preceding Wang, said in a statement the episode had become a “deeply painful and sobering moment” for the city.
“For more than a year, I publicly raised concerns about transparency, accountability, and the dangers of foreign influence in local government,” she said. “As concerns surrounding Mayor Eileen Wang continued to grow publicly, I formally requested … that the City Council place an item on a future agenda to discuss whether Mayor Wang should resign or step down.”
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Arcadia will select a new mayor and mayor pro tem from the remaining councilmembers at its next meeting and will determine how Wang’s district will be represented until the November election.
Wang’s attorneys expect her to next appear in court on 29 May.
The article says US law has a very broad definition of "foreign agent" and that if you believe your actions can change public opinion about a foreign entity you're forced to report it.
Because the mayor failed to do so for activities she was involved in before becoming mayor she is now charged with acting as a foreign agent.
Interesting how the mere failure to report possible misconduct apparently means you definitely engaged in said misconduct.