Access Now, the organizer of the annual human rights and technology summit RightsCon, said it was forced to cancel the 2026 edition scheduled for next week in Zambia after the government, under what the group described as Chinese pressure, demanded the exclusion of Taiwanese participants.
The New York-based advocacy organization said in a statement late Friday that Zambian officials had informed the group that the conference was caught up in a dispute because “Taiwanese civil society participants were planning to join us in person.” Access Now pushed back on any move to bar delegates from Taiwan, but the government’s conditions for lifting the postponement went further.
“What the government wanted from us in order to lift the postponement was conveyed to us informally from multiple sources: … we would have to moderate specific topics and exclude communities at risk, including our Taiwanese participants, from in-person and online participation,” the statement said. “We believe foreign interference is the reason RightsCon 2026 won’t proceed in Zambia.”
Zambian authorities had earlier announced the conference was postponed while the government sought information on the themes and topics to ensure they aligned with the country’s “national values, policy priorities and broader public interest considerations.” Zambia has strong political and economic ties with China, largely through Chinese mining interests in the copper-rich southern African nation.
RightsCon draws thousands of civil-society activists, technologists and human rights defenders to discuss issues such as internet censorship, electronic surveillance and cyberwarfare. More than 2,600 participants were due to attend in Zambia, with another 1,100 online, representing more than 150 countries, Access Now said. Last year’s summit was held in Taiwan.
Taiwanese Minister of Digital Affairs Lin Yi-jing said on Facebook on Saturday that the cancellation showed China’s unease over “the ideas of freedom, democracy and rule of law that Taiwan and RightsCon represent.” Human Rights Watch said Zambian authorities should explain their actions.
The flare-up occurred barely a week after Taiwan claimed that Beijing intervened to stop President Lai Ching-te from visiting Eswatini, the only African nation that maintains formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Taiwan said that Madagascar, Mauritius and Seychelles were pressured by China to withdraw permission for Lai’s plane to fly over their territory, forcing the visit to be called off on April 22. China’s Foreign Ministry praised the three nations, saying their “adherence to the one-China principle is in full compliance with international law.”
On Saturday, Lai made a surprise announcement that he had arrived in Eswatini after all, without having publicized the trip in advance. Taiwan “will never be deterred by external pressures,” he wrote on X.
China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its breakaway province, to be retaken by force if necessary, and prohibits countries it has diplomatic relations with from maintaining formal ties with Taipei. Beijing has significant economic and political influence across Africa.