China is a one party state with dictatorial control over pretty much everything. Do you really think those guys have any check against CCP thugs telling them what to publish? Being a good scientist takes a back seat to your survival and the survival of your family. Most people aren't willing to be tortured or killed for their views.
For example, in the article, Dr. Li Hui apparently disagrees with the continuity-with-hybridization model. Dr. Li Hui works in Fudan University, Shanghai.
I did biology research in Beijing for two years in 1990's. My advisor openly challenged the research of a "government-sponsored" professor in department meetings. Many professors supported her, my advisor. I don't think she got any "special" treatments from the government. The last time I heard from her, she was enjoying her time after retirement.
Authorities also tightened press restrictions. The State Administration of Press Publication, Radio, Film, and Television issued a directive in July requiring that Chinese journalists sign an agreement stating that they will not release unpublished information without prior approval from their employers and requiring that they pass political ideology exams before they can be issued official press cards.
In July, the CCP’s disciplinary commission announced that researchers at the central Chinese Academic of Social Sciences had been “infiltrated by foreign forces” and participated in “illegal collusion” during politically sensitive periods. The party subsequently issued a rule that would make ideological evaluation a top requirement for assessing CASS researchers; those who fail are to be expelled.
https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2015/country-chapters/china...
Academic Fraud in China:
http://www.chinesemedicalnews.com/2015/03/academic-fraud-in-...
The open access publisher BioMedCentral has this week announced the retraction of 43 medical journal publications by Chinese researchers after it discovered widespread peer review fraud. Most of the articles were submitted by medical researchers at universities in China, including China Medical University, Sichuan University, Shandong University and Jiaotong University Medical School.
Including uncivil swipes like that in your arguments here will eventually get you banned, so please be scrupulously civil from now on, especially when commenting on inflammatory topics and/or when you think someone else is wrong.
There are problems with scientific freedom in the U.S. related to funding and job retention. Even if the situation in China isn't as bad as it used to be, it's still not good.