I would not go in their current state. It's only one rung above visiting N. Korea in my opinion.
I'm sorry, but that second sentence is just ridiculous. Conflating NK and PRC does no one any good. Sure, the space for civil society has tightened a lot since 2011, you've got the trade war and a ton of other simmering conflicts, but on the whole (with the exception of Xinjiang) it's fine.
I don't mean that as a matter of fact but a matter of personal opinion. I am as likely to go there as N. Korea.
Is XJ really that bad now? When I visited in 2006, it was pretty tame with the exception of the area immediately near the border. It doesn’t even require a travel permit/full time tour guide like Tibet does.
Afaik it is now well on its way towards a full-on techno-police state dystopia aimed at the uyghurs (ai, big data, facial recognition, ideological reeducation camps, politically reliable Han Chinese as forced live-ins in uyghur families tempting them to drink alcohol and reporting on them, forced installation of surveillance apps....)
If only! No, China hasn’t been like that since the early/mid 90s (and even that was a regression from the late 80s). Nope, if you want to see a heavy level of oppression, you’ll have to book a trip to Pyongyang. China will feel chaotic in comparison (and for many things even more free than the west).
I actually have friends who have visited the DPRK to get a feel for how China used to be.
That is reverse propaganda if you believe it. And you probably have no idea about both countries mentioned here.
I'm a Chinese citizen now living in Shanghai,China. It is interesting to see some of the threads, and there are so many expats now living in china, althrouth these is the good, the bad, and the ugly. And lots of expats have described this on youtube, books and podcast, etc.
Anyway, the best way to know is to come here yourself, you might experience something different. Cause it's so huge with so many people, before you go , get an paid VPN.