Displaying items by tag: Uyghur
Chinese government found guilty in Uyghur tribunal
On 13 December, after two years of hearings, the Uyghur tribunal found the Chinese government guilty of crimes against humanity, systematic torture, and genocide against Uyghurs and other minorities in the Xinjiang region. The founder of ChinaAid said, ‘The unanimous judgment by the independent tribunal after nearly two years of extensive hearings from a number of credible witnesses and experts that the Chinese Communist government had verifiably committed systematic genocide and crime against humanity (in particular against ethnic minorities such as Uyghurs and Kazakhs inside Xinjiang) is another vindication of the same finding by the international community. It further proves the brutality of the worst human rights violations in the modern history of China in the past seventy years. It is imperative both morally and legally for all of the free countries, especially the US and EU and international organisations such as the UN, to take immediate and urgent actions to stop these atrocities from happening before they get worse.’
China: Amnesty report on detainees in camps
The head of Amnesty International said China has created a ‘dystopian hellscape’ for people detained in Xinjiang camps, who are routinely tortured. A report based on 50+ former detainees details crimes against humanity - including mass imprisonment, torture and persecution - carried out by Chinese authorities against Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minorities. The secretary general of Amnesty said, ‘China must immediately dismantle the internment camps, release the people arbitrarily detained in them and in prisons, and end the systematic attacks against Muslims in Xinjiang.’ Since 2017 hundreds of thousands - and possibly more than one million people - have been sent to camps in Xinjiang. China for a long time denied the existence of any camps. It eventually changed tack and now says the camps are voluntary ‘vocational training centres’, necessary to combat terrorism. President Xi Jinping said his government's policies in the region are ‘totally correct’.
China Summons U.S. after Uyghur Bill Demands Sanctions
Beijing has summoned a U.S. diplomat after lawmakers in Washington approved legislation that calls for sanctions against senior Chinese officials for human rights violations linked to a crackdown on the country's Muslim minority.
The Uighur (Uyghur) Act of 2019 criticizes Beijing's "gross human rights violations" in the northwestern region of Xinjiang, where about 1 million Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim minorities are held in internment camps.
The measure passed 407 to 1 on December 3 and is a stronger version of the bill that cleared the Senate in September. The two documents must be reconciled into one bill for U.S. President Trump's signature, or veto.
China has defended the existence of the internment camps, which it says are used for "re-education" and has denied mistreating Uyghurs.
"We urge the U.S. to immediately correct its mistakes, prevent the aforementioned Xinjiang-related bill from becoming law, and stop using the Xinjiang-related issue to interfere in China's internal affairs," a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in a statement on December 4.
Chinese media later reported that Vice Foreign Minister Qin Gang had summoned William Klein, the charge d'affaires of the US Embassy in China, to lodge "strong protests" against the bill.
"Any attempt to stir up ethnic relations in China, undermine Xinjiang's prosperity and stability, and curb China's development and progress is doomed to fail," Qin said, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
Beijing first denied the existence of the camps, but has since justified its policy as providing valuable vocational training and veering Muslims away from extremism.
Activists and witnesses have instead said China employs torture to forcibly assimilate Uyghurs into the region's Han majority.
Other measures include pressuring Muslims to reject their beliefs such as, giving up prayer and abstaining from eating pork and drinking alcohol.
With reporting by dpa, AFP, AP, and Reuters
Pray: for all those who are being oppressed in China because of their religious beliefs.
Pray: that this proven crackdown on the Uyghur people will stop.
Pray: for broader international support for sanctions along with political intervention.
Pray: for the Christian Church in China which is facing severe persecution.
China denies Uyghur detention camps
Western nations including the USA, France, and Germany have called on China to close down detention camps in the western region of Xinjiang which activists claim hold as many as one million Uyghurs and other Muslims. China, however, has described these criticisms as ‘seriously far away from facts’. Its vice minister of foreign affairs, Le Yucheng, told UNHCR in Geneva that his country protects the freedoms of its 55 ethnic minorities. China has said Xinjiang faces a threat from Islamist militants and separatists, and rejects all accusations of mistreatment and denies mass internment, although it states that some citizens guilty of minor offences are being sent to vocational centres to work. Mr Le, referring to Xinjiang, said: ‘Stability is most important, prevention should be put first. Setting up the training centres is a preventative measure to combat terrorism.’