China has been accused by human rights groups and journalists of having put around a million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in detention camps and prisons in the region over the past five years. Beijing says the camps are necessary in the fight against extremism, and has described the report as a Western campaign to tarnish the country’s reputation. The report is based on interviews with people who have been detained and others with knowledge of the conditions in eight camps in the region. Crushing conclusion – Serious human rights violations have been committed in Xinjiang, in the context of the government’s implementation of a strategy against terrorism and “extremism”, the conclusion in the report begins with. Among other things, the UN concludes that allegations that torture or other ill-treatment has been carried out in the detention camps, including cases of sexual violence, are credible. Police officers at the entrance to the Urumqi No. detention camp. 3 in Xinjiang on April 23, 2021. Photo: Mark Schiefelbein / AP The report also states that the extent of the “arbitrary and discriminatory detention” of Uighurs and other Muslim minorities, seen in a human rights context, may amount to “international crimes, especially crimes against humanity”. Large-scale detention OHCHR has not been able to map exactly how many people have been detained in Xinjiang, but writes that it is “reasonable to conclude that large-scale arbitrary detention” took place at least between 2017 and 2019. China has closed many of the camps, but hundreds of thousands are still imprisoned on vague and secret charges. A farmer in the Xinjiang region walks past a wall with Chinese government propaganda on March 19, 2021. The photo shows people from ethnic minorities reading the constitution. Next to it is the slogan: Unity and stability are happiness, separatism and unrest are unhappiness. Photo: Ng Han Guan / AP The UN agency mentions in the report that, in addition to the camps, a large increase in arrests and long prison sentences has been reported in the region. OHCHR believes this may be evidence of a changed tactic. This, combined with vague and far-reaching definitions of, among other things, terrorism and extremism, can lead to people being sentenced to long prison sentences for minor offenses or things that are protected by international human rights laws, writes OHCHR. The treatment is not described as genocide in the report. It is one of the most serious accusations made by China’s critics, including the United States and elected officials in other Western countries. Published at the last minute The report came out just before midnight on Wednesday, just minutes before UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet stepped down. The report is being released despite pressure from Chinese authorities not to publish it. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet at a UN meeting in Switzerland in June. Photo: Valentin Flauraud / AP – I promised that I would make it public before my mandate ended, and I have. The matters are serious, and I raised them with national and regional authorities in the country at a high level, writes Bachelet in an email to the AFP news agency. She was the subject of very strong criticism in connection with a visit to China in May. During and after the visit, she was accused of making light of the country’s human rights violations, including the persecution of the Uighur minority. Bachelet insists that dialogue with Beijing is not the same as “tolerating, ignoring or pretending not to see”. – The politicization of these serious human rights problems by some states has not helped, she says, however. – It has made the task, the building of trust and the ability to really make a difference on the ground more difficult, she adds. China opposes conclusions After it was announced that the report would be released, China’s UN ambassador Zhang Jun said the Chinese government had informed Bachelet that it “strongly opposes” its conclusions. – The so-called Xinjiang case is a completely fabricated lie, motivated by political considerations. The purpose is definitely to undermine China’s stability and to prevent China’s development, Zhang told reporters in New York. According to him, Bachelet should have remained “independent” and not given in to “political pressure” from Western countries. Bachelet and her office have said several times that one of the reasons the report was delayed is that it was first sent to Beijing for comment, a common practice with such reports. Zhang has maintained that China was not allowed to see the report. – It undermines the cooperation between the UN and a member state. It is obviously meddling in China’s internal affairs, Zhang said.
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China’s internment camps in Xinjiang may be crimes against humanity – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
