China ‘committed genocide’ in Xinjiang
AN independent and unofficial body set up by a prominent British barrister to assess evidence on China’s alleged rights abuses against the Uighur people has concluded that the Chinese government has committed genocide and crimes against humanity.
The Uyghur Tribunal, made up of lawyers, academics and businesspeople, does not have any Government backing or powers to sanction or punish China. But its organisers hope the process of publicly laying out evidence will compel international action to tackle alleged abuses against the Uighurs, a largely Muslim ethnic group.
The tribunal chairman, Sir Geoffrey Nice, said the group was satisfied that forced birth control and sterilisation policies targeting Uighurs in China’s far western Xinjiang province were intended to reduce the group’s population. The abuse was part of comprehensive policies directly linked to President Xi Jinping and the highest levels of the Chinese government, he said. The Chinese Embassy in London did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In Beijing, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, Wang Wenbin, said that “the so-called forced labour and genocide in Xinjiang are entirely vicious rumours”.
Mr Wang was responding to a question about a law passed on Wednesday by the US House of Representatives to ban imports from Xinjiang over forced labour concerns. Mr Wang accused the US of using Xinjiang-related issues to “spread rumours under the guise of human rights and engage in political manipulation and economic bullying”.
The Uyghur Tribunal concluded that it was beyond doubt that crimes against humanity were committed, including the torture and rape of scores of people held in vast detention centres.
An estimated one million people or more – most of them Uighurs – have been confined in re-education camps in Xinjiang in recent years, according to researchers.
The hearings were the latest attempt to hold China accountable for alleged rights abuses against the Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim and ethnic Turkic minorities.
Around 30 witnesses and experts gave evidence to a series of public hearings in central London earlier this year. The hearings also reviewed evidence, including leaked Chinese government documents, detailing other policies including systematic forced birth control, the separation of young children from their families, forced labour and the destruction of mosques.
The US government has declared that Beijing’s policies against the Uighurs amounted to genocide, as have legislatures in Britain, Belgium, Holland and Canada.