MPs condemn Uighur abuse
Some dissent but Parlt stops short of calling it genocide
Parliament has condemned “severe human rights abuses” against Uighur in China — but not “genocide”. The original wording of the motion put forward by the ACT party had requested Parliament debate whether human rights abuses against the Muslim minority group Uighur in the Chinese region of Xinjiang amounted to genocide, and, if they did, for the Government to fulfil its obligations under international law.
The motion, filed by ACT deputy leader and foreign affairs spokeswoman Brooke van Velden last week, needed the support of each MP in the House in order to be debated.
But Labour only supported the motion if the term “genocide” was removed.
As the topic was debated in the House, ACT, the Green Party and te Pa¯ti Ma¯ori (Ma¯ori Party) all asserted their support for the original motion using the term “genocide”.
Speaking on behalf of Labour, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta acknowledged unanimous support for the motion across the house.
She said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who was not present during the debate, had raised the concerns directly with the Chinese Government, and called on China to respect the rights of the Uighur and other ethnic minorities.
While the Government had not formally designated the situation as genocide, it was “not due to lack of concern”.
“Genocide is the gravest of international crimes and a formal legal determination should only be reached following a rigorous assessment on the basis of international law.
“New Zealand has not previously made an independent determination of genocide, we relied upon judicial findings of genocide in the case of Cambodia, Rwanda and, of course, the Holocaust.”
The Government would continue to work with international partners and the United Nations to push for an investigation and abuses to end, she said.
Van Velden said having to dilute and soften the motion to gain the acceptance of the governing party was “intolerable”.
“Our conscience requires that we support this motion, we know that a genocide is taking place.
“Genocide does not require a war, it does not need to be sudden, it can be slow and deliberate and that is what is happening here.”
There had been forced sterilisation on the Uighur population, she said, and noted the United States had declared there was a genocide occurring, under both former president Donald Trump and President Joe Biden.
Parliaments in the Netherlands, Canada and the United Kingdom had also voted to pass similar motions condemning the abuse as “genocide”.