The joint declaration speaks of torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, forced sterilization, sexual and gender-based violence and forced separation.
Forty-three countries on all continents on Thursday demanded that China “guarantee respect for the rule of law” to the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, where they say the human rights situation is “particularly” worrying, something that Beijing denies.
“We urge China to allow immediate and unhindered access to Xinjiang for independent observers, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and his Office,” French Ambassador to the UN Nicolas de Rivière said in his speech during a virtual meeting of the third commission of the UN General Assembly, specialized in human rights.
“We are particularly concerned about the situation in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region,” he stressed, citing credible reports about “political re-education camps where more than a million people are arbitrarily detained.”
The joint statement speaks of torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, forced sterilization, sexual and gender-based violence, and forced separation of children, targeting “disproportionately Uighurs and members of other minorities.”
The Chinese ambassador to the UN, Zhang Jun, quickly intervened in the meeting to denounce and reject these “baseless accusations.”
“Xinjiang is enjoying development and the people are emancipated every day and are proud of the progress they have made,” he said.
Later, at a press conference, Zhang said that China wishes to host a “friendly” visit to the region, but disagreed with the UN commissioner for human rights carrying out an investigation.
The ambassador accused the United States, France and the United Kingdom of having a “terrible human rights record.”
In a statement sent to the media, the Chinese government accused the United States of having carried out “inhuman ethnic cleansing” against Native Americans and accused France of having committed “crimes against humanity” in its former colonies.
Two years ago, the declaration was signed by 23 countries, and a year later it received the support of 39, which were joined in 2021 by Turkey, Eswatini, Portugal and the Czech Republic.
According to diplomats, China puts pressure on UN members every year to dissuade them from signing the declaration, threatening to block a peacekeeping mission in one country or prevent the installation of a new embassy in China for another. (I)
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