China on Tuesday once again rejected criticism of its treatment of ethnic Muslims, telling the United Nations that accusations of rights abuses from some countries were "politically driven." At a U. N. review of the country’s human rights record, China characterized the far west region of Xinjiang
China on Tuesday once again rejected criticism of its treatment of ethnic Muslims, telling the United Nations that accusations of rights abuses from some countries were “politically driven.”
At a U. N. review of the country’s human rights record, China characterized the far west region of Xinjiang as a former hotbed of extremism that has been stabilized through “training centers” which help people gain employable skills.
Former detainees of such centers, on the other hand, have described the facilities as political indoctrination camps where ethnic Uighurs, Kazakhs and other Muslim minorities are forced to renounce their faith and swear loyalty to the ruling Communist Party.
The U. N. has previously said there are credible reports that as many as 1 million people are being held in this form of extrajudicial detention.
At Tuesday’s review — part of the Human Rights Council’s periodic review process for every member state — the U. S., Canada, Japan and several other countries called on Beijing to address growing concerns over its treatment of Xinjiang Muslims.
U. S. charge d’affaires Mark Cassayre urged China to “immediately release the hundreds of thousands, possibly millions, of individuals” arbitrarily detained in the region. Representatives from both Canada and the UK said the country’s human rights situation has “deteriorated.
