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Reactions to Xinjiang Police Files: "Appalling Persecution"

2022-05-24T20:35:29.332Z


The Xinjiang Police Files are causing outrage in the West. British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss calls for China to be held accountable. Beijing, on the other hand, sees "anti-Chinese forces" at work.


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Uighur protest in front of the US State Department in Washington

PHOTO: LEAH MILLIS / REUTERS

The disclosure of the Xinjiang Police Files by SPIEGEL and its research partners has sparked international outrage.

The US government is appalled by the reports.

China must release all those arbitrarily detained, close detention centers and "end mass incarceration, torture, forced sterilization and the use of forced labor."

Similar to Foreign Minister Baerbock, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss called on China to clarify the allegations.

According to a statement from the British Foreign Office, Truss spoke of “shocking details” about Chinese human rights violations.

The new evidence showed the extraordinary scale of China's crackdown on Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minorities.

Britain continues to work to hold China accountable for the "appalling persecution of the Uyghurs," the statement said.

Demands on UN Human Rights Commissioner Bachelet

US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield tweeted: "Appalled by Xinjiang police files showing China's mass detentions of Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities."

She called on the United Nations and UN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet to demand China's access to the region and to press for answers.

The release of the Xinjiang Police Files coincides with UN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet's visit to the region.

The former Chilean President's trip is controversial.

Bachelet told a group of China-based diplomats on Monday that her trip aims to promote, protect and respect human rights.

She said her visit was not an "investigation."

The United Kingdom also expects Bachelet to have "full and unimpeded access to the region," according to the statement from London.

"If such access is not granted, the visit will only serve to expose China's attempts to hide the truth about its actions in Xinjiang."

The United Nations has also expressed concern over the new revelations in Xinjiang.

"We have seen the reports, which are very worrying," spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said in New York.

He pointed out that Bachelet is currently in China to discuss the issue of the treatment of the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang.

Michelle Bachelet herself has not yet commented.

Representatives of the Uyghur ethnic group living abroad are urging Human Rights Commissioner Bachelet to visit her relatives who are being held in Xinjiang and not to be manipulated by the local authorities when she travels to China.

Norway calls for an end to arbitrary detention

The Norwegian Foreign Ministry also said: "Norway has regularly expressed its concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang, both in talks with the Chinese government and with other countries at the UN," according to a statement by the Norwegian Foreign Ministry on behalf of Deputy Foreign Minister Eivind Vad Petersson.

"We call on the Chinese government to respect human rights and stop the arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and other minorities."

more on the subject

  • Torture chair, order to shoot, assault rifles: data leak gives unique insight into China's brutal apparatus of repression

  • Answers to the most important questions: What are the Xinjiang Police Files about? By Christoph Giesen, Frederik Obermaier, Bastian Obermayer and Bernhard Zand

  • Satellite Photos, Secret Orders, and Inmate Lists: How We Checked the Xinjiang Police FilesBy Alexander Epp and Roman Höfner

  • Repression in Xinjiang: How China Established a Gulag for MuslimsBy Bernhard Zand

On Tuesday morning, DER SPIEGEL, together with thirteen other media companies, unveiled new documents proving the arbitrary and mass internment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang, a region in north-west China.

Among them are never-before-seen photos from inside re-education camps, confidential official instructions and speeches by Chinese officials.

The United Nations estimates that around a million people were at one point incarcerated in northwestern China.

Most are Uyghurs, a Muslim minority in the People's Republic.

Beijing speaks of "anti-Chinese forces"

For years, China's government has claimed that the camps are professional training institutions aimed at fighting poverty and extremist ideas.

Staying in the camps is voluntary.

This is contradicted by the Xinjiang Police Files.

Beijing responded to the reports on Tuesday.

It was said that "anti-Chinese forces" were behind the publication.

"Spreading rumors and lies cannot deceive the world and hide the fact that Xinjiang has a peaceful, prosperous society and a thriving economy, and people live and work in peace and happiness," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin in Beijing.

col/slu/AFP/dpa/Reuters

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2022-05-24

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