Beijing sends envoys to the UN to restore the "truth" on Xinjiang

China has dispatched a small army of Xinjiang officials to Geneva to meet with a UN official and hammer home to the media its "

" about what is happening in this province where Beijing is accused of crimes against humanity.

The long presentation of more than two hours - the press was only able to ask three questions - was held in the small press room of the UN headquarters against the backdrop of the famous sky blue emblem of the international organization.

Challenge to UN report on Xinjiang

On the podium, five representatives of Xinjiang, including Xu Guixiang, director of information for this region, an imam and a university official to counter almost line by line the report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet.

He accuses China of persecuting the minorities of Xinjiang, and in the first place the Uyghurs.

"

," assured Mr. Xu, at the opening of what had been presented as a press conference.

“

”, he concluded, two hours later.

Read alsoUN report on Xinjiang: Beijing castigates a “political tool” against China and believes that the UN is in the pay of the United States

A meeting is planned with the acting High Commissioner for Human Rights Nada Al-Nashif, said a UN spokeswoman, contacted by AFP.

For several years, China has been accused - with physical evidence and supporting documents - by Western countries and human rights organizations of having locked up in Xinjiang more than a million Uyghurs and other members of Muslim minorities, including Kazakhs, in camps.

Beijing rejects these accusations, claiming to fight terrorism and ensure the development of the region.

Relations between China and the UN have soured since Michelle Bachelet published her report in extremis, a few minutes before the end of her mandate, and despite enormous pressure from Beijing to bury her.

Read alsoChina: criticized for her visit to Xinjiang, the UN envoy Michelle Bachelet defends herself

In this document, the UN does not speak of genocide but evokes possible "

" and "

" of torture and sexual violence and calls on the international community to act.

On Thursday, Xinjiang officials took turns debunking accusations from the UN and human rights organizations, endlessly repeating arguments already made by Beijing or listing long series of statistics on the growth of the population in Xinjiang to demonstrate that minorities there are not discriminated against.

On the contrary, they have four more days off per year than the rest of the population in China and enjoy free annual health checks, Xu said, later arguing that "

".

China tries to avoid adoption of a resolution

"

", assured for his part Muhterem Sherip, vice-president of the Islamic association of Xinjiang and imam in Urumqi (the regional capital), who accused the High Commission of confusing "

”.

Several investigations have demonstrated the destruction by the authorities of countless minarets.

Xu also said Beijing's envoys hoped to meet UN officials and diplomats in Geneva.

China is currently exerting significant pressure on countries behind the scenes in Geneva to counter any initiative against it.

Beijing fears that countries will launch a draft resolution at the current session of the Human Rights Council to investigate allegations of violations in Xinjiang.

"

," Xu Guixian said.

"

," he assured, before calling on international organizations, including the United Nations human rights bodies, "

.