China fit don commit crimes against humanity for Xinjiang – UN

Three pipo wear blue mask wit di Islamic star and crescent and di China flag cover dia mouth

Reuters
Three pipo wear blue mask wit di Islamic star and crescent and di China flag cover dia mouth

United Nations don accuse China of “serious human rights violations” inside one long-awaited report into allegations of abuse for Xinjiang province.

China don ask di UN say make dem no release di report – as Beijing call am “farce” wey di Western powers arrange.

Di report check claims of abuse against Uyghur Muslims and oda ethnic minorities wey China deny.

But investigators say dem find “credible evidence” of torture wey amount to “crimes against humanity”.

Wetin dey di report

China dey accused of detaining up to one million Uyghurs and oda Muslims for detention camps for Xinjiang

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China dey accused of detaining up to one million Uyghurs and oda Muslims for detention camps for Xinjiang

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet release di report on her final day on di job afta four years.

Accusations of China abuse against Uyghurs na im dominate her term for officer.

Her team report accuse China say e dey use vague national security laws to clamp down on di rights of minorities and dey establish “systems of arbitrary detention”.

Di report say prisoners dey subjected to “patterns of ill-treatment” wey include “incidents of sexual and gender-based violence”.

E say odas dey face forced medical treatment and “discriminatory enforcement of family planning and birth control policies”.

UN recommendations

Di UN recommend say make China immediately take steps to release “all individuals wey dem rob of dia liberty” and suggest say some of Beijing actions fit amount to di “commission of international crimes, including crimes against humanity”.

While di UN say dem no dey sure how many pipo goment don hold, human rights groups estimate say more than one million pipo dey detained for camps for di Xinjiang region, for north-west China.

Di World Uyghur Congress welcome di report and urge a swift international response.

“Despite di Chinese goment plenty denials, di UN now don officially recognise say horrific crimes dey occur,” Uyghur Human Rights Project Executive Director Omer Kanat tok.

Wetin Human Rights claim say dey happun for Uyghur

Back of one man in front of masjid

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About 12 million Uyghurs, mostly Muslim, dey live for Xinjiang.

According to research by one Uyghur rights group for 2021, China don jail at least 630 imams and oda Muslim religious figures since 2014 for dia crackdown for di Xinjiang region.

Di research, wey di Uyghur Human Rights Project compile and share wit BBC, also see evidence say 18 clerics don die inside detention or shortly after.

Many of di detained clerics dey face broad charges like “propagating extremism”, “gathering a crowd to disturb social order”, and “inciting separatism”.

Di UN say pipo wey no be Muslim fit also don dey affected by di issues for di report.

Di US and lawmakers for several oda kontris previously reject China actions for Xinjiang as genocide, but di UN stop di accusation. 

How China react to di report

China alleged abuses for Xinjiang don generate global outrage since one escalation for 2017

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China alleged abuses for Xinjiang don generate global outrage since one escalation for 2017

Beijing – wey don see di report before now – deny allegations of abuse and argue say di camps na tool to fight terrorism.

China don always insist say Uyghur militants dey wage violent campaign for independent state, but dem accuse China of exaggerating di threat in order to justify repression of di Uyghurs.

Dia delegation to di UN human rights council for Geneva on Thursday reject di findings of di report wey dem tok say “smear and slander China” and interfere for di kontri internal affairs.

“Dis so-called ‘assessment’ na politicised document wey ignore di facts, and fully expose di  intention of diUS, Western kontris and anti-China forces to use human rights as a political tool,” e tok for one lengthy statement.

Di UN go bring about change?

Di ball now dey for di global community court, Tessa Wong, Asia Digital Reporter tok.

Already, Uyghur rights activists want make commission of inquiry dey set up, and dem dey ask businesses around di world to cut all ties wit anyone wey dey support Chinese goment for di handling of di Uyghurs.

Whether increased international pressure go result in concrete change dey debatable.

Beijing don double down on dia stance, as dem deny say no atrocities happun and dem be victim of Western-led smear campaign. E say Xinjiang dey socially stable and economically developed and dem even call am “di greatest human rights achievement”.

Dis investigation na di latest for di long series of bad reports wey Beijing don summarily dismiss.