United Nations rights chief Volker Turk on Tuesday demanded action from Beijing to address 'grave concerns' over the human rights situation in China's Xinjiang province.
This photo taken on June 4, 2019 shows the Chinese flag behind razor wire at a housing compound in Yangisar, south of Kashgar, in China's western Xinjiang region. Xinjiang's Uighur minority is straitjacketed by surveillance and mass detentions. A pervasive security apparatus has subdued the ethnic unrest that has long plagued the region. Greg Baker/ AFP
The UN is concerned about the protection of minorities such as the Uyghurs in Xinjiang and Tibetans, Turk said in his speech to the first UN Human Rights Council session of the year. He also voiced unease over restrictions of civic discourse in China and the far-reaching national security law in Hong Kong imposed in 2020 to stamp out dissent following the city's huge and often violent pro-democracy demonstrations.
It detailed a string of rights violations against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities, highlighting "credible" allegations of widespread torture, arbitrary detention and violations of religious and reproductive rights. But intense Chinese lobbying saw nations vote 19-17 against discussing the findings, with 11 abstaining.
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