Xinjiang camps: UN ambassadors urge China to end detention of Uygurs in open letter
- Document calls on Beijing to ‘uphold its national laws and international obligations and to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms’
- Letter signed by envoys from 22 countries, including Australia, Britain, France and Germany
Nearly two dozen countries have called on China to halt its mass detention of ethnic Uygurs in Xinjiang, the first such joint move on the issue at the UN Human Rights Council, according to diplomats and a letter seen by Reuters.
UN experts and activists say at least 1 million Uygurs and other Muslims are being held in detention camps in the remote western region.
The unprecedented letter to the president of the forum, dated Monday, was signed by the ambassadors of 22 countries. Australia, Canada and Japan were among them, along with European countries including Britain, France, Germany and Switzerland, but not the United States which quit the forum a year ago.
It fell short of a formal statement being read out at the council or a resolution submitted for a vote, as sought by activists. This was due to governments’ fears of a potential political and economic backlash from China, diplomats said.