‘Based on lies’: China demands UN meeting on Uygurs be cancelled, claiming political bias

China’s diplomatic mission to the UN says current situation in Xinjiang is ‘at its best in history with stability … and harmonious coexistence’

On eve of meeting between US, UK and German ambassadors to the UN, Beijing accuses US of hypocrisy regarding welfare of Muslims

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At least 1 million Uygurs and people from other mostly Muslim groups have been held in camps in Xinjiang region, according to rights groups Photo: AFP

Published: 1:23pm, 11 May 2021Updated: 1:23pm, 11 May 2021

China on Monday urged the United States, Germany and Britain to cancel an upcoming videoconference on Beijing’s crackdown on the Uygur Muslim minority, and called on other United Nations members not to attend the event.

At least 1 million Uygurs and people from other mostly Muslim groups have been held in camps in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region, according to rights groups who accuse authorities of forcibly sterilising women and imposing forced labour.

The videoconference, scheduled for Wednesday, “is based on sheer lies and political bias,” China’s diplomatic mission to the UN said in a statement.

Beijing “urges the cosponsors to immediately cancel this event which interferes in China’s internal affairs, and calls on other member states to reject the event.”

“The current situation in Xinjiang is at its best in history with stability, rapid economic development and harmonious coexistence among people of all ethnic groups,” the statement said.

In addition to the camps, millions more Muslims in China allegedly live under a tough system of surveillance and controls.

The US recently declared that the treatment of Uygurs was “genocide.”