China angered by French parliament vote accusing it of genocide in Xinjiang

The resolution says Beijing’s treatment of the Uygur population amounts to a ‘crime against humanity’

China dismisses the accusations and accuses the National Assembly of ‘gross’ interference in the country’s internal affairs

Reading Time:2 minutes

China is accused of detaining a million Muslims in camps and using forced labour in Xinjiang. Photo: AFP

Published: 5:43pm, 21 Jan 2022Updated: 6:12pm, 21 Jan 2022

China condemned a French parliamentary resolution that accuses Beijing of carrying out a genocide against its Uygur Muslim population, a move that has strained ties two weeks before the Winter Olympics.

The resolution adds to a chorus of Western nations that have accused Beijing of placing around one million Uygurs in detention camps in Xinjiang. It said “the violence perpetrated by the People’s Republic of China against the Uygurs” constituted “crimes against humanity and genocide”.

France’s National Assembly joins Canada, the Netherlands, Britain and Belgium in having parliaments where lawmakers have passed similar motions. The United States government has formally accused China of genocide in Xinjiang.

But China rejects such accusations and hit out at French lawmakers on Friday.

“The French National Assembly’s resolution on Xinjiang ignores facts and legal knowledge and grossly interferes in China’s internal affairs,” foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said. “China firmly opposes it.”

The French motion was proposed by the opposition Socialists in the lower house of parliament but also backed by President Emmanuel Macron’s Republic on the Move (LREM) party.

The non-binding resolution was adopted with 169 votes in favour and just one against on Thursday.